By Kennedy Werner

A rather windy day for football it was… the night of the Homecoming football game. As the student section began to fill with more and more fans, the energy and intensity picked up. The Vikings, at home, (2-6) defeated the Hartland Eagles (2-6) Friday, October 18. Recording their second victory of the season with a score of 24-17, the Vikings had their heads held high going into the Homecoming Dance and next week’s game.

“I still feel like we could play better,” said Head Coach Bob Meyer,  “But it was nice to come away with a win for Homecoming and set the weekend for a good time for all the kids and their families.”

With two touchdowns from Hartland early in the first and second quarters, Central’s football team was not ready to give up yet.

“We knew we got off to a bad start and had to recover from the hole we were in, in the third,” said senior offensive lineman Nick Adamowski.

By the time the third quarter began, WLC jumped back into the game taking the lead 17-14 with a touchdown from junior halfback Parker Krupic.

“It felt great to score because there was so many people at the game,” said Krupic, “I knew that scoring would fire up the team.”

The fourth quarter brought a field goal from Hartland and two touchdowns from Central’s junior quarterback Nick Krumm and a 25-yard field goal from junior kicker Ben Prestel.

“It was great being able to help and contribute,” said Krumm, “It was also good to get a win for homecoming because it made homecoming a lot more fun knowing we were able to get the win.”

Yet, the highlight of Friday’s game was when junior safety and corner back Drake Temple intercepted a pass in the end zone, as the clock was almost out to lock down the win.

“I felt like all my hard work had paid off coming off of surgery on my meniscus,” said Temple, “It made it that much better that the fans were supporting us during our final home game.”

Defensively, Central had a lot of stops and played their hearts out. They pressured Hartland’s quarterback and made some strong tackles. The D-Line did their job to control the line of scrimmage. Junior defensive tackle Keith Thompson made many tackles on the backfield to contribute to the win.

“It was a great feeling for me to get all those tackles,” said Thompson, “The defense executed well but there’s still room for improvement.”

With key plays like Middle Veer and Buck Sweep, Central had the strategy, but also they had the intensity.

“The people on the bench were hype and everybody was playing hard, said junior defensive end Prince Owenu, “The team was supportive of everyone playing.”

Although the team is without senior defensive back Kevin O’Malley for the rest of the season, the entire team agrees that, “It felt good getting a win for homecoming and having the crowd and our families watching us get that win at home,” said Owenu.

As Central’s last game approaches, (next week away at Hartland), the team is prepared to finish the season on a victorious note. Although many seniors will be departing, Varsity Football has a bright future with its quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers all returning next fall.

“I’m just realizing how fast high school flew by,” said Adamowski, “I’m going to miss being with my brothers every single day. It’s more than just a football team, it’s another family.”

But, as the seniors step onto their last ever football game next week, “This whole week it will be in our heads that will be our last game.  The last four years have been the hardest and most special times in our lives, knowing that it is our last game will make us go hard and have something to be remembered by,” said senior defensive end and tackle Marko Beslach.