Playoff Preview: Wauneta-Palisade makes long roadtrip to play North Central

Ben Anderjaska evades two Arapahoe tacklers during a game earlier this season. Anderjaska and the rest of the Wauneta-Palisade Broncos travel to Bassett for a 4 p.m. game against North Central.

Gabe Gauthier/McCook Gazette

WAUNETA, Neb. -- It is not an exaggeration to say Wauneta-Palisade had the toughest opening schedule in D2.

After having their bye week in Week 1, the Broncos’ Week 2 opponent, Leyton, forfeited, leaving Wauneta-Palisade with no game experience heading into a three-game stretch of Garden County, Mullen and Arapahoe. Those three teams have combined to go 22-2 this regular season.

Wauneta-Palisade lost all three games by an average score of 54-23.

After that, the Broncos won their final four games by an average score of 60-14. Bronco co-head coach Joseph Frecks said the rough opening stretch helped his team grow and finish the regular season on a strong note.

“We played our best three opponents right away. That made us a better team and, now, I’d say we’ve been peaking lately. That’s kinda the name of the game in the playoffs.”

Wauneta-Palisade earned the No. 10 seed in the D2 West Bracket and travels 250 miles to play No. 7 North Central (6-2) at 4 p.m. today in Bassett. North Central is a co-op between Rock County in Bassett and Keya Paha County in Springview.

“It’s a long ways away, but it’s kinda fun going on roadtrips like this, going across the state and seeing the different towns,” Frecks said. “You get used to playing the teams around here and this (game) is someone you don’t know, so it’s exciting for our kids too.”

Frecks said he has some familiarity with the program, having coached against the Knights twice while at Sandhills/Thedford. Preparation for this year’s North Central squad has come down to studying film.

“They’re a very physical bunch. They’re not huge but they’re very aggressive in what they do. That’s something I’ve noticed about them over the years.”

One player Frecks mentioned is the Knights’ star receiver Griffin Smith. Smith has 38 receptions for 638 yards and 10 touchdowns and is the reigning Class D state champion in the long jump.

“They’re kinda like us in that they want to establish the run first, but they’ll pass when they need to,” Frecks said. “He (Smith) is definitely one we have to contain.”

Offensively, Wauneta-Palisade will feature the same lineup it’s had in recent weeks. The biggest exception being running back Dalton Harchelroad, who was lost for the season during a game against Wallace in late September.

Sophomore Ty Duvel has stepped up in Harchelroad’s absence and put up big numbers. In the last four games, Duvel has ran for 615 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Frecks said his team doesn’t have to do anything special to win today’s game. Controlling what they can control will put the Broncos in a good position to leave Bassett with a win.

“We’re our own opponent. We gotta control what we do and that means running and taking care of the football and stopping their run game. It’s just more of the same for us.”