Fremd hangs on against Lake Zurich
It had been a while since Fremd won its season opener against Lake Zurich, but the losing streak is over.
The Vikings snapped a five-year drought against the Bears with a 10-7 win on Friday night at Hale Hildebrandt Field in Palatine.
The Vikings used a balanced offensive attack coupled with a stingy defense to knock off the perennial playoff powerhouse.
"Our defense played the way they were supposed to play," said Fremd defensive coordinator Danny Davis. "The guys that we knew could play did their jobs, and the guys we had question marks about stepped up and played well.
"Matt McCabe, Kenny Lyke, Jake Haas and Jimmy Walsh all played well."
The Vikings got on the board when a couple of juniors hooked up for a pair of firsts. Quarterback Tommy Josten connected with Austin Schwantz for a 27-yard score with just four seconds left in the first quarter. It was Josten's first touchdown pass, and Schawantz' first touchdown reception at the varsity level. Brody Martin converted the PAT for Fremd.
Martin tacked on a 24 yard field goal to give Fremd a 10-0 lead at the half.
Lake Zurich capped a 10-play drive at the start of the fourth quarter with a 1-yard dive by Kyle Roth. Jake Kubin the PAT to cut the Fremd lead to 10-7.
Lake Zurich looked like it might be heading for another score on its next possession after moving the ball from its own 20 down to the Fremd 27. However, the Vikings defense stepped up and Will Pankratz picked off Joey Lindstrom to stop the Bears' drive.
Charlie Kaye was the workhorse for the Fremd offense, as he rushed for 89 yards on 18 carries.
"We had some good production on both sides of the ball tonight and it was a great win to start the season," said Fremd coach Lou Sponsel. "We knew we wouldn't run out of gas at the end because it was a summer of conditioning."
Roth led the Bears' offensive attack with 58 yards on 16 carries. Lindstrom was 14 of 28 for 157 yards.
"It was a typical Lake Zurich-Fremd football game," said Lake Zurich coach Dave Proffitt. "It was hard fought by both teams and we had our chances."