EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire football team was back at home on Saturday as they continued their Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) schedule with UW-Platteville in town. Despite a remarkable start and a 14-point lead on the opening drives, the Blugolds were held scoreless the rest of the game as they fell to the Pioneers, 47-14.
UW-Eau Claire dove into their bag of tricks to start the game as
Ben Wade (So. – Salem, Wis./Central) recovered his own onside kick to give the Blugolds prime field position on their opening drive. After a big gain on a rush by
Ivan Ruble (Jr. – Clear Lake, Wis.),
Harry Roubidoux (Jr. – Winneconne, Wis.) found
Isaac Garside (Jr. – Bonduel, Wis.) for a 27-yard touchdown to open the scoring for Eau Claire. After a stellar start by the offense, the Blugold defense carried the momentum into their play during Platteville's opening drive. With a 3
rd and 7 opportunity,
Brady Hoffner (So. – Mankato, Minn./Mankato East) broke free and sacked the Pioneer quarterback for a loss of 18 yards to force a three and out.
Building off the defensive stop, UW-Eau Claire's offense jumped right back into gear. A UWP penalty on a fourth down conversion gave UWEC the opportunity to distance themselves from the visitors. Roubidoux and the Blugolds did just that with a 42-yard completion to
Landon Tonsager (Fr. – Eagan, Minn.) to put UWEC at the UWP 5. Two plays later,
Isaac Garside caught his second receiving touchdown from Roubidoux to increase the Blugold lead.
Dan Zeuli (Jr. – Hudson, Wis.) cashed in his second extra point of the day as the Blugolds took a 14-0 lead.
The Blugolds kept pressing with their double-digit lead as the defense forced their second three and out of the afternoon as UWP tallied a combined -7 yards on their first two drives.
The ensuing drive for UWEC found 21 yards of offense but fell short on a rush for a loss and a deep incomplete pass to force a Blugold punt. UWP answered on their next drive with a 31-yard rush to make it 14-6. A failed extra point gave UWEC the 8-point lead as the first quarter ended.
The second quarter held a different tune as the Blugolds punted on their first three drives. The Pioneers tallied three straight scoring drives to take a 23-14 lead at halftime. Right before the break,
Myles Anderson (Jr. – Milwaukee, Wis./Golda Meir) kept the deficit at nine points with his first career interception on a diving catch in the end zone. Anderson ended the day with UWEC's only forced turnover.
The third and fourth quarters saw the Blugolds' offense silenced as Platteville kept UWEC off the board. The visitors tallied 24 unanswered points in the second half to hand Eau Claire the 47-14 loss at home.
Isaac Garside finished the game with seven catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Four other Blugold receivers finished the day with multiple catches.
Harry Roubidoux tallied14 completions for 133 yards and two touchdowns.
Ivan Ruble recorded 39 yards on the ground on 13 carries. Defensively, the Blugolds were led by
Gyanni Kanellakis (Jr. – Cary, Ill./Cary Grove) with ten tackles on the day.
Brady Hoffner recorded 8 tackles including two sacks for a combined 26 yards loss.
Ryan Kuechle (Sr. – Mankato, Minn./Mankato East) found his way around the field with nine tackles of his own.
The Blugolds (2-5, WIAC 1-3) will be back in action on Saturday, October 28
th when they travel to UW-La Crosse. Kickoff from Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex is scheduled for 11:30 a.m.
