Wildcats falter with Waubonsie game looming

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ROSELLE -- As Lake Park players belted out a spirited "Happy Birthday" song to teammate Kevin Thomas in one end zone, the atmosphere at the other end was far more subdued.

It wasn't the rain that had Neuqua Valley down Friday night. It was a 20-6 loss that left the visiting Wildcats 1-2 for the second consecutive year heading into their annual showdown with Waubonsie Valley.

But there's a big difference this time.

"We were going into Waubonsie with a win last year," Neuqua coach Bryan Wells said. "I'll tell you what, though, if there's any week to pick yourself up emotionally and go get it done, it would be this week."

To do that, the Wildcats will have to get a pretty bad taste out of their mouths after losing to the Lancers (1-2, 1-0 Upstate Eight Conference) for the first time since 1999.

But if they are looking for positives to take from the game, there will be few to cling to. Even one of those - an 82-yard scoring strike from Alex Lincoln to Josh Schaffer - was overshadowed.

"You like having big plays to score, but it means you didn't sustain a drive," Wells said. "When you're not sustaining drives, the big plays don't help a lot. It was nice to jump on top, but it didn't last real long."

Indeed, the Lancers answered with a seven-play scoring drive to take a 7-6 lead with 3:50 left in the third quarter. They added two touchdown runs by Thomas - who turned 18 on Saturday - to snap a six-game losing streak against the Wildcats.

"It's a big program win for us," Lancers offensive coordinator Chris Roll said. "Neuqua has been the class of our conference for the last five years. They are always where you want to rate yourself against."

Now the Wildcats turn their attention to the Warriors, who are 0-3 for the first time in more than a decade. The stakes are much higher than simple District 204 bragging rights. The loser will face a steep challenge in trying to reach the playoffs.

"This was a tough loss, but we'll fight back," said Neuqua linebacker Pat Keeley, who had two sacks and assisted on another. "We'll get excited for the Waubonsie game. There's no problem with that."

The Wildcats are hoping they'll be the team singing next time.