Sleek leads Beavers past Blue Streaks

The lowdown

Senior quarterback Nate Sleek threw for 256 yards and three touchdowns to lead Riverside (2-3, 1-1 WRC) to a 27-13 victory over Madison (2-3, 1-1), 27-13, in a Western Reserve Conference showdown at Riverside Stadium on Sept. 22.

Following a sack, strip and fumble recovery by Beavers defensive lineman Frank Soukup, Sleek hit wideout Michael Wojkowski for a 33-yard touchdown strike on Riverside’s first offensive possession for an early 7-0 lead.

Madison capitalized on a big defensive play of its own when linebacker Dominic Conforte intercepted a pass and returned it 12 yards to the Riverside 1-yard line. Senior running back Ken Cline ran for a score three plays later to send the Blue Streaks into half down, 7-6.

Sleek struck again on the first play of the second half when he and Wojkowski connected on a 53-yard bomb to extend the Beavers’ lead to 15-6 following a successful Joe Robinson twopoint conversion.

Madison answered back once again 1:41 later, when sophomore quarterback Alex Dragas hit Cole Tanner for a 26-yard touchdown pass to make it 15-13 with 9:51 left in the third quarter.

The night, however, belonged to Sleek.

Less than two minutes after Madison bridged the gap, the senior found Rogelio Claudio for a 44-yard connection to push the Beavers ahead, 21-13.

Riverside capped off the scoring and its 20-point third quarter when Robinson went around end for a 2-yard touchdown run that stretched the lead to 27-13 and gave the Beavers their first victory over the Blue Streaks since 2012.

Top players

RIVERSIDE » Sleek was 13 of 16 for 256 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 46 yards on the ground. Wojkowski caught two balls, both for touchdowns, for 86 yards, Claudio finished with four catches for 91 yards and a score. Robinson and Bilal Abdussatar combined for 23 carries, 83 yards and a touchdown. MADISON » Dragas was 18for-27 for 172 yards and a touchdown. Cline carried 27 times for 77 yards and a touchdown, and Tanner led the Blue Streaks in receiving with 10 catches for 117 yards and a touchdown.

Stat attack

The Beavers’ offense scored 20 points in an eight-minute span of the third quarter, while the defense kept Madison’s offense to under 75 yards to completely change the complexion of an otherwise very tight contest.

They said it

RIVERSIDE COACH DAVE BORS » “Credit to the kids tonight, no question about that. These guys are a confident group.” MADISON COACH TIM WILLIS » “We gave up big plays. If we do that, we won’t win games. Happened three times tonight.”

Up next

Riverside travels to battle North, while Madison will host Chardon.