Palatine pins down one important win

Palatine faced the equivalent of a 7-10 split after getting bowled over by Conant last week.

Now the Pirates had to try and pick up the pieces against Barrington on Saturday and Fremd next Friday. Otherwise a season filled with expectations and promise could end up in the gutter.

So what did the Pirates do Monday after giving up 40 points to Conant with high-powered Barrington coming up next? They went bowling.

And there were striking differences throughout the week as the Pirates picked up a huge 41-35 Mid-Suburban West win over previously unbeaten Barrington.

"I wouldn't say that was the reason, but that was the first step," Palatine coach Tyler Donnelly said of the team-building bowling outing where junior reserve receiver Tony Stolfa was the standout.

One of many steps the Pirates took this week toward recapturing the edge they had en route to making the second round of the playoffs last year.

"After last week we changed practice and the whole week changed," said Palatine senior Jimmy LaCapra. "We went to last year's practice plan. It was more competitive and more fun and we came together as a team."

On the surface everything looked fine as the Pirates bounced back from a season-opening loss to Lake Forest with 3 straight wins. They were on a roll even though they had suffered a rash of injuries to key players such as standout middle linebacker Ryan Cortez, lineman Brock Tenca, receiver Cody Bobbit and running back Chris Norman.

But brewing issues eventually boiled over against Conant. The next morning they held a two-hour meeting with their season at a crossroads.

"We watched film and looked at the sideline and said, 'No one cared as much,'" said Palatine quarterback Matt Rossi.

"We didn't think we had been playing Palatine football - pretty much the whole year," Donnelly said. "We had to play for one another, play for the town, play together and be happy for one another."

Donnelly and his staff realized easing off in practice because of the injuries was a mistake. So after the bowling break, it was back to serious, hard-hitting action Tuesday and Wednesday with starters against starters and the best players going both ways if needed.

"We'd see what type of team we were after this game," Rossi said. "That's what the coaches were saying."

The Pirates showed they were a team that could respond to adversity against a formidable opponent. They're a team right back in the West title hunt heading into next Friday's much-anticipated cross-town clash with Fremd.

"If we had won, we wouldn't have addressed those things," Donnelly said of the good that came out of the Conant loss. "They would have shown up somewhere else and been disastrous."

mmaciaszek@dailyherald.com