The game that was stopped by an explosion Friday evening, ended with a bang Saturday afternoon.
McHenry’s Rick Lenzie intercepted a pass in the end zone off a fake field goal on the final play to preserve a 16-13 victory over visiting Prairie Ridge in the Fox Valley Conference.
The second half of the game was played Saturday after an explosion caused by a natural gas leak at the field Friday knocked out electricity at the field.
Prairie Ridge (1-1) began the final drive with 6:56 remaining after an interception by Matt Raine and marched from its own 9 to the McHenry 2 in the final 10 seconds. Prairie Ridge was setting up for a game-tying field goal, but was hit with a delay of game penalty. McHenry called a timeout to set up its defensive strategy.
“We had no intention of trying to block it. We only rushed one guy and everyone else was playing for the fake,” said Lenzie, who also rushed for 113 yards in 10 carries from his tailback slot. “I saw their [receiver] off the back side of the play and had him covered. It was one of those plays to end a game that you dream about.”
Prairie Ridge (1-1) recorded the day’s only points on a 3-yard touchdown run by Judd Thompson with 9:42 left in the contest. McHenry had only three possessions during the remainder of the game, but failed to score despite reaching the Prairie Ridge 6- and 15-yard lines.
“Our kids felt, and I felt, it was a great opportunity to win the game. You don’t always get the opportunity to do that,” Prairie Ridge coach Dave Whitson said. “I felt like we needed to win the game there because I don’t know how much we had left in our gas tank.”
McHenry, which stymied its opponent’s ground game the night before, found itself on its heels Saturday, as the Wolves racked up 187 yards, 120 on the ground. Raine led the way with 85 yards followed by 65 from Joe Ure and 54 from Mike Greener. Thompson, after an 0-for-7 Friday night, completed all five of his passes Saturday for 67 yards.
“It was like night and day,” McHenry coach Mike Noll said, offering a pun and an explanation. “Our Friday night defense was great, outstanding. We had them on the ropes. Today, we weren’t together.”
— Sam Natrop
Marian Catholic 48, St. Joseph 20: Quarterback Mike Gavin was 12-of-17 for 201 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 4 Marian Catholic (2-0) to victory in the Catholic Metro League crossover. Gavin also rushed for a touchdown. Bristram Dawkins had five receptions for 85 yards and a touchdown as Marian jumped to a 28-6 lead at the half.
Bolingbrook 26, Thornwood 14: John Nicholson returned a punt 51 yards for a touchdown to spark No. 12 Bolingbrook to victory. The Raiders (2-0) trailed 14-13 until Nicholson broke loose with 2:25 left in the third quarter. The play inspired the Bolingbrook defense, which pinned Thornwood inside its own 30 for the remainder of the game.
“We’ve been lackadaisical the last two weeks, so as a team leader I needed to step up and make some plays to get us going,” Nicholson said.
Nicholson also had a 65-yard touchdown reception on the second play of the game to open the scoring.
“[Thornwood] was the better prepared team today, so we’re just happy to get out of here with a win,” Bolingbrook coach Phil Acton said.
Thornton 29, Morgan Park 12: Thornton capitalized on two turnovers in the first six minutes of the opening quarter. The first miscue was a bad snap on a punt attempt which eventually started Thornton’s first drive on the Mustangs’ 13-yard line. After a 1-yard loss, Greg Hughes took a pitch 14 yards for the first score of the game at 8:14.
On the ensuing kickoff, Mustangs return man Ray McCoy fumbled and Maurice Jackson recovered for the Wildcats at the 19-yard line. After a 2-yard loss and a pair of Wildcats’ penalties, James Cooper scampered 31 yards for a 13-0 Wildcats’ lead with 6:48 remaining in the opening quarter.
“I think the cornerstone of our team will be our defense,” Thornton coach Bill Mosel said. “I think we have the potential to be as good an offense as we’ve ever had as soon as we start to settle down a bit.”
Carmel 15, Gordon Tech 14: John Mikrut hit a 25-yard field goal with 12 seconds remaining to give Carmel (2-0) the victory. Ben Lawrence rushed 11 times for 62 yards and two touchdowns and Matt Roe added 90 yards rushing in 14 carries for Carmel.
Crane 20, Austin 0: David Blair rushed for 64 yards and a touchdown to pace Crane (2-0, 1-0) in the Chicago Public West.
Dunbar 26, Moline 15: Rodney Cobb rushed 18 times for 130 yards and two touchdowns to lead Dunbar (2-0) to victory. Dunbar led 14-9 when Cobb scored twice, first on a 41-yard run in the third quarter and again on a 21-yard run in fourth, to stretch the Mighty Men’s lead to 26-9.
Hoffman Estates 30, Buffalo Grove 7: Darren Robinson rushed for three touchdowns and John Janczak intercepted a pass and returned it for another score to lead Hoffman Estates (1-1).
Hyde Park 48, Englewood 8: Pierre Guffie completed the only two passes he attempted and both went 40 yards for touchdowns for Hyde Park (1-1). Stephon Nickelberry carried nine times for 108 yards and three touchdowns on runs of 8, 37 and 34 yards.
Immaculate Conception 49, Luther South 0: Jason Dembosz had 15 carries for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns to lead Immaculate Conception (2-0).
Kennedy 20, Kelly 12: Tim Koedyker and Anthony Harris connected on touchdown passes of 54 and 60 yards and Koedyker amassed 236 yards passing to lead Kennedy (1-1, 1-0) in the Public League Central.
Middle linebacker Tony Del Pinal led the defensive effort with nine solo tackles and four assists and also contributed a 2-yard touchdown run.
Lisle 22, Westmont 20: Joe Sarb had two interceptions and returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown to lead Lisle (2-0). Lisle scored all its points in the second quarter.
Marmion 7, Glenbard South 6: Dan Jackson caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Pete Roley with 8:43 remaining and then put Marmion (1-1) in the lead by kicking the extra point.
Marshall 33, Lake View 0: Doubton Holmes rushed for 131 yards and two touchdowns to lead Marshall (2-0) to victory.
Niles West 55, Niles North 19: Niles West (1-1) rolled behind TD runs of 6 and 74 yards by Larry Masarski, who rushed for 100 yards in five carries.
North Chicago 19, Highland Park 7: Keith Turner threw a pair of touchdown passes to Orlando Kilpatrick, 40 and 20 yards, as North Chicago lifted its record to 2-0.
Oak Park 21, Morton 3: Michael Dunn rushed 34 times for 211 yards and a pair of touchdowns as Oak Park (1-1) rolled to the victory.
Richards 24, Lake Forest 14: Max Maxwell threw two touchdown passes and Richards’ defense stiffened in the second half to come away with the non-conference victory. Richards scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to snap a 14-14 halftime tie.
Richards (2-0) allowed 315 yards rushing in the first half, but only 35 in the second. Lake Forest was led by Steve Powell’s 162 yards in 15 carries and one touchdown.
“I think our ability to stop them in the second half was one of the keys of the game,” Richards coach Gary Korhonen said. “At halftime, I didn’t know whether or not we would be able to come back.”
Riverside-Brookfield 34, Nazareth 12: Quarterback Tim Brasic was 21-for-35 passing for 218 yards and three touchdowns and also rushed 14 times for 170 yards and a touchdown to pace Riverside-Brookfield (2-0). Matt George added six receptions for 105 yards.
Taft 20, Steinmetz 0: Tomorrio Anderson threw for one score and ran for another as Taft evened its record at 1-1.
Thornridge 18, Bloom 6: Deante Hollins completed just 4-of-11 passes but they went for 184 yards and two touchdowns for Thornridge (1-1). Hollins ran 24 yards for another score and Andre Barrett had three receptions for 156 yards, including a 65-yard touchdown. Jamar Buchanan also had a 28-yard TD reception.
