Bolingbrook proved Friday night that it’s not necessarily how good your defense is, but when your defense is good.
The Raiders rebounded impressively from a disappointing SICA West loss last week by pasting host Romeoville 38-7 behind another spectacular effort from senior running back Antoineo Harris. Harris finished the night with four touchdowns and 202 yards on 16 carries.
But it was Bolingbrook’s defense, despite giving up 260 yards rushing and 14 first downs, that was good enough when it needed to be, forcing five turnovers.
“The only thing that matters is what’s on the scoreboard,” said Bolingbrook coach Phil Acton.
The measure of Romeoville’s frustration was made clear in the first-half numbers–namely, 136 rushing yards and no points. The Spartans (3-4, 2-3 in the SICA Gray) twice drove deep into Bolingbrook territory in the first half, coming up empty both times.
Their first drive ended at the Bolingbrook 35 on downs, and the second was more crippling. Trailing 17-0 with 7 minutes left in the half, the Spartans moved 49 yards in 12 plays. Facing fourth and 15 from the Raiders’ 19 with 1:20 remaining, quarterback Jeremy Linson was intercepted at the 3 by Bolingbrook’s Douglas Owusu, who returned to the 25.
Five plays later, the Raiders broke Romeoville’s back. Aided by a 16-yard Eric Cawthon scramble and an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty, Harris bolted through the line on a draw, sprinting 29 yards for his third TD of the game to give Bolingbrook a 24-0 lead with 11 seconds remaining.
A Kevin Hatch interception set up a 21-yard Harris touchdown run late in the third, and the Raiders (6-1, 4-1) pushed the lead to 38-0 on Lucas Calcagno’s 72-yard interception return for a touchdown with 10:21 left in the contest.
“I think we really came of age last week,” said Acton, whose team dropped a heart-breaking last-minute 33-32 loss to Andrew. “We’ve won games this year, but we’ve made a lot of mistakes. That game really made the difference. That was the kind of game where even though we lost, we came away feeling we played a tremendous game and had the opportunity to win.”
