Sports
Friday Night Lights: Previewing Week 6 Prep Football Games
Spartans take on two-time defending Class 5A champion Montini. Tigers keep their playoffs hopes alive, while the Falcons travel to West Aurora.
St. Francis at Montini
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Montini High School, 19W070 16th St., Lombard
Records: 4-1, 1-1; Montini 3-2, 1-1
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Last week: St. Francis 58, Guerin 19; Montini 55, Aurora Christian 14
Head coaches: Greg Purnell, St. Francis; Chris Andriano, Montini
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Key players
St. Francis: Dan Beck, RB-DB; Kyle Bosch, OT; Nick Donati, QB; Robert Dwyer, OT; Jack Petrando, RB-LB; Jeff Rutkowski, RB-LB
Montini: Joe Borsellino, RB; Franklin Bruscianelli, LB; Mark Gorogianis, QB; Jaleel Johnson, OT; John Rhode, QB; Jordan Westerkamp, WR
About the game
Montini’s 3-2 record thus far is deceiving. The Broncos’ two losses are to Loyola Academy and Marian Central—two of the area’s top-ranked teams who are both undefeated. The two-time defending 5A state champions made short work of previously undefeated Aurora Christian (a Class 3A school) last Friday.
There’s no love lost between the Broncos and the Spartans, who enjoyed their second lopsided victory in as many weeks, this time over Guerin. Montini upended St. Francis twice last fall en route to the 5A title—once during the regular season and again in the playoff opener. Meanwhile, the Spartans’ march to the 2008 Class 5A title game included ousting Montini in the quarterfinals.
St. Francis has outscored its last two foes, Guerin and Wheaton Academy, 114-29. Petrando, Rutkowski and Nate Baratta have combined for 14 touchdowns over that span.
The Broncos are chock-full of stars. Johnson was one of the area’s most heavily recruited linemen before commiting to Iowa this past summer. Westerkamp, a Nebraska recruit, is one of Montini’s top playmakers, while Borsellino, a junior, racked up four touchdowns against Aurora Christian in Week 5.
Friday’s game is expected to be Rhode’s season debut. Marian Central’s starting quarterback the past two seasons, Rhode transferred to Montini over the summer. Rhode, a senior, missed the first five weeks due to a fractured thumb on his throwing hand, but Gorogianis has filled in effectively at QB.
Wheaton North at West Aurora
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: West Aurora High School, 80 S. River St.
Records: 4-1, 3-0; West Aurora 2-3, 0-3
Last week: Wheaton North 56, Glenbard East 12; Glenbard North 31, West Aurora 21
Coaches: Joe Wardynski, Wheaton North; Nate Eimer, West Aurora
Key players
West Aurora: Shon Enoch, Jonathan Gosong, KR-PR; RB; Kenny Hine, WR; Brooker Ross, RB; Brandon Warren, DL; Nate Zinzer, WR.
Wheaton North: Landon Bruni, OL; John Daniels, WR; Micah Penn, WR; John Peltz, QB; Patrick Sharp, RB; Mike Swider, LB.
About the game
Glenbard East surprised the Falcons by taking an early lead last Friday with a long touchdown pass, but Wheaton North made short work of the Rams nonetheless. Despite Sharp missing his second game with an ankle injury, the Falcons piled up 56 unanswered points, which opened the doors for a running clock.
Junior Mikey Sammer filled in for Sharp and went over 100 yards for a second straight week while scoring a touchdown. Peltz, though, turned out to be the running star for Wheaton North as he scored four touchdowns—including an 80-yard jaunt during the fourth period.
Wheaton North had little difficultly putting away its previous two opponents, Glenbard East and West Chicago, but West Aurora won’t be a pushover. The Blackhawks matched highly regarded Glenbard North score-for-score well into the third quarter last week before the Panthers finally pulled away. The Blackhawks also were competitive with Naperville Central in a Week 4 loss.
is expected to play on Friday night. The Falcons will need him as they face the most difficult portion of their 2011 schedule. They’ll host Glenbard North (Oct. 7) and Naperville Central (Oct. 14) before concluding the regular season at Wheaton Warrenville South.
West Chicago at Wheaton Warrenville South
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Where: , 1993 Tiger Trail
Records: West Chicago 0-5, 0-3; Wheaton Warrenville South 2-3, 2-1
Last week: Naperville North 45, West Chicago 7; Wheaton Warrenville South 14, Naperville Central 7
Head coaches: Paul Reinke, West Chicago; Ron Muhitch, Wheaton Warrenville South
Key players
West Chicago: Matt Green, QB; John Ragano, LB; AJ Seidler, RB; Alec Strachota, WR; Nate Sudnick, LB; Anthony Venen, RB
Wheaton Warrenville South: Thaddeus Armstrong, QB; Adam Dansdill, LB; Patrick Garner, RB; Jack Lipinsky, DE; Brandon Peterson, LB; Dan Vitale, RB.
About the game
Facing a must-win situation last week to keep its postseason hopes alive, WWS rose to the occasion by besting a formidable Naperville Central club.
The Tigers’ offense has struggled all season, but it mustered just enough to help WWS knock off Naperville Central. Vitale broke loose for 170 yards—including an 82-yard run that proved to be the game-deciding touchdown. Muhitch continues to utilize both Armstrong and Graham behind center. Armstrong started the game and had over 100 yards passing, but Graham threw a 14-yard TD pass to Brady Banda that gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead.
However, it was the Tigers’ defense that turned in its finest effort of the year so far. The Tigers held Naperville Central star tailback Matt Randolpht to under 60 yards. Randolph had run roughshod over every Redhawk opponent prior to last week, gaining just over 700 yards in four games.
The Tigers should be able to feast on winless West Chicago, which has been outscored 115-13 in its three DVC losses. A victory would even WWS’ record at 3-3 and, more importantly, put the Tigers at 3-1 in league play going into the final weeks of the season. Two of the Tigers’ three remaining contests will test their mettle. They face undefeated Glenbard North next week, and finish with the cross-town rival Falcons.
