Hersey’s fake punt didn’t fool anyone, and Wheeling quarterback Ryan Mroz’s play-action fake fooled everyone in the crucial stretch of Wheeling’s 21-14 victory in a Mid-Suburban South opener.
On the first play after Hersey failed to get a first down after running out of punt formation, Mroz tossed a 43-yard touchdown pass to Scott Preusker late in the third quarter to give Wheeling a lead it would not relinquish.
“It was a play-action pass, and it was a great play fake by Ryan Mroz and tailback John Gatta,” said Wheeling coach Rick Benedetto. “That call came from our `eye in the sky,’ (sophomore coach) Tim Lazzaretto.”
Steve Schaulk scored on a 2-yard run for Wheeling (4-1, 1-0)) in the second quarter, and Mroz added a 1-yard sneak in the fourth.
Marist 41, Benet 21: Marist (4-1, 3-0) scored the final three touchdowns to break a 21-21 third-quarter tie and win the East Suburban Catholic Conference home game over Benet (3-2, 2-1). Marist’s Shane Davis had 24 carries for 165 yards and three TDs.
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Leyden 21, Addison Trail 0: Leyden scored three different ways to cruise past Addison Trail in the West Suburban Gold. Adam Jablonski scored on a 2-yard run, Mike Fazzio returned a blocked punt 10 yards and Paul Walker caught a 4-yard pass from Randy Bakos. Leyden is 1-1 in conference play, 3-2 overall. Addison Trail is 0-5, 0-3.
Oak Forest 28, T. F. North 20: Kevin Healy tossed TD passes of 16 yards to Wayne Johnson and 39 yards to John Dever to lead Oak Forest (2-2, 1-0) in the SICA Central.
Conant 28, Elk Grove 0: Corey Diemer carried 23 times for 105 yards and a TD for the Cougars (3-2) in the Mid-Suburban South opener.
“We matched up well against Elk Grove (2-3), because we can stop the run and they can’t throw the ball well,” said Conant coach Dave Pendergast.
Rob Schader’s 40-yard touchdown pass to Parag Patel with :01 left in the first half started the scoring. Bryan Johnson scored on a 5-yard run, Diemer on a 13-yard run and Dan Weber on a 16-yard run for Conant.
Streamwood 6, West Aurora 2: Mark Pentecost’s blocked punt and recovery at the West Aurora 2 set up Chuck Condon’s 1-yard touchdown run with 8:14 to play that lifted Streamwood (2-3, 2-3) to the Upstate Eight upset. West Aurora (4-1, 3-1) scored on an intentional safety with 3:33 to play.
“Any time you can beat a 4-0 team, you’ve accomplished something,” said Streamwood coach John Padjen. “The blocked punt was the game, and we had a couple of great goal-line stands.”
Schaumburg 32, Rolling Meadows 6: Joe Nowak scored on runs of 5, 22, 25 and 30 yards to spark the Saxons (2-3) in the Mid-Suburban South opener. Schaumburg’s other touchdown came on Chad Felde’s 1-yard run.
Providence 36, East Chicago 6: Joe Schley carried 26 times for 172 yards and three touchdowns to lead Providence (4-1).
Westmont 30, Lemont 14: Drew McKissack (18 carries, 112 yards), ran for two TDs, threw for another and returned an interception 37 yards for a fourth as Westmont (4-1, 1-0) claimed the Southeast Suburban victory.
Collins 33, Amundsen 14: Clarence Atkins returned the opening kickoff for a 75-yard touchdown and added a 2-yard scoring run as Collins (3-2, 2-0) jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead in the Public League Northwest. Terry Slaughter added a scoring kickoff return of his own-a 65-yarder in the fourth quarter. Earlier, Slaughter ran for a 55-yard touchdown.
Crane 42, Near North 0: Solomon Booker (five carries) and James Stewart (eight carries) each ran for 162 yards and multiple touchdowns to lead Crane (4-0, 2-0) in the Public League Northwest. Booker scored on runs of 79 and 50 yards and also tossed a 45-yard touchdown pass to Maurice Daniels. Stewart went in from 55, 20 and 1 yard out.
Kelvyn Park 35, Kennedy 0: John Smith scored three touchdowns and Joe Stout hit Jose Gonzalez on a 50-yard bomb as Kelvyn Park (2-2, 1-1) rolled in the Public League West.
Notre Dame 40, St. Joseph 6: Fullback Tim Shrader ran for 115 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries, while quarterback Bob Stopa added two rushing TDs to lift Notre Dame (3-2, 2-1) in the East Suburban Catholic. Notre Dame finished with 304 yards on the ground and 43 in the air.
Batavia 42, Sycamore 32: Gary Radish’s 59-yard interception return to the Sycamore 3 set up Nate Ostrye’s game-clinching touchdown as Batavia (4-1, 3-1) claimed the Little Seven Conference victory. Six touchdowns were scored in the fourth quarter.
McHenry 35, Cary-Grove 28: Mike Mitchell made the most of two short, fourth-quarter passes, running them in from 31 and 22 yards out to rally McHenry (3-2, 2-1) from a 28-21 fourth-quarter deficit in the Fox Valley. Quarterback Ryan Boland (10 for 20, 229 yards) tossed four touchdown passes in all, including 46- and 64-yard bombs to Mike Buss. Ryan Passaglia ran for three short touchdowns for Cary-Grove.
Harvard 20, Marengo 6: Ryan Palmer scored on a 42-yard run, Chris Woods on a 2-yard run and Mike Saunders on a 20-yard interception return to lift Harvard (4-1, 1-0) to the Big Northern Red victory. Marengo is 4-1, 0-1.
Crystal Lake South 20, Crystal Lake Central 11: South (4-1, 3-0) remained unbeaten in the Fox Valley. Touchdowns came by way of a 63-yard pass from Kevin Nawracaj to Jereym Wyse, a 1-yard run by Nawracaj and an 11-yard score from Adam Robinson.
Genoa-Kingston 19, Richmond-Burton 17: Trailing 9-0 midway through the second quarter, Genoa-Kingston (5-0, 1-0) scored the next three touchdowns in the Big Northern White Division opener. Quarterback Eric Rich hit Blaine Vosburgh for an 18-yard TD pass before the intermission, and Jeff Busche ran for two touchdowns in the second half. Richmond-Burton (3-2, 0-1) scored the final TD with :15 left when Jeff Christensen connected with Jeff Toller for the duo’s second score with a 36-yard pass. The twosome hooked up on a 55-yarder in the second quarter.
Minooka 27, Kaneland 8: Ray Canole and Rhett Downing scored two touchdowns apiece to lead Minooka (1-4, 1-4) in a Little Seven tilt.
Lake Park 27, Elgin 13: Tom Michael and Carl Cuttone each scored two touchdowns as Lake Park (4-1, 4-1) gained the Upstate Eight victory at Elgin (1-4, 1-3).
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