Thanks for reading everyone. I'll try to update later this evening if the final changes, but I'm heading out a touch early. I'll let you know what's ahead for state coverage. Arrowhead is getting used to this state title game thing.
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I'm going to shut this one down early, so I can pack up shop and get to the field level for quotes. There's 2:33 on the clock, and Arrowhead has a healthy lead. They'll play at 4 p.m. next weekend at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. For the third year in a row, they will face Homestead, with both teams winning one of the previous two meetings. It should be an excellent matchup between two undefeated teams.
Looks like it's not over yet. Calvin Ramsey gets in on the fun, churning for a 65-yard touchdown. What else but another big play? That's the 28th scoring play of the year netting 40 yards or more. Arrowhead winds up winning going away.
Arrowhead 49, Stevens Point 21, 1:52 4th quarter.
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Chris Pendergast should have just knocked it down, but he intercepts the ball at the AHS 4-yard line to kill the drive and basically put this one on ice.
Point isn't using its timeouts. We're under 3:30 to play, and Arrowhead is about to head to state.
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Sikorski rumbles inside the Arrowhead 30 and fumbles the ball, but a teammate picks it up and streaks to the 20 to keep the SPASH drive alive. Time is of the essence for Stevens Point, however, since they prefer their run game and only have 6:04 remaining.
An incomplete pass and stop at the line of scrimmage makes it 3rd down. The Panthers taking way too much time to get going, and the clock reads 5:24 by the time another incomplete pass sets up fourth down. They'll be going for it, and AHS can essentially feel like winners if they stop.
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The Panthers definitely aren't going down without a fight. Sikorski slashes through the Arrowhead line on a few running plays and gets the ball down to the AHS 37, with first down and 8 minutes remaining.
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Arrowhead may have just put the dagger in. Jake Poehls intercepted a ball at the SPASH 40 and ran all the way to the 1-yard line. Brian Crook takes it from there, and the Warhawks suddenly have a 3-score lead. It's starting to feel like Madison.
Arrowhead 42, SPASH 21, 9:28 4th quarter.
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Parish rushes for the first down, putting the ball at the Panthers' 30 yard line. Arrowhead really needs another score with 10:44 left in this game.
And there it is. Crook takes a pitch, bursts to the left sideline, and he's gone. A huge 30-yard touchdown that is going to require some heroics from SPASH.
Arrowhead 35, Stevens Point 21, 10:31 4th quarter.
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It doesn't have quite the impact of the previous big-play responses to SPASH touchdowns, but Brian Crook did his best with a 37-yard run to set up Arrowhead back in SPASH territory. It's quickly third down, however, with 7 yards to gain.
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The third quarter ends, with Arrowhead holding the ball at the 21-yard line. Both sections have reason to cheer, but this game is still up for grabs. Winner gets Homestead in next week's state title game.
After third: Arrowhead 28, Stevens Point 21.
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Looks like Arrowhead will need yet another answer. Sikorski took the ball on 3rd and 4, fought through the pile and plunged into the end zone to pull his team back within a score. The extra point comes with virtually no time left in the third quarter.
Arrowhead 28, Stevens Point 21, 0:05, 3rd quarter.
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Jared Volk just made a punishing hit on Sikorski in the backfield after the SPASH running back dropped a pitch. It set up a 3rd and 16, but Winker found Walder down the middle of the field for a 21-yard gain. SPASH is threatening to score on 1st and 10 from the AHS 19, with 1:30 on the clock in the third quarter.
Peplinski hauls in another meaty reception, and it's 1st and goal from the 5.
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Once again, Arrowhead has a major, major answer.
Brian Crook ranged to the right sideline to take the kickoff, then outruns tacklers as he runs horizontally to the left line. He surges upfield, sneaks past a tackler all the way down to the 14 yard line of Stevens Point. That's roughly a 78-yard return.
One play later, Calvin Ramsey punches it in, and Arrowhead has stolen all the momentum away for the second straight time in this game. The big play brigade is in full force.
Arrowhead 28, Stevens Point 14, 5:20 3rd quarter.
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Another fumble deep in the AHS end zone. I didn't see who put it on the ground, but this is the second fumble close to the goal line in the game for the Warhawks. SPASH recovers, and start with the ball on Arrowhead's 4.
