Journey to the State Championship: Evansville Mater Dei Wildcats

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The path to a state title is not always paved in gold. For the Wildcats of Evansville Mater Dei, a trio of regular season losses prepared them for the adversity that they would come across during the tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Runners-up in the Southern Indiana Conference, the Wildcats played their best football when it mattered most. The final act of their season was a 20-10 win over Andrean, followed by a well-deserved hoist of the Class 2A State Championship trophy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Offense</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='185222' first='Mason' last='Wunderlich'] concluded his high school career in a dream way. He maintained solid command of the offense all season. Wunderlich demonstrated the ability to protect the football while distributing it around to several different targets. He did well getting the ball out quickly. Wunderlich surpassed 2,700 passing yards with only six interceptions. He had a touchdown-to-interception ratio of about 3:1. Wunderlich showed the leadership necessary to keep the offense operating at a high level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Their running-game was paced by Senior Joey Pierre. With over 1,000 rushing yards on the year, Pierre did a great job of taking the pressure off Wunderlich. His ability to run down hill was important in helping them control the tempo on offense. Also, Pierre can also marshal the back line of the defense from his free safety position. Pierre was an asset in the passing game as well with his ability to serve as a check down.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Because Wunderlich was able to spread he ball as well as he did, a number of different receivers contributed and were given their chance to shine. Leading the way was Ethan Stolz. Stolz capped off his high school career with over 600 yards. In a receiving corps filled with talent, it was Stolz and his fellow seniors who led by example. [player_tooltip player_id='185177' first='Blake' last='Herdes'] and Owen Wunderlich combined for nearly 900 receiving yards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Defense</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the defensive side of the ball, experience continued to be key for the Wildcats. Senior Mitchell Adler served as the backbone of the defense from his linebacker spot. Adler piled up 105 tackles on the year. He tallied an impressive 65 total tackles. He posted ten-and-a-half tackles-for-loss. Adler sacked quarterbacks three times. He could be a solid contributor at the next level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fellow senior Copper Darr was a game-wrecker off the edge all year. Darr was not far behind the pace set by Adler as he recorded 101 tackles. He added four tackles-for-loss and one-and-a-half sacks. Darr forced a pair of fumbles and recovered one. The combination of Adler and Darr made the Mater Dei front seven one of the most formidable in the state this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->