UW-Eau Claire football lost to UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 1 at Community Stadium at Goerke Park with a score of 36-39. Head Coach Rob Erickson said he feels disappointed after the last game. 

“Sometimes, as you’re climbing a mountain, you get to a peak and you realize there’s another peak, but you have to go down the valley to get to a peak,” Erickson said. “Which is the analogy of you can have a lot of success, but at some point adversity’s going to hit and you just got to keep pushing through.”

This marked the Blugolds’ fifth consecutive loss, with the team being winless in the conference this year. However, it did mark the Pointers’ first conference win. 

Historically, the Blugolds and Pointers have been fairly evenly matched, as the Blugolds have a 12-16 all-time record versus UW-Stevens Point. This most recent loss broke the Blugolds’ four-game win streak against the team. 

Levi Pooley, a third-year business administration student and wide receiver, said UW-Stevens Point came into the game with their best foot forward and that it could have been different if the Blugolds had changed a few things.

“We knew they were a much improved team from last year,”  Pooley said. “We knew it wasn’t gonna be an easy cake walk.” 

Second-year exercise science student and quarterback Ayden Helder said there are a few things the offense will work on going forward. 

“(There are) certain pass concepts that we found some success with and things that we can continue to install in following weeks,” Helder said. “I think we had a solid game on the ground, solid game rushing, which is something that we can definitely continue to build on.” 

He said the team will need to improve on the execution of plays going forward.

The two teams were initially tied 7-7 at the end of the first quarter, with the Blugolds being the first to get on the scoreboard. 

The Pointers pulled ahead in the second half, bringing the score to 12-21. The quarter nearly ended with the score at 12-14, but the Pointers scored a touchdown with 0:01 on the clock. 

Pooley said that when the opposition gets the lead, like in the game against the Pointers, the coaches have helped to motivate the team. 

“It’s all about believing in your teammates,” Pooley said. “Both sides of the ball, offense believes in the defense, defense believes in the offense, and it’s working together … We believe in believing in each other and knowing that everyone else is going to do their job.” 

By the end of the third quarter, the Blugolds had lessened the difference to 22-29. The Blugolds were up 22-21 in the beginning of the third quarter, with Helder rushing for a touchdown at 6:01, but the lead did not last. 

Early in the fourth quarter, the Pointers scored a field goal, extending their lead 22-32. Despite scoring 14 points over the Pointers’ 10 in the last quarter, the Blugolds could not surmount a comeback. Outside of the score, the Blugolds were able to create 510 yards of total offense. 

The Blugolds’ next game will be on Nov. 8 at UW-Whitewater. Helder said UW-Whitewater has a history of being a solid and well-coached football program. 

“We’re just going to try to keep our process the same and continue to prepare how we do every single week and try to go execute on Saturday,” Helder said. 

The Warhawks have won three of their five conference games this season but did lose their most recent match against UW-River Falls 14-52. 

Curtin can be reached at [email protected].