Birmingham, Walled Lake

Brother Rice stays alive in D-2 playoffs, rolls past Walled Lake Western 42-12 in regional final

By Mike Moore
C & G Sports Writer

» click to enlarge « Photo by Patricia O'Blenes Walled Lake Western's Nick Heglin (13) is swarmed under by a host of Rice defenders. Rice's defense forced five turnovers in the fourth quarter in a 42-12 win in the D-2 regional final. Photo by Patricia O'Blenes Walled Lake Western's Nick Heglin (13) is swarmed under by a host of Rice defenders. Rice's defense forced five turnovers in the fourth quarter in a 42-12 win in the D-2 regional final.

WALLED LAKE — The Birmingham Brother Rice football team kept its Division 2 title hopes alive Friday night, dominating from start to finish in a 42-12 victory at Walled Lake Western in a regional final.

“Sometimes you just can’t explain games like this,” coach Al Fracassa said with a smile. “Everything went our way tonight. We’ll take it. You never know when that’s going to happen, and it may not again, but tonight it did.”

Brain Walker scored for Rice in the first quarter on a 2-yard run, set up by his own 46-yard run, and Rice took an early 7-0 lead.

Western added a 52-yard field goal by Kyle Bambard and a safety early in the second, and trailed just 7-5.

Rice then scored four consecutive touchdowns, took a 35-5 lead by halftime, and never looked back.

“We had chances to make plays, and tonight we didn’t capitalize,” Western coach Mike Zdebski said. “It was a tough night, but we just lost to a very good team.”

Western ends its season 9-3, marking the first time in program history it went to consecutive regional finals.

Rice, now 10-2 and in the semifinals for the third time in four years, takes on Wyandotte-Roosevelt (11-1) at 1 p.m. Nov. 17 at Gibraltar Carlson.

You can reach C & G Sports Writer Mike Moore at mmoore@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1038. Follow Mike on Twitter.