Hawks dominate in 35-14 win

Shawano welcomed Denmark to its field with touchdowns on all three first-half drives en route to a 35-14 nonconference victory on Friday.

The Hawks (3-3, 2-3 Bay Conference) rushed for 294 yards on the night and all five of their touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Jarrett Laatsch and junior running back Roman Purull combined for 225 of those yards and the five touchdowns; three by Laatsch and two by Purull.

In the first quarter, Laatsch’s 40-yard keeper down the sideline took the Hawks into the red zone and set up Purull for the games’ first score.

Purull has been a go-to player for the Hawks this season because of his ability to consistently gain yardage, which he confirmed with a 28-yard run into Vikings territory and subsequent 1-yard touchdown to give Shawano a 21-0 lead at halftime.

“It felt really good tonight,” Purull said. “I usually put up yards but don’t get touchdowns, so it felt good to get a couple tonight. But I’m all about the team win. This was good for us.”

While the passing game was less dominant – just 66 yards on four completions – deep passes were crucial in getting the Hawks into scoring position.

A 22-yard completion to Jacob Dickmann, followed by a 19-yard catch by Crede Timm to Denmark’s 5-yard line keyed the second scoring drive that ended with Laatsch’s 5-yard run into the end zone.

Denmark (2-4) took the opposite approach, with 219 yards passing and just 45 rushing.

Shawano closed gaps and held the Vikings on crucial fourth-down attempts, including a goal-line stand in the second quarter and again in the final seconds of the game.

“Those are huge,” Shawano head coach Alan Tomow said, “especially coming off of last week where we had a disappointing second half. That goal-line stand was huge for our confidence and those kids really started to believe again in themselves.”

Purull can also feel his team’s confidence building.

“We get back up on our feet and we have to take on a tougher team next week, and it’s all about getting back up and moving on,” he said. “I feel confident in our team and what we can do going forward.”

Tomow has been focusing all season on his team playing a complete game.

“This was our most complete game of the year, to be able to come out and move the ball as effectively as we did,” Tomow said, “but also to stay mentally focused for the entire game on both sides was huge. Even when Denmark scored, the easy thing to do is say, ‘Well, we’re still winning, so it’s OK.’ But they didn’t. They stepped up and played well and finished it off.”

This comes at a good time for the Hawks as they prepare to take on Xavier next week.

“It’ll be a big night for both programs, but I think we’re starting to come together at the right time,” Tomow said.

Shawano 35, Denmark 14

Team 1 2 3 4 F

Shawano 14 7 0 14 35

Denmark 0 0 7 7 14

First quarter

S: Roman Purull 2-yard run (PAT good) 7-0 (7:23).

S: Jarrett Laatsch 5-yard run (PAT good) 14-0 (2:40).

Second quarter

S: Purull 1-yard run (PAT good) 21-0 (0:10.5).

Third quarter

D: Brady Jens 10-yard reception from Jack Satori (PAT good) 21-7 (6:39).

Fourth quarter

S: Laatsch 5-yard run (PAT good) 28-7 (10:21)

D: Seth Alexander 26-yard reception from Jack Satori (PAT good) 28-14 (7:15).

S: Laatsch 2-yard run (PAT good) 35-14 (2:14).