Triumph alongside tragedy as Grayslake North tops Hampshire
It didn't come easily for Grayslake North's football team Friday night at home against Hampshire, especially after tragic local events the past few days.
However, the Knights found the resolve to overcome the loss of fellow student Haylie Winiewicz, who passed away along with her father in a car crash last weekend, by defeating Hampshire 28-18 in both teams' Fox Valley Conference Fox Division opener.
"The kids had a really rough week," Knights coach Steve Wood said. "Our thoughts are with Ashley (Winiewicz) and her mother. To be able to overcome that, it wasn't pretty but we got the win. That's what I am proud of."
The turning point came with the Knights leading 14-12 with just over two minutes left in the third quarter. After Grayslake North (2-0) turned the ball over on downs, senior Mark Kegermann made the play of the night, leaping and intercepting Hampshire quarterback Jacob Vincent (game-high passing 262 yards) and returning it 35 yards for a touchdown. The play was the jewel in a stellar defense showcase.
"The defense played really well," Wood said. "We bent a little bit but did not break. We came up with the timely turnovers and the big sacks to stop any progress they were making down the field."
In addition to Kegermann, the defense produced consistent pressure from Derek Franzen, Justin Bock and Charlie Walker.
Grayslake North quarterback Jacob Wright, who burst onto the scene in the win against Lakes last week, made his second varsity start. He made key plays early to stake the Knights to a 14-0 lead. On North's second possession in the first quarter, Wright capped off a 69-yard drive with a 20-yard strike down the right sideline to receiver Joseph Geary to open the scoring.
Wright then raced 10 yards to the end zone in the early stages of the second quarter. He finished off a drive highlighted by receiver Matthew Aikin's 46 yard run on an end-around outside of the left tackle.
"Jacob is my brother out there," said Knights tailback Dami Oladunmoye, who tallied a game-high 137 rushing yards. "He is amazing. For not knowing any plays coming into the season, he is really impressing everyone, myself included."
Hampshire (1-1) scored in the first half on a 44-yard run by Jimmy Curran. The Whip-Purs cut the lead to 14-12 in the third when Xavier Bennett hauled in a Young pass from 8 yards out.
Grayslake North's scoring was capped by Elliott Hochstein, who caught a 2-yard strike late in the fourth quarter form Wright. Hampshire did notch a second touchdown toss from Vincent to Jake Manning (108 receiving yards) with 15 seconds left in the game.
"We had a lot of red-zone chances," Hampshire coach Michael Brasile said. "But we also had too many penalties, and we did that against a good team. Grayslake North is always a good team. They seem to reload each year with a quality tailback, and Coach Wood does a great job coaching those kids up."