The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) football team wrapped up the 2018 season with a win at UW-River Falls (3-7) Saturday, Nov. 10.

The Pointers fell behind 19-14 late in the first half, but outscored River Falls 25-6 the rest of the way to pull away for a 39-25 victory to finish the season 4-6 overall under first year head coach Greg Breitbach.

Senior wide receiver Christian Almonte hauled in a 49-yard touchdown pass from freshman quarterback Max Herro to give the Pointers a 7-0 lead with 13:04 to play in the first quarter after the extra-point kick from freshman Victor Ponterio, while Herro added a three-yard touchdown run with 32 seconds left in the first quarter to make it 14-0.

River Falls answered with a two-yard touchdown run with 10:33 to go in the second quarter and returned an interception 28 yards for a touchdown 55 seconds later to pull within 14-13 with 9:38 remaining in the half after the extra-point kick was blocked by senior Boyd Delebreau.

River Falls scored on an 18-yard touchdown pass with 3:40 to play in the second quarter to take a 19-14 lead, while Delebreau again blocked the extra-point kick and junior safety Sam Shafer scooped it up and returned the ball 98 yards for a two-point conversion to pull UWSP within 19-16.

The Pointers’ offense responded on the ensuing possession, as Herro threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to Almonte with 1:31 left in the second quarter, as UWSP took a 23-19 lead into halftime.

Ponterio kicked a 28-yard field goal with 11:07 to go in the third quarter to increase the lead to 26-19, and senior tight end Steve Herra caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from Herro with 6:37 remaining in the third quarter to make it 32-19 after the extra-point kick was blocked.

Junior wide receiver Jonte Webb caught a 32-yard touchdown pass from Herro with 47 seconds to go in the third quarter to cap a 25-0 run that gave the Pointers a 39-19 lead, while River Falls added a 30-yard touchdown pass with 3:04 left in the game to cap the scoring on UWSP’s 39-25 win.

Herro completed 16-of-30 passes for 295 yards, with four touchdowns and one interception, while he also rushed for a team-high 115 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries, and caught one pass for 24 yards, to account for 434 yards of total offense.

Almonte caught seven passes for 127 yards and two touchdowns, Webb had five catches for 126 yards, and Herra caught two passes for 40 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore running back SharmaJWilliams had 49 yards rushing on 10 carries, and sophomore running back Zach Bosek added 31 yards rushing on seven carries.

Senior linebacker Ryan Strick totaled 12 tackles, one sack and one fumble recovery, as he finished his season with a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC)-leading 116 tackles this fall.

Shafer finished with 12 tackles and a forced fumble, sophomore safety Kameron Kryzanski made eight tackles, freshman defensive tackle Michael Singer of Amherst had five tackles, Delebreau added three tackles and one sack, junior linebacker Henry Fielding recorded three tackles and two sacks, and senior defensive back Omarri Johnson picked off one pass to finish with a WIAC-leading six interceptions this season.

After going 1-6 to place seventh in the WIAC last season, the win left the Pointers tied for fourth in the conference this season at 3-4, as fifth-ranked and NCAA Division III Playoff-bound UW-Whitewater went 7-0 to win the Conference Title over UW-La Crosse (5-2), UW-Oshkosh (4-3), UWSP (3-4), UW-Stout (3-4), UW-Eau Claire (2-5), UW-Platteville (2-5) and River Falls (2-5).