Mack, Trojans run mark to 4-0
With junior running back standout Alex Hembrey on the shelf with an ankle injury, senior Jonas Mack realized his offensive production had to increase.
The Cary-Grove fullback more than made up for Hembrey's absence. Mack rambled for a career high 153 yards on 12 carries, which included a 33-yard touchdown, to help lead Cary-Grove to a 35-14 homecoming win over Johnsburg in a Fox Valley Conference crossover game at Cary's Al Bohrer Field Saturday afternoon.
"I realize Alex is an excellent runner and I had to step it up a notch and play hard," said Mack. The offensive line was phenomenal."
Cary-Grove (4-0), which rarely passes, scored first when Tyler Krebs found Chad McCarron for a 16-yard touchdown with 5:21 left in the first half to give the Trojans a 7-0 lead.
On the ensuing possession, Johnsburg (1-3) moved to the Cary-Grove 24. On a third-and-7, Skyhawk quarterback Jerad Grundy fired a pass to all-stater CJ Fiedorowicz. McCarron leapt in front of Fiedorowicz for the interception.
"Chad is just a great athlete," said Cary-Grove coach Bruce Kay. "That was a great interception. It was great timing. He was our starting wide receiver until the last practice before our first game when the defense stole him from the offense. It was in our plans to use him both on offense and defense."
Cary-Grove looked in good shape to take a 7-0 lead into halftime, but Grundy hooked up with Fiedorowicz for a 39-yard TD with only 5 seconds left before intermission to tie the score at 7.
Fiedorowicz caught 5 passes for 106 yards and a score in the first half. In the second half, the Trojans doubled and tripled teamed Fiedorowicz, limiting the talented junior to 1 catch for 34 yards.
"Obviously, it was a point of interest at halftime on how to contain Fiedorowicz," said Kay. "We changed up our defense and double and triple-teamed him. We did a great job on him in the second half."
While the Trojan defense was stymying the Skyhawk offense in the second half, the Cary-Grove offense flourished.
Engineered by the junior Krebs, the Trojans scored 28 unanswered points.
To start the third quarter, Cary-Grove marched 73 yards on 9 plays, capped by a 25-yard run from Krebs with 9:08 left in the third quarter.
Less than 4 minutes later, Cary-Grove increased its lead to 21-7 on a 33-yard TD run by Mack.
The Trojans scored twice early in the fourth quarter to put the game away. Krebs scored from 5 yards out and followed with a 33-yard touchdown pass to David Moreno. Krebs completed all 4 of his passes for 90 yards and 2 touchdowns.