It's Antioch, in a thriller
It wasn't quite deja vu all over again. But almost.
Same craziness. Different result.
Last year when Antioch and Vernon Hills matched up their high-powered offenses, the two teams put together a barnburner that yielded a total of 80 points and a Vernon Hills victory that came on a go-ahead touchdown with 30 seconds left.
Vernon Hills coach Tony Monken has said that if his team had scored with a minute left, Antioch probably would have had enough time to score again and get the win. It was that kind of game.
The set-up this time around seemed all too familiar.
Vernon Hills was threatening with less than a minute to play.
But Antioch managed to escape this year's version of the craziness with a 38-35 victory.
Fittingly, it was secured in dramatic fashion. The Cougars drove nearly 50 yards in 30 seconds and had a first down at the Antioch 20-yard line with 44 seconds to play. But then Antioch cornerback Tyler Woolard intercepted a Vernon Hills pass at the 1-yard line to put an end to the madness.
"This feels great. I don't know what to say right now," said Woolard, who picked the perfect time to come down with his first interception of the year. "I've been working all week on my deep coverage and the line did a great job of rushing their quarterback. When I saw the ball in my hands, I knew the game was over. 7-0."
The win not only keeps the Sequoits spotless on the season at 7-0, it also moves them into sole possession of first place in the North Suburban Conference Prairie Division standings.
Vernon Hills, which had stormed out to a 21-0 lead to open the game, absorbs its first loss of the season, dropping to 6-1 overall, 3-1 in the Prairie.
Another loss for the Cougars came in the form of injuries to key players. Star sophomore receiver DaVaris Daniels went down on the very first play from scrimmage with an injury to his right ankle. He spent the rest of the game on crutches and was going to stop by the hospital on his way home to get X-rays. His teammate, running back Ernie Choi, missed the second half and was also on crutches. He aggravated an already injured right ankle.
"I looked at the guys and I just said, '(Daniels) isn't our whole team,'" said Vernon Hills quarterback
PJ Marsek, who completed 8 of 14 passes for 155 yards. "I said, 'We still have plenty of guys who can do it.' And a lot of guys stepped up. Zach (Kisley) did a great job and Sebastian (Evans) played out of his mind."
Kisley, who subbed in for Daniels, helped Vernon Hills to that 21-0 lead by hauling in a 10-yard touchdown pass from Marsek. The two hooked up for a total of three touchdowns on the night. Amazingly, Kisley (3 catches, 55 yards) hadn't caught a single pass all season prior to this game.
Evans also scored during Vernon Hills' quick start and finished with 118 yards on 18 carries.
But Antioch stormed back, scoring just before halftime on a 39-yard Vinnie Holm run and then four straight times to open the second half. Quarterback Matt Romani ran in 2 touchdowns (1 yard, 9 yards), Cameron White (12 carries, 148 yards) rushed for 5-yard touchdown and Holm added a 28-yard field goal.
Suddenly, Antioch owned a 31-21 lead with 6:08 left.
But Vernon Hills answered a minute later when Marsek and Kisley hooked up for a 27-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 31-28. Then, Antioch answered back when White ticked off a 55-yard touchdown run to put Antioch back up by 10 points, 38-28.
Kisley and Marsek answered back with their third touchdown of the night, an 18-yarder to bring the deficit back down to three points at 38-35. And then, when the Vernon Hills defense stopped Antioch on a fourth down and the offense started moving the ball furiously in the final minute, things looked up again for the Cougars.
Until the interception.
"That was one for the ages there, huh?" Antioch coach Brian Glashagel said. "It was a slugfest. But we battled. We showed we have a lot of character."