Broncos pull back to .500 with win over Gwinn

Bark River-Harris tailback Troy Johnson (44) celebrates a touchdown during a game against Gwinn on Sept. 20, 2024 at McCormick Field in Gwinn. (Caden Sierra/Mining Journal)

GWINN — Momentum doesn’t seem to be in the cards for the Gwinn High School football team this fall, neither good nor bad.

The Modeltowners couldn’t build off a win a week earlier in a 48-0 shutout loss to Bark River-Harris at their home McCormick Field on Friday night.

Gwinn opened the season with a 14-6 win after a long trip to downstate Bridgeport, then lost at Manistique 35-0. But the M’towners bounced back with last week’s 33-6 home win over L’Anse.

Gwinn (2-2) struggled to find any rhythm against the Broncos, who took control early and never let up as they also evened their record at 2-2.

“It’s tough to find anything that I liked about the performance,” Gwinn head coach Derek Nyquist said. “Whether it was on the field or just from a coaching standpoint, nothing really good to say about tonight. The one positive is no major injuries. I guess that’s a positive.”

Still, he wants to build on this game for the future.

“We tell them after every game, win or lose, the game is in the rearview mirror,” the Modeltowners coach said. “OK, it’s easier to swipe (this) under the rug, when it’s a loss like that … but we got to get over it because we have a game next week that we’re preparing for already starting (Saturday) and we can’t get this game back, so the message to them is … we got to get better next week if we want to win a ball game in West Iron.”

The Broncos started strong, with their ground game setting the tone. Troy Johnson scored the first touchdown just over five minutes in, and with quarterback Dominik Lantagne’s 2-point run, BR-H led 8-0. Despite the Modeltowners showing promise on their next drive, they couldn’t maintain momentum, and a sack on fourth down forced a turnover on downs.

The Gwinn defense momentarily turned things around by recovering a fumble late in the first quarter, but the Modeltowners’ offense couldn’t take advantage with the first quarter ending 8-0.

The second quarter was the start of a nightmare for Gwinn. The Broncos extended their lead when running it in for a 7-yard TD, followed by the 2-point conversion that made it 16-0.

As Gwinn still couldn’t move the ball, the BR-H took advantage. Johnson broke loose for a backbreaking 50-yard scoring run not long before intermission, making it 24-0.

But the first-half scoring wasn’t over. Recovering an onside kick late in the second quarter, the Broncos tacked on another TD as Jacob Mileski found the end zone from 12 yards out, and with the 2-pointer, led 32-0 at the break.

Gwinn’s defense, which had been so effective the week before against L’Anse, was overwhelmed by the Broncos’ powerful running game and quick offensive tempo.

Coming out of halftime, Gwinn looked for a spark, but things would fell apart as Cristian Spear took the opening kickoff for a touchdown, making it 38-0 after Gwinn stopped the 2-point attempt.

Gwinn’s offense had moments of promise, with quarterback Carter Stansky finding Jason Hutchens on a pass for a solid gain, but another drive stalled again, forcing a punt. BR-H continued to dominate, with Mileski adding another TD late in the third to make it 46-0 entering the final period.

The fourth quarter brought little relief. BR-H nearly scored again after driving deep into Gwinn territory, but the Modeltowners’ defense held on with a key stop at the 2-yard line. Unfortunately, a botched snap on the very next play resulted in a safety, making it 48-0.

With time running down, Gwinn’s offense had one final possession but couldn’t break through.

Gwinn travels to Iron River to play West Iron County at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. The Broncos go to Manistique at 7 p.m. Friday.