Beating Kaneland made homecoming even more special for Batavia

Instead of piling on the bus and heading home back to Maple Park right away, the Kaneland football team stuck around in Batavia's gym within earshot of the Bulldogs' locker room.

Among the thumping noises heard from the locker room was music that sounded like it was fit for a party -- or rather yet, a celebration of something that had not happened in five years. That something was Batavia beating Kaneland for the first time since 2003.

Perhaps Kaneland coach Tom Fedderly wanted his Knights to listen to what a victory sounded like because his team just witnessed what a victory looked like on the other side.

Batavia's 31-21 Western Sun Conference win looked a lot like senior Bai Kabba running super fast all over the place, Erich Zeddies tallying points in several different ways and Jordan Coffey displaying his talents in both running and passing the ball at quarterback.

"We knew we could do it, even though we knew it was going to be a tough game," Batavia's Ryan Webb said. "Hopefully, we'll keep rolling the rest of the season."

Even before the game began, the night was a special one for Batavia because it was Homecoming. Several players from Batavia's football past resurfaced, including Jack Scalcucci and Mike Garrity, who currently plays at Illinois. Players like these never got to experience what it felt like to beat Batavia's "other" rival.

"All the alumni want is for us to get a win," Kabba said. "It's great because I've played with some of those guys for a long time, and you go through the losses with them, so you know how it feels. Even though they aren't out here playing, I guarantee every one of them wishes they were. They know how we feel after winning this game. They are right there with us."

The night was a good one for Zeddies, not only because of his flawless accuracy as a kicker as well as the 39-yard touchdown pass from Coffey in the first half, but he was crowned Homecoming king at the break. He ran off the field, kept his uniform on and joined the royalty who were mostly decked out in formal wear.

"There's no words to describe this," Zeddies said. "I definitely enjoyed this. It was so much fun. The team did really well."

The win not only improved the overall and conference records for the Bulldogs (3-2, 2-1), but it gave them their pride back when it comes time to bragging rights against the Knights.

"It's a great senior Homecoming memory," Kabba said.

cbolin@dailyherald.com