Start with good field position, and the rest comes easy. That’s the philosophy Marian Catholic used to get past Hillcrest 39-22 in a Class 4A playoff opener Wednesday.
The Spartans (10-0) scored on each of their possessions in the first half to build a 17-6 lead. Terence Marable rushed 22 times for 122 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown run, and Dana Smith carried 17 times for 100 yards and three scores for the Spartans, who increased their lead to 32-6 after three quarters. Hillcrest’s Dawan Anderson scored on TD runs of 64 and 56 yards.
“The real unsung heroes this whole year have been our offensive line and our defense,” said Marian coach Dave Mattio. “They give up one or two goofy plays a game, but they deserve a lot of credit.”
Bishop McNamara 21, Oswego 7: There will be no repeat champion in Class 4A. Bishop McNamara saw to that and got a taste of revenge in the process.
Behind the play of quarterback Ryan Spielman and a tough defense, visiting McNamara stunned defending 4A champ Oswego, avenging a 21-13 semifinal loss in last year’s playoffs.
Cary-Grove 28, Carmel 14: Cary-Grove (9-1) used both offense and defense to forge a 21-7 halftime lead en route to the win. Ryan Passaglia started the scoring with a 5-yard run in the second quarter. Brad Steele then scored for the first time in his career when he intercepted a Carmel pass and ran it back 15 yards for a 14-0 lead.
Riverside-Brookfield 23, Batavia 20: R-B (7-3) used its running game, as well as many Batavia mistakes, to advance. Leo Kotor kicked a 28-yard field goal and Shawn Gyorke hit Alex Smith with a 10-yard pass for a 10-0 first-quarter lead. Both scores came off of Batavia turnovers.
After scoring twice to take a 14-10 lead at halftime, Batavia (7-3) shot itself in the foot by failing to convert several short third- and fourth-down opportunites in the final quarter.
Gyroke (16 for 31, 231 yards passing) scored on runs of 9 and 6 yards to help Riverside-Brookfield post 13 unanswered points in the third quarter.
Tinley Park 28, King 18: Rich Komar threw TD passes of 20 and 16 yards to Tony Guarino and a 17-yarder to Scott Lovingfoss as Tinley Park (9-1) advanced. King’s Termaine Hill hit Antoine Simmons with a 28-yard strike to cut Tinley’s lead to 7-6 in the first quarter, but Isiah Dortch returned a blocked punt 40 yards for a touchdown.
Harper 42, Crane 14: After starting the year 0-2, Harper (7-2) continued to flex its muscles. Dwayne Pipkins (five receptions, 160 yards) caught TD passes of 35, 18 and 7 yards from Earbee Hill (9 for 15, 267 yards) and Aaron Reddick added a 40-yard run.
Morris 33, Urbana 14: Morris displayed its explosive offense for a 10th straight victory, gaining 380 yards total offense. Chuck Laird (74 yards, 16 carries) scored two touchdowns and Chris Zierman (110 yards, 11 carries) added one to lead the way.
Crystal Lake South 18, Grant 12: Jeremy Wyse hit Kevin Nawracaj with a 17-yard pass to cap the game-winning five-play, 73-yard drive for Crystal Lake (8-2).
Class 3A
Montini 35, Evergreen Park 21: Joe Hyland gained 363 all-purpose yards and scored three times to lead Montini (9-1) to the first-round victory. Hyland scored first-quarter TDs on runs of 43 and 88 yards-the latter on the quarter’s final play-and added a 93-yard kickoff return in the third quarter.
Driscoll 12, Harvard 7: Steve Pawlak ran for two touchdowns, the second a 16-yard jaunt with :42 to play for Driscoll (7-3). Harvard, which ended the game at the Driscoll 20, went up 7-0 in the first quarter when Tim Orszula took a handoff from Chris Woods and tossed a 23-yard pass to Mark Jones.
Pawlik evened the score later in the period with a 1-yard run. Driscoll’s Knute Beckford was 19 for 35 for 274 yards passing; Pawlak gained 67 yards on 13 carries.
Princeton 23, Marmion 8: Tim Forristal connected on a 19-yard pass with Scott Hard and Dan Marquis returned a fumble 23 yards to lead Princeton (8-2).
Spring Valley Hall 28, Aurora Central Catholic 21: Jason Turigliatti rushed for 164 yards and two touchdowns for Spring Valley Hall (9-).
Class 2A
Genoa-Kingston 20, Walther Lutheran 16: With his team down 20-16, Walther QB Billy Chapman orchestrated an 18-play, 69-yard drive to the Genoa 10. On fourth and goal and :40 left, his only option was the end zone, but Stan Bennett hurried Chapman, who threw a wobbly pass that wound up in the hands of an ineligible receiver.
Genoa-Kingston, which ousted Walther 26-6 in the first round last year, put two quick scores on the board for a 14-0 lead. Junior Tirrell Robinson rushed 28 times for 142 yards for Walther.
