Eagles end season 13-1, bring home silver ball as Division 7 State runners-up

As the saying goes, “all good things must come to an end,” and the Pepin-Alma Eagles’ “good thing,” a 13-game undefeated streak, came to a heartbreaking end at Camp Randall November 19.
The Eagles finished the 2015 season with a 20-14 loss to Bangor in the Division 7 State championship game last week, earning the silver trophy for the second consecutive season, and a 13-1 overall record.
“It was a very good football game with two great teams,” said Eagles head coach Mike Olson. “We couldn’t get the stop at the end to get the ball back.”
The Eagles found themselves in a position not familiar to their last couple of seasons, a 14-0 defecit, five minutes into the second quarter.
Pepin-Alma cut the gap with just under six minutes left in the half, scoring on a pass from Logan Carroll to Caiden Haake for 54 yards to score. Haake’s extra point brought the Eagles up to 14-7.
Neither team scored in the third quarter as both defenses held strong.
Bangor managed another touchdown run with 8:57 left to play. Pepin-Alma got within striking distance with 2:40 left on the clock on a 1-yard run by Haake, complemented by another point after. The Eagles attempted an onside kick, but Bangor held strong and kept possession to run out the clock and take the State title, 20-14.
“We missed a couple opportunities to score when we got on their side of the field,” Olson said.
“Bangor deserves a lot of credit for not making a single mistake on offense.”
Carroll threw 3-for-8 for 61 yards and 1 touchdown. Haake recorded 2 receptions for 60 yards and a touchdown. Lance Johnson recorded 1 reception for 1 yard.
Trevor Heit led with 73 rushing yards in 23 carries, followed by Johnson with 67 in 17. Haake added 9 in 2 carries and a touchdown.
Heit and Randall Engstrand led defensively with 10 tackles each. Haake tallied 7, followed by Tyler Meixner, Eric Ehlert, James Sterry, and Cole Engstrand with 5 each. Haake and Johnson split the bill on the Eagles’ lone sack of the game.
The Eagles managed to get penalties under control in the championship game, with none marked against them. Bangor suffered 2 penalties for 20 yards.
The Eagles ended their 2015 season with an average 47 points per game. They recorded 1,123 passing yards with 13 touchdowns, and 4,536 rushing yards with 67 touchdowns.
Carroll tallied 1,086 passing yards on the season. Heit recorded 1,876 rushing yards, followed by Johnson with 1,101. Haake was the leading receiver with 635 yards.
“Overall, this was another great season, and the players should be proud for everything they have accomplished,” Olson said. “This group of seniors have been a joy to coach and have left a great legacy.”
Olson said in the seniors’ four years, The Eagles’ overall record has been 46-5 with three conference championships, 31 consecutive regular season wins, and two state runner-up trophies.
Of the 39-player roster, 18 seniors will be leaving the Eagles. Seniors this year include: Randall Engstrand, Cole Engstrand, Matt Serene, Zane Lehnartz, Jimmy Johnson, Spencer Hanson, James Sterry, Eric Ehlert, Jacob Brynjulfson, Madison Larson, Cole Stevens, Jacob Riesgraf, Langston Mlinar, Trevor Heit, Lance Johnson, Nick Spencer, Cole Glass, and Logan Carroll.
Juniors this season include: Jarett Pearson, Trey Johnson, Blaze Bergmann, Andrew Brevick, Lane Larson, Jonah Bacon, Jacob Kircher, Caiden Haake, Ben Mueller, and Tyler Meixner.
Congratulations on a great season, Eagles.