Bluejays start football season hot in Gillett

The Three Lakes-Phelps varsity football team started the new season last Thursday at Gillett High School and walked away with a convincing 20-6 victory against the Tigers. Just minutes into the game, Bluejays running back Jack Westfall scored the first touchdown of the year on a 23-yard rushing play, and the team held the lead for the duration of the game. Head coach Justin Szews was pleased with his team’s performance on both sides of the ball and now has back-to-back wins in season-opening games.

“Getting a win right at the start is great,” he said. “There were lots of players in their first varsity action and I can speak for the entire coaching staff when I say we were impressed by what we saw on the field and on film. These kids are very coachable and no doubt will get better as the season progresses. And while there are things we will need to improve on, it was nice to be able to make some early season mistakes and still get the win.”

Runners Sawyer Szews and Jack Westfall generated much of the offense for the Bluejays as they collectively had more than 150 yards of rushing with two touchdowns and a two-point conversion. Westfall also made four defensive tackles while Szews led the team defensively with seven solo tackles and 19 total tackles in the game. Szews also had three pass receptions for 35 yards.

“Jack and Sawyer both did an excellent job of requiring multiple Gillett players to get them stopped,” coach Szews commented after the game. “Jack really did a nice job of finishing his runs with authority, and Sawyer showed some nice bursts of speed when he got to the open field.”

Quarterback Sam Koshuta made his debut behind center and had a solid start, making seven of 16 passes for 68 yards. He was also able to scramble for 30 rushing yards, including an 11-yard touchdown late in the game. Owen Liebscher was his favorite target, hitting him four times for 33 yards. The two also connected on a long touchdown pass in the first half, but the play was nullified by a penalty.

“Sam had an excellent first game,” according to the head coach. “He orchestrated the offense well, and he’ll get better as he gets more game snaps and practice reps under his belt. Our offensive line was solid and gave Sam and the backs adequate time to operate in the offensive backfield.”

Coach Szews said he was also pleased with the defensive performances on Thursday. “Hats off to our defense for not allowing Gillett in the end zone. On several occasions, they had their backs against the wall, and always delivered big stops.”

“As you look at the football scores across the state, you realize how rare it is to keep a varsity eight player team out of the endzone.

Linebackers Jack (Bauknecht) and Sawyer were able to be very active in tackling ball carriers because our defensive linemen Carter Nelson, Zach Weavers and Bentley Bills consistently owned the line of scrimmage from the first play to the last play of the game.”

Bauknecht had three solo tackles and 10 assists, while Nelson, Weavers and Bill combined for 17 total tackles. And while Garrett Mandli did not register any solo tackles, coach Szews liked what he saw and said “Garrett did his job of containing the edge runs to textbook perfection.” Mandli also recovered a fumbled punt by Gillett.

The team will practice early this week before facing their first conference opponent at Niagara High School this Thursday, August 28 at 7:00 p.m. Coach Szews said that practice has been easier this year as the team has been utilizing new tackling mats donated by the family of Connor Edwardson, a 13-year-old boy from Sugar Camp who passed away two years ago. Connor was an avid football fan and played on the Three Lakes junior high school team. His parents, Jeff and Jessica, wanted to do something special for the community and the tackling mats have been very popular in the school district.