The UW- River Falls Falcons Football squad was defeated by the Eagles of UW- La Crosse by a final score of 37-20 at Roger Harring Stadium at Veteran's Memorial Sports Complex in La Crosse on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons remain winless this season despite a valiant effort against the Eagles.

La Crosse tallied their 18th consecutive victory against River Falls on the sunny October afternoon. The Falcons would struggle as both teams fought to earn their first victory of the season. The win snapped an eight game losing streak for the Eagles dating back to last season. Despite La Crosse coming out on top, the Falcons still maintained several very successful drives throughout the game as they proved their competitiveness to the 1707 fans in attendance.

The Eagles would go on to put the first points on the board during the very first drive of the game. The Eagles won the coin toss and elected to receive. Mike Butterfield would give the Eagles great field position with a 55-yard kickoff return to open up the game. Tailback Lee Lauters had several successful rushing attempts and would go on to catch a 14-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Nick Anker at 13:04. The consequent extra point was good, giving the Eagles an early 7-0 lead.

The Falcons were forced to punt on their first offensive drive as La Crosse's defense held strong. However The Falcons defense would not be outdone, as they stopped the Eagles on the following drive.

River Falls would go on to have an excellent 18 play, 95 yard drive as quarterback B.J. LeTourneau (Falcon Heights, MN, Roseville) drove the Falcons down the field to tie the score. Scoring the touchdown on the long drive was sophomore running back John Schimenz (Brown Deer, Brown Deer).

Schimenz was the Falcon's leading rusher on the day with 97 yards on 20 carries. Schimenz had a stellar performance as he filled in for starting running back Taylor Edwards (Janesville, Parker), who was removed from the game for a possible injury following his first three carries.

Schimenz' 2-yard rushing score with 2:04 left on the clock and the consequent successful extra point kick would be the last points of the first quarter.

The Falcons defense prevented the Eagles from having a successful offensive drive following the touchdown. Keith Lofgren (Esko, MN, Fond du Lac CC) made a crucial tackle for a loss and covered Travis Bordeau on the following play to prevent the Eagles from being able to convert a first down.

Upon the return of the punt, River Falls marched down the field with 13 plays, totaling 81 yards. Chad Blair (Oakdale, MN, Tartan) kicked a successful field goal from the 26 yard line, but the Falcons received a first down on a personal foul penalty on La Crosse's behalf. The Falcons did not take long to capitalize on the opportunity, as Schimenz rushed for a 4-yard touchdown on the following play. The Falcons took the lead 14-7 after the extra point.

The Eagle's offense went into full gear upon receiving the ball back. Anker completed a 13-yard touchdown pass to Ross Slovensky to tie the score 14-14 at 05:45. Billy Niggemann forced Schimenz to fumble the ball on the Falcons next drive, and Butterfield would then have a huge 47-yard rushing attempt for a touchdown to give La Crosse a 7 point lead. The Falcons would come up short on a fourth down conversion attempt on their next drive, and La Crosse capitalized with several deep passes from Anker. The Eagles topped off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run by Brock Larson. La Crosse held a 28-14 lead going into half-time.

The Falcons would be kept from adding to their score for the entire third quarter. La Crosse managed to put 9 points on the scoreboard in the quarter following a bad snap for a safety over the head of punter Dustin Samplawski (Stanley, Stanley-Boyd) at 12:43. Anker connected with Lauters for a 27-yard touchdown pass at 06:31 to extend the Eagles lead to 37-14 going into the fourth quarter.

Both defenses played strong and consistent for the majority of the fourth quarter. River Falls was able to prevent La Crosse from putting any points on the board for the entire quarter. The Eagle's came close but were unsuccessful as Justin Huinker missed a 40 yard field goal attempt at 06:42.

The Falcon's were able to put points on the board on their following offensive possession. LeTourneau would complete a series of big passes to Joe Ganske (Shakopee, MN, Shakopee), Greg Klingelhutz (Chanhassen, MN, Holy Family) and John Wahlstrom (Hastings, MN, Hastings). LeTourneau connected with Wahlstrom for a 44 yard bomb that led to a touchdown at 03:25. The Falcons attempted a two point conversion following the touchdown, but it was unsuccessful as LeTourneau's pass fell incomplete.

River Falls recovered an onside kick after the touchdown, but turned the ball over shortly after as Jake Meckstroth intercepted quarterback Ryan Luessenheide (New Hope, MN, Cooper) on his only pass attempt of the game. After the interception, the Eagle's were able to put the game in the books by running out the clock with the ground game.

Notable offensive performances from the game include that of Schimenz, Klingelhutz, LeTourenau and Wahlstrom. Klingelhutz had a career game with eight receptions for 93 yards, and Wahlstrom caught the only receiving touchdown for the Falcons of the game. Wahlstrom caught three other passes, and totaled 74 reception yards. Schimenz scored both rushing touchdowns for the Falcons with his impressive 97 yard performance. LeTourneau's career high game consisted of 230 passing yards. LeTourneau completed 20 of 29 attempts.

On defense, Lincoln Bjorklund (Nicolett, MN, Sibley East) and Mike Cano (Glencoe, MN, Glencoe-Silver Lake) led the team with seven tackles each. Ryan Bartsch (Cameron, Cameron) was able to collect 1.5 sacks, sharing a sack with Aaron Mehan (Fridley, MN, Spring Lake Park). Lee Spohn (Albany, MN, Albany) had a notable performance in the defensive secondary as he totaled five tackles and broke up two passes. Also collecting five total tackles were Matt Ainsworth (Maple Grove, MN, Osseo) and Brady Luebke (Mayer, MN, Mayer-Lutheran).

The Falcons will be seeking their first win of the season on Saturday, Oct. 23 as they host the Warhawks of UW-Whitewater at Ramer Field. Opening kickoff is set to take place at 3 p.m.

Box Score