Football: Marathon rallies from 10 point 4th quarter deficit to beat Auburndale in 3 OT to move to 2-0.

No matter the sport, it seems that when Marathon and Auburndale get together it leads to a thrilling finish. That didn't change on Friday night as the Red Raiders rallied in the final moments to force overtime and then outlasted Auburndale 22-19 in three OT's to improve to 2-0 on the young season.

Things started well for Auburndale when a screen pass from Carter Grassl to Raymond Teska turned into an 85 yard touchdown and give the Eagles a 7-0 less than four minutes into the first quarter. Teska pulled off another huge play with just under five minutes left in the first half as he took a punt at his own 16 yard line and returned it all the way for an 84 yard touchdown and give Auburndale a 13-0 lead. However, a 2-point conversion was no good and that would come back to haunt the Eagles.

However, Marathon would finally get on the board late in the half. Quarterback Brayson Schneider was run for 24 yards on 3rd and 18 to spark the drive. Schneider would then hit Braxton Kilty for 28 yards to the Auburndale 20 before the drive bogged down and the Raiders' settled for a 37 yard field goal by Ben Stowell on the final play of the first half to make it 13-3.

It looked like the 13 points would be enough for Auburndale as it stayed 13-3 until late in the fourth quarter. Marathon drove it inside the Eagle 10 with just over 5 minutes left before settling for a second Stowell field goal, this time from 26 yards, to pull within 13-6. Then, with 2:51 left, Marathon started a drive at their own 27 yard line. A Schneider to Kilty completion moved the ball to the 37, and on 3rd and 10, Schneider got away from a big rush to get it to Kilty again and pick up 11 to the 48 for a big conversion. 3 plays later it was 4th and 10 from the 48 when disaster nearly struck for Marathon when the snap bounced in front of Schneider, who finally picked put the ball and fired up field when the drive stayed alive on a pass interference penalty that put the ball on the Auburndale 38. On the next play Schneider fired a 28 yard completion to Owen Chrouser to make it 1st and goal at the 10. After a short loss on first down, Schneider again was pressured out of the pocket and found Chrouser for the touchdown that finally got Marathon back to even at 13 with 28 seconds left in regulation.

In the first overtime, Auburndale scored on a 1 yard keep Grassl to lead 19-13. The extra point, however, was no good. Marathon then got their chance with the ball and an 8 yard screen pass to Garrett Bracewell was taken into the end zone for the touchdown that tied the game at 19. Marathon then needed to hit the extra point to win the game but the kick was missed and the game continued. Neither Marathon nor Auburndale could score in the 2nd OT. In OT 3, the Marathon defense stopped the Eagles on downs to set up the offense in a situation where any score would win the game.

Starting at the Auburndale 25, a pair of Schneider runs gained 15 yards to push the ball to the Eagle 10 and a first and goal. 3 runs pushed the ball to the 1 on 4th Down and Marathon decided to go for the field goal. However, the Raiders took too much time and the penalty pushed the ball back to the 6. The didn't matter to Ben Stowell, who kicked his third field goal of the game from 24 yards out to give Marathon the 22-19 victory.

Schneider finished 23 of 48 passing for 298 yards, 2 TD and 2 interceptions while also rushing for 103 yards on 24 attempts. Garrett Bracewell had 9 catches for 86 yards and a touchdown with Sawyer Berens adding 6 catches for 71 yards. Landon Hilgart recorded 11 tackles for the 2nd straight week and also had 2 quarterback sacks. The Marathon defense held Auburndale to just 70 yards on 33 attempts, barely more than 2 yards per attempt.

Marathon will look to stay perfect on Thursday night when they travel to Crandon for a 7 pm kickoff.