North Takes Sole Possession of First Place in DVC

John Peltz did not suffer from a lack of options Friday night when visited West Aurora for a crucial DuPage Valley Conference football game.

The Falcons' junior quarterback was nearly flawless in the opening half, hitting five different receivers on 13 of 15 completions in directing the North offense.

Patrick Sharp scored on a 12-yard run 40 seconds before the break to give  North a two-score lead at halftime, and the Falcons' defense did the rest in the second half to secure a 38-7 victory over the Blackhawks (2-4, 0-4).

Naperville Central upset Glenbard North Friday night, meaning the Falcons (5-1 overall, 4-0 in the league) hold a one-game conference lead over four different schools with three weeks to play in the regular season.

"We saw their weaknesses on defense and attacked them," Peltz said after his 16-for-21 night throwing the ball produced 197 yards passing and a pair of scores. "Taking that time off the clock really helped our defense."

North controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides, more than doubling the Blackhawks' offensive plays in the opening half.

Peltz had scoring strikes of 23 and 29 yards to wideouts Coleton Hrgich and Brett Kohler to give the team a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter.

West Aurora speedster Jonathan Gosong returned a kickoff 90 yards to halve the Falcons' lead, but Casey Blair deflected a pass on third-and-short to return the ball to North two possessions later.

"That was a huge play," North coach Joe Wardynski said.

The Falcons responded behind junior halfback Sharp, who led all ball-carriers with 117 yards on 22 carries.

Sharp scored on a sweep along the right side with 40 seconds left in the opening half to give the Falcons a 21-7 lead at the break.

The Falcons' lone area of concern was their 10 penalties for 91 yards, but the team was able to overcome several imposing third-down scenarios to keep West Aurora at bay.

"We have been working on those (third-down) situations in practice," said Sharp, who returned to action after missing two games with an injury. "We just executed."

Marcin Gawlak capped a long opening-second-half drive with a field goal for the Falcons, and twin interception returns for touchdowns ended the scoring.

Brendan Dunlap and Luke Sahly both scored on the defensive side in the second half to cement the victory.

"I knew from watching film that slant patterns were one of their favorite plays," Dunlap said of his pick at midfield and subsequent score. "I saw the quarterback and just jumped in front of (his throw)."

"We have the meat of our schedule coming up," Wardynski told his players in the postgame meeting.

The North defense limited West Aurora to 97 total yards on the night.

"They were able to play pitch and catch, and we weren't," West Aurora coach Nate Eimer said.