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With seconds remaining, and under the hold of Conner Milliren (26), kicker Ryan Mulhern kicks the game winning field goal, for a 23-20 win over Waubonsie Valley.
Daniel White | Staff Photographer
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There were several reasons Ryan Mulhern shouldn't have made the biggest field goal of his life. The Neuqua Valley senior hadn't converted since Sept. 28. He was 2-for-6 on the year. His usual snapper got injured. A previous extra point was botched. And the whopper, a game-time decision cleared him to play Saturday after an enlarged spleen from mononucleosis held him out last week against Bolingbrook. With 11 seconds left in the Class 8A quarterfinal and the ball on the 2-yard line against archrival Waubonsie Valley, Mulhern narrowed his focus and delivered. His 19-yard field goal gave the host Wildcats a 23-20 victory before 7,500 people in Naperville.Galleries by Category