Scouting Stevenson at Lake Zurich

Stevenson (5-0, 3-0) at Lake Zurich (5-0, 2-0)

When: 7:30 p.m., today

Last week: Stevenson def. Lake Forest, 41-20; Lake Zurich def. Libertyville, 44-22.

Skinny: And soon, there will be only one. One undefeated team left in the North Suburban Lake Division, that is. Stevenson and Lake Zurich will duke it out for Lake Division supremacy as the winner stays unbeaten and in the driver's seat for the division crown and the loser will be forced to swallow its first loss of the season. - Stevenson is in familiar territory. The Patriots knocked off another undefeated team last week in Lake Forest. In that game, Stevenson got 102 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns from Joe Cassata. The Patriots got off to a great start by dominating the first quarter on both ends. While Cassata and the offense put up 17 points (including a rushing touchdown by Kevin Foley and a field goal by Matthew Micucci), the defense held Lake Forest to just 10 first-quarter plays that yielded only 6 yards. - While its rushing game took center stage against Lake Forest, a balanced attack is a big reason Stevenson is still undefeated. Quarterback Kevin Earl threw for 100 yards last week and has a reliable receiver in Stephen Salata. - Lake Zurich also put on a show with its robust rushing game last week against Libertyville. Senior running back Jacob Brinlee rolled up 280 yards on just 14 carries and scored 3 touchdowns. The Bears also got 114 rushing yards out of junior Mike Shield. Brinlee's outburst broke an 8-year-old school record set by Chris Redding, who had rushed for 255 yards against Crystal Lake South. - Meanwhile, Lake Zurich once again flexed its defensive muscle. Heading into the Libertyville game, the Bears had given up only 13 points in four games. Even though they gave up 22 points to the Wildcats, they did force 5 Libertyville turnovers and rolled up six quarterback sacks. Senior lineman Kia McGee had 4 sacks himself.