Franklin beat Kenosha Bradford 16-6 on Friday night, Oct. 23, in Kenosha in the opening round of the WIAA Division 1 football playoffs, giving first-year head coach Drew Ambrose his first playoff win.
The Sabers scored inside the first four minutes when Keegan Best connected with Gavin Schiek on a 14-yard touchdown pass. Franklin played much of the night without 1,000-yard rusher Dillon Herling, who was sidelined in a walking boot, and started five sophomores on offense.
Bradford, the No. 4 seed, reached inside the Franklin 25-yard line four times and came away with no points on those trips. One fourth-quarter drive ended at the goal line when Kameryn Rodriguez was forced out of bounds short on fourth-and-goal from the 3.
The Red Devils cut the margin to 10-6 when Larenzz Pratt threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Jones, though the extra point was blocked. Franklin answered on the first play of its next drive, with Connor Henschel turning a slant into a 60-yard touchdown with 5:04 left.
Junior Logan Niemic sealed the win with an interception with 2:22 to play, and the Sabers stopped Bradford once more inside their 25 in the closing minutes. Bradford's lead back Gahari Barnes finished the season with 1,014 rushing yards and nine scores.
Franklin advances to a second-round rematch at top-seeded Muskego, which beat Milwaukee Hamilton/Audubon 63-0 in its opener. Muskego won the teams' regular-season meeting on Sept. 25, 31-6.
