By Chris Brooks
for LCAA’S FINEST
BOLIVAR — To say the last-second touchdown scored by Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen against Bolivar-Richburg earlier in the season left a sour taste with the Wolverines, would be a massive understatement.
The possibility of Bolivar-Richburg seeking the ultimate form of redemption in the playoffs became an instant reality when the brackets were officially released last weekend, as the No. 2 seeds hosted that same third-seeded squad for the final time this season at Dunsmore-Latimer Field on Friday.
This time around, the Wolverines took care of business on their own terms.
Behind 329 total yards of offense and a humongous night on the ground from Tavyn MacDonell, there was simply no stopping the Wolverines on their path towards redemption, as they redeemed it in full with a 28-0 halftime lead over Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen that they never looked back on, officially cruising into the 8-Man Finals next weekend with a 40-15 win.
The damage was done right in the opening half of play by the Wolverines (6-2), as they set the bar on their opposition right away with their run game, led by MacDonell, who scored three of the team’s four first-half touchdowns, including a massive 56-yard run in the second quarter to push the team’s lead to 22-0.
MacDonell finished with 16 rushes for 134 yards and four total scores on the ground to pave the attack for the Wolverines.
The momentum would lie with Bolivar-Richburg and their defense the remainder of the game, as they helped solidify their lead behind three big turnovers — two of them off interceptions by Zach Mitchell and Trey Buchholz, who also scored a 41-yard touchdown from the backfield in the third quarter to further distance their lead against Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen.
Leading the defense for the hosts in black and red was Caden Allen, who posted 12 team-leading tackles. Mitchell followed behind with eight tackles of his own, while Charlie Militello had 4.5 tackles of his own.
For Cal-Mum/BB, the Raiders had eight first downs.
Malachi Smith led the rushing attack with 77 yards on eight carries while Jeremiah Romero added nine totes for 66 yards.
Romero was 6-of-11 passing for 114 yards with Damon Linzy leading the way with four catches for 96 yards.
On defense, Dillon Alcott led the way with 11 tackles while Linzy added 10.
Bolivar-Richburg will now begin preparations for the 8-Man Finals next Friday night up north, where they will meet top-seeded and defending 8-Man State Champion Pembroke to decide it all, in a 7 p.m. kickoff at Pittsford-Sutherland.
Cal-Mum/Byron-Bergen 0 0 7 8 – 15
Bolivar-Richburg 16 12 6 6 – 40
Scoring Summary
1st
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 7-yard run, 2-pts good (8-0 B-R)
B-R – Caden Allen 4-yard run, 2-pts good (16-0 B-R)
2nd
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 56-yard run, 2-pts failed (22-0 B-R)
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 3-yard run, 2-pts failed (28-0 B-R)
C-M/B-B – Jeremiah Romero 7-yard run, PAT good (28-7 B-R)
B-R – Trey Buchholz 41-yard run, 2-pts failed (34-7 B-R)
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 9-yard run, 2-pts failed (40-7 B-R)
C-M/B-B – Malachi Smith 68-yard run, 2-pts good (40-15 B-R)