Winker keeps it on third down and punches it in. The Warhawks shoot themselves in the foot badly, and SPASH takes advantage. We have a ballgame again.
Arrowhead 21, Stevens Point 14, 5:44 3rd quarter
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Jake Tatro, SPASH's secondary running option, is apparently out of the game. They'll rely even more heavily on Sikorski, in that case. Sikorski takes it to the 39 for 3rd and 1, but illegal procedure (one of very few flags in this game) makes the conversion trickier for the Panthers.
Pass is incomplete, off the outstretched hands of Arrowhead defender Jake Poehls. It's punting time this time around for the Panthers. Mike Walder's good punt gives AHS the ball at its own 7 with 7:10 to play.
The thunder sticks are re-entering the picture.
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SPASH gets the ball to open up the second half and immediately connects for a 16-yard pass play. Once again, they are able to find seams in the AHS defense, especially when they pass the ball. Joe Horvath, who caught the first ball, also fights for 9 yards on a completion to move the chains ... 1st and 10 on the SPASH 38.
The running game is starting to show some weaknesses. Whereas Sikorski had plenty of room to maneuver before, he's now running into resistance. A three-yard loss on first down exemplifies that, and SPASH immediately goes back to airing it out. A near sack by Seitz (that guy is EVERYWHERE today) causes an incomplete pass, 3rd and long.
Sikorski catches a pass and gets good yardage, but it's 4th and 2. Decision time for SPASH on the 47. They catch Arrowhead changing personnel around, and Horvath gets the yardage.
Still driving, 9:02 left in the third.
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I have Parish for nine carries in the first half and 145 yards -- naturally helped by an 80-yard and 52-yard touchdown run. Usually, Calvin Ramsey and Brian Crook are the running machines, but they've combined for just 27 yards. AHS is sticking with what works.
Sikorski slowed from his early pace and has 80 yards on 18 carries. The big plays are the primay difference between the two teams. AHS has 196 on the ground and 70 in the air, while SPASH has 73 on the ground and 55 through the air. Take away the three touchdowns -- including a 49-yard pass play -- and there's no question which team has had more success moving the ball -- SPASH. But that doesn't matter if you can't stop the home run, and AHS has shown no hesitance in creating those.
In fact, they now have 27 touchdowns this year of 40 yards or longer, trumping the two plays of that variety last week against Hartford. Just astonishing big-play ability.
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The Warhawks defend the pass well this time and force a quick punt. Parish airs it out after getting the ball at his own 46, hoping for another quick strike to give AHS a major advantage. It falls incomplete, however, and the Warhawks head into the locker room with a two-score edge.
HALFTIME: Arrowhead 21, SPASH 7.
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Arrowhead gets the touchdown before halftime.
Brady Steinbach makes a great 18-yard reception, catching a tipped pass on third down to move the chains. Then comes Arrowhead's big strike offense, as Tom Parish lofted a ball to Russ Finco for a 49-yard touchdown. It's right on the money, just like it was in the game last week, when Parish hit Finco down the right sideline for a similar strike.
Arrowhead 21, SPASH 7, 1:24 2nd quarter.
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Seitz comes flying through the line again and hits Winker just as he tries to uncork the ball. Too late -- it's a sack -- and the Arrowhead defense holds court. AHS gets the ball back looking for one more score before halftime.
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Charlie Seitz bursts through the line to shut down Sikorski for a loss of five yards, one play after Matt Boerner's sack pushed them back on third. SPASH elects to go for it on fourth and 14 from the 26, then calls another timeout.
Critical juncture with 2:36 left before halftime.
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We know Jeff Budzien is capable of hitting long field goals, but I don't think anyone was expecting to see him lining one up from 59 yards when the Warhawks faced a fourth down close to midfield. The kick was blocked however, and though AHS nearly recovered it for a first down, SPASH wrestled it away and reclaimed possession on their own 30.
Now, the Panthers are moving the ball very effectively on the ground and through the air, with several first down connections between quarterback Ethan Winker and the top Panthers receiving target, tight end Nick Peplinski. Trailing by a touchdown with 3:30 to go in the half, the Panthers face a 3rd and 9 from the AHS 21. They call timeout to set up the play.
Hamilton, by the way, fell to Verona, 28-14.
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Arrowhead pulls out a stop on fourth down and might have gotten a finger on the punt, as it caromed sideways and went only 8 yards. That gives the Warhawks the ball back on the SPASH 49 yard line, with an opportunity to increase their newfound lead.
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Parish delivers a great fake and busts through for a 22-yard gain, then runs the exact same play all the way to the end zone for a 52-yard touchdown run. Parish has five carries for 139 yards, and it's early in the second quarter.
Arrowhead 14, Stevens Point 7, 11:14, 2nd quarter.
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Drew Meyer plows straight up the gut for a third down conversion deep in AHS territory. It's the end of the first quarter, and the Warhawks get a new set of downs in a tie game.
After first: Arrowhead 7, Stevens Point 7.
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The Panthers have demonstrated an ability to move the ball with the run, which is something that other teams have not been able to do against Arrowhead. Once again, they drive to midfield and beyond after Budzien's punt pinned them on their own 14. Austin Sikorski has been a one-man show, already accumulating 53 yards on the ground with 2:22 in the first quarter.
Big third down play on 3rd and 8 from the AHS 48, and the Warhawks tackle Sikorski for a loss. The Hawks get the ball back.
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Arrowhead gets a turnover and gets possession back after Point moved the ball close to midfield. Sikorski muffs a handoff, and Jim Bernatz hops on top to recover the fumble and take the ball on the SPASH 43.
The drives flounders though, and Budzien is brought in to punt. Six minutes remain in the first quarter, tied at 7.
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WHAT AN ANSWER
On the first play of the ensuing drive, quarterback Tom Parish atoned for his fumble, surging through the line and outrunning Isaac Elliott down the field for an 80-yard touchdown. Jeff Budzien adds the extra point, and with virtually no time off the clock in the first quarter, we have a shootout.
Arrowhead 7, Stevens Point 7, 10:04, 1st quarter.
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Disaster on the opening drive. With a second down play starting from the AHS 23, an option pitch went over the head of the running back, and Stevens Point recovered the fumble on the 7. Two plays later, Austin Sikorski rushed the ball in for the Panthers, and boom, just like that the Warhawks trail. They're seldom in this position.
Stevens Point 7, Arrowhead 0, 10:20, 1st quarter.
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Arrowhead (12-0) vs. Stevens Point (10-2)
SPASH entered the playoffs as a No. 3 seed, but they earned a signature win over previously-unbeaten DC Everest in the second round, 35-17. They defeated Appleton North Last week to reach this point.
Arrowhead survived a scare in this very stadium against Oshkosh West two weeks ago, then thumped Hartford at home last week, 35-0.
Arrowhead receives the opening kickoff, and we're underway.
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As I reported on Lake Country Watch, Hamilton trailed Verona in the Division 2 semifinals at halftime, 14-0. The deficit is the same in the third quarter, with Verona holding a 21-7 lead. Reporter Chris Schuck will call in a final score when it's available.
Staggering surprise in Division 3, where Reedsburg -- which came into the playoffs unseeded, like Hamilton -- holds a 40-20 lead over Wisconsin Lutheran in the fourth quarter. Wisco was largely considered the favorite to win another state title, but it appears the highly-possible scenario of repeat champs in Divisions 1, 2 and 3 is going to fall by the wayside. Arrowhead and Kimberly, for the record, are defending champs in 1 and 2 and remain alive to make Madison.
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The Arrowhead fans have thunder sticks. I thought those were banned from sports viewing when they got a bad review following the Brewers second home playoff game against the Phillies a month ago.
The Point students have come adorned in blaze orange to fit the season.
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I'm perched in the press box at J.J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium in Oshkosh, almost as far away as I would be next week if Arrowhead advanced to the state title game in Madison next weekend. It's a nice facility, to be sure, but I don't get a break from the weather. The room is set to refridgerate in here.
The field turf appears to be pretty nice, perhaps a step behind Arrowhead's own if I had to guess. The winner between Arrowhead and Stevens Point today will face Homestead in next week's state title game.
The Highlanders defeated Middleton on the other side of the WIAA Division 1 semifinals, 35-21. That game just went final, so it could be a rematch for the third straight year. Or will the Panthers step in the way of a budding state title rivalry? Check back for updates, with a 4 p.m. kickoff looming.