The Valders Vikings Football team won their first game of 2024 Thursday night, defeating The St. Mary Catholic Zephyrs 24 to 15 in The EWC opener for both teams at Zephyrs Fields in Fox Crossing.
The game was tight throughout. Senior running back Austin Fisher had a 57-yard touchdown run with just over a minute to play in the fourth quarter, and senior Zane Bergene had his second of two interceptions in the waning seconds to seal the Vikings’ victory.
On the WCUB postgame show, Head Coach Austin Edge said his team played with pride, purpose, and tremendous passion.
“Every single day at practice, we preach that we must play together as a team. That’s the one thing I think we lacked in the first two weeks. Edge adds—
“We had too many players pointing fingers at someone else instead of holding themselves accountable. You saw tonight what happened when we decided to play together as a team. It was fun to be a part of.”
Edge also praised Viking Nation, which showed up in droves Thursday night.
“I think the Valders community knew that we had two tough teams (Xavier of Appleton and Howards Grove) to play at the beginning of the season where we didn’t show what we could do.
Despite that, they supported us and brought the passion to help us get over the top. Our sideline was also bringing the energy. I’m excited to see the community of Valders get excited about football again.”
Fisher ended up with 18 carries for 115 yards and that touchdown. He also had a 94-yard interception return for a score. Bergene had four catches for 92 yards and a score, along with the two picks.
Defensively, the Vikings forced six Zephyr turnovers (five interceptions). St. Mary Catholic ran 52 offensive plays, 49 of which were passes thrown by junior quarterback Maddox Dwyer.
He completed 21 of them for 217 yards and a touchdown to Mason Wagner, along with throwing five interceptions.
Valders improves to 1 and 0 in the EWC and 1 and 2 overall, while the Zephyrs fall to 0 and 1 in the EWC and 1 and 2 overall.
The Vikings return home to host New Holstein Friday night, September 13th, while St. Mary Catholic travels to Chilton next Friday to meet the Tigers.
