CL South shuts out Jacobs
Crystal Lake South had many agendas Friday night.
(1) Bounce back from last week's tough loss at Cary-Grove; (2) Beat Jacobs