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player ready...Naperville North took a DuPage Valley Conference rematch for all the 8A marbles in a 46-19 state championship game victory over Glenbard North on Saturday night.
With a 37-7 league win over the Panthers on Sept. 21 in hand, Naperville North (13-1) set the early tone and won its second state title. Senior QB Jordan Tassio carved out a 21-0 halftime lead that put the Panthers in a deep pit.
“I owe it all to Alex Dieckmann and the offensive line,” said Tassio, who passed for 135 first-half yards and also kicked PATs and punted for North. “The O-line gave me time, and Alex made some great plays.
“We did it. All four years we said we wanted a state championship as seniors. It’s a dream come true right now. I can’t even explain how I feel right now. It’s awesome.”
Tassio and Dieckmann combined for three touchdowns, including a beautiful diving grab in the third quarter. The duo teamed up on each of Tassio’s five first-half completions. Touchdown passes of 63 and 10 yards gave the Huskies a 14-0 lead with 7:05 left before intermission.
The final touchdown before halftime came on Tassio’s fourth-and-goal, 1-yard sneak that sharpened Naperville North’s edge and punctured Glenbard North’s heart.
Naperville North added three fourth-quarter touchdowns. Tom Costantino contributed one with an 18-yard run with 9:18 left.
Dieckmann (46 yards) and Tassio (50) returned back-to-back onside kicks in the final three minutes.
Dieckmann’s four-TD evening set an 8A record. He said the first score was his favorite.
“It was a corner blitz. When I saw him coming, I said, ‘Oh, I’m wide open. Throw me the ball,'” Dieckmann said. “I never ran so fast in my life.”
The loss ended the Cinderella run of Glenbard North (9-5), which included upsets of York, Fremd and Mt. Carmel. The Panthers became the first team to enter a state championship game with four losses. After a 2-3 start, they won seven of eight games following their DuPage loss to Naperville North.
They also dropped a 13-7 decision to 7A runner-up Wheaton Warenville South.
The Panthers got on the scoreboard with three fourth-quarter scores: a 42-yard pass play from quarterback Evan Watkins to Andrew Ngyuen with 10:22 left; a 2-yard run from Tyler Doll with 3:00 left; and an 88-yard kickoff return from Matt Ng with 2:42 left.
Glenbard North took home its third state runner-up trophy.
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