Jacobs snaps skid

It wasn't pretty but it sure was effective.

Rushing the ball 40 times for 220 yards in the second half, Jacobs broke a 14-14 halftime deadlock by outscoring Crystal Lake Central 29-0 in the second half in posting a 43-14 Fox Valley Conference win on a misty night in Algonquin Friday night.

"With the way the weather was we wanted to pound the ball in the second half," said Jacobs coach Bill Mitz. "We take a lot of pride in our offensive line and they really fired off the ball in the second half."

Junior Loren Strickland was the benefactor of the huge holes opened up by the offensive line during the final 24 minutes.

Strickland, who gained 135 yards on 20 totes for the night, gained 110 yards on 14 carries with 3 touchdowns in the second half.

"Coach really fired on us at halftime and we came out and by far played our best half of the year," said Strickland. "The offensive line was opening some huge holes and I was able to get to the edge for some big gains. We played with a lot of pride in the second half."

The Golden Eagles (3-3, 3-3) set the tone for the second half on their first drive.

Marching 73 yards on 9 runs, Strickland capped the drive with a 6-yard TD run to give the Eagles a 21-14 lead with only 1:53 elapsed in the second half.

The Jacobs junior scored his second TD of the half on another 6-yard run to give the hosts a 2-touchdown advantage with 6:48 left in third quarter.

The Golden Eagle defense, which blanked the Tigers (2-4, 1-4) in the second half, got into the act with a safety as Kaiden O' Connor tackled Crystal Lake Central quarterback Jacob Staples in the end zone.

Jacobs seized control of the game with 16 unanswered points to take a 30-14 lead with 6:32 left in the third quarter.

Junior defensive back Trevor Fitzsimmons collected an interception, had 2 pass breakups and recovered a fumble for the winners.

"Our defense played a great game, especially in the second half," said Mitz. "They made their reads and came up with some big plays. A great effort by our defense."

Senior quarterback Chris Katrenick, a 3-years starter and a Bowling Green recruit, was 6-for-14 for 108 yards, with an interception and 2 first half touchdown passes.

Katrenick tossed a 29-yard scoring strike to Jacob Hahnfeld and a 35-yard TD pass to Trevor Loewen.

Staples, who was knocked out of the game twice, threw touchdown passes of 9 and 21 yards to Christian Crociata.