North Central's Wenger, Wheaton's Ittersagen earn honors
Local football players captured two of the three College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin player of the week awards in opening-day victories Saturday.
Sophomore linebacker Matt Wenger of North Central was the defensive player of the week, while Pete Ittersagen of Wheaton won special teams honors.
Wenger led the Cardinals in tackles with 8 and had 2½ tackles for loss and a sack as North Central won its season opener 28-7 over Concordia (Wis.).
"It was just a matter of time before Matt got out there and became an impact player," said North Central linebackers coach Bill Wienke. "He's following in the footsteps of All-American Lenny Radtke, playing that weakside position. The sky's the limit for this kid."
Ittersagen (Wheaton North), a junior defensive back and a preseason All-American, had 4 punt returns for 118 yards, averaging 29½ yards per return in Wheaton's 28-10 win over Albion. The longest of Ittersagen's returns was a 78-yard run for a touchdown late in the first quarter -- his second career return for a touchdown.
"Pete makes plays wherever you put him on the football field," said Wheaton coach Mike Swider..
Ittersagen also registered 10 tackles on defense, including 8 solo stops, to go with a 17-yard interception return that set up Wheaton's third touchdown.
Carthage sophomore quarterback Dan DeBoeuf was named offensive player of the week.
DuPage: The College of DuPage football team, which has continued to improve under coach Fred Fimbres and his staff, finally tasted defeat in last week's 30-27 encounter with Grand Rapids Community College. The Chaparrals had won their first two games.
The Chaps, who were ranked 13th in the country by the National Junior College Athletic Association last week, were tied at 27-27 before the Raiders' Raul Velasco decided the game with a 25-yard field goal with 1:23 remaining.
"We turned the ball over five times and Grand Rapids did not turn the ball over once," said Fimbres. "When you give the ball up that many times, you give the opponent a short field and it's hard to come away with a win. We must protect the ball."
Benedictine: Sophomore tailback Ryan Schwartz had a career rushing day to lead the Benedictine football team, as the Eagles (1-1) rebounded from an opening-week loss to Elmhurst with a 14-0 non-conference win over North Park last Saturday.
Schwartz carried for 204 yards and scored both Eagles' touchdowns.
"We really needed someone to step up like Ryan did," said Benedictine coach Jon Cooper. "We've been struggling offensively, and it was important to have some success. It was a perfect combination of a lot of Ryan Schwartz and a lot of good line play."
On defense, sophomore outside linebacker Devin Montgomery continued to wreak havoc on the opposition, as he tallied double-digit tackle totals for the second straight week. Montgomery had 11 stops against the Vikings, after opening with 16 tackles in the loss to Elmhurst.
Volleyball: Kayla Leyden was named the most valuable player as the Benedictine volleyball team (8-1) went 4-0 to win the Jim Coleman Memorial Tournament hosted by Aurora University last weekend.
Leyden averaged 4.4 kills and 3.8 digs as the Eagles lost one game en route to the tournament championship.
Elmhurst: Quarterback Chris Kudyba looks to continue his perfect start to the 2007 season Saturday when the Bluejays play at the University of Chicago.
Kudyba, who missed most of the 2006 season with a knee injury, showed no rust while leading the Elmhurst offense to 5 touchdowns in five possessions in Elmhurst's 52-3 victory over Benedictine on September 1.
Against the Eagles, Kudyba completed 10 of 14 passes for 157 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Men's soccer: After scoring only 24 goals in 2006, the Elmhurst men's soccer team has reached half that total in five games this year while posting a 3-1-1 record.
Leading the way for Elmhurst have been sophomore Jake Pahr and freshman John Brehm. Both have 3 goals and 2 assists, while freshman Jacob Misel has 2 goals.
Women's golf: The Elmhurst women's golf team won its first-ever tournament last week by shooting a 356 at the Benedictine Invitational. Emily Labrecque and Whitney Heinzmann each shot an 84 to tie for third in the individual standings.