Division 4 champion: Saint Croix Central Panthers
Final record: 11-3
State-title game: Saint Croix Central 49, River Valley 28
Conference: 4-3 in Middle Border (tied for third)
Championship moment: Ryan Larson’s second touchdown of the game came with 26 seconds to go before half and gave the Panthers a 21-0 lead into the halftime break, and though River Valley found its offense in the second half, the Panthers had enough responses in rolling up 372 rushing yards. It’s the program’s second state title but first since 1988.
Title-game stats: Saint Croix Central attempted one incomplete pass in the victory and ran the ball 69 times for the 372 yards. That led to a staggering time of possession advantage of 34 minutes to 13. Ryan Larson ran for 157 yards on 41 carries with four touchdowns, while Cole Refsnider provided the lightning with 15 carries for 153 yards (10.2 average) and two scores. River Valley committed four turnovers, but a 94-yard passing touchdown between Elijah Alt and Derek Wedige set a new division record.
Playoff ladder: Saint Croix Central defeated Northwestern (35-20), Osceola (21-14), Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau (41-20) and Little Chute (23-17)
Of note: Central went to Level 3 in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015 but never broke through to Level 4. Once it got there this year, it made sure to seal the deal with two more wins. Between the 1988 state title and that run of success starting in 2011, Central had a grand total of one playoff win, coming in 2006.
Saint Croix Central almost didn’t make the playoffs at all. After a 21-7 loss to defending Division 4 state champion Osceola on Oct. 7, the Panthers needed a win in the regular-season finale to even qualify. That’s what happened in a 53-12 win over Prescott, beginning a run of success.
In the rematch with Osceola in Level 2, St. Croix Central picked up three touchdowns from Cole Refsnider to win, 21-14. Refsnider broke a tie with a touchdown at the 10:48 mark in the fourth quarter. Osceola had won all three meetings between the two schools since the program joined the Middle Border in 2015.
The Level 4 win over Little Chute was more dramatic, with a touchdown by Ryan Larson with 12 seconds left to give the Panthers a 23-16 victory. The touchdown capped an 80-yard drive, and a Little Chute field goal on the preceding possession was blocked by Trevor Nelson.
The fourth-seeded Panthers knocked out three No. 1 seeds and one No. 2 in the playoffs. They were perhaps a touch underrated – their losses came by close margins to New Richmond (20-12), Baldwin-Woodville (21-20) and the aforementioned Osceola (21-7).
Leaders: Offensive lineman Tony Winegar was the only All-State choice of any kind, earning honorable mention. Ryan Larson (1,447 yards, 20 touchdowns) and Cole Refsnider (878, 14 TDs) were the two main ingredients on offense, with quarterback Collin Nelson (686 yards, 9 scores) in the mix, as well. Nelson attempted just 24 total passes heading into the final game of the year. Trevor Nelson, Collin’s older brother, caught 14 passes for 289 yards. Refsnider was also the team’s leading tackler with 150 stops, followed by Trevor Nelson and Ryan Larson with 103 apiece. Brady Williquett had four interceptions.
Runner-up: River Valley (10-3) tied for first in the South Wisconsin Activities Conference and was led in the title game by Ryan Wickman, the son of former Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Bob Wickman. He had 13 tackles and caught seven passes for 109 yards and a touchdown. It was a magical season for the program, which had only been as far as Level 3 once before, in 1998. The program had only two playoff wins since that season and posted four in this postseason alone.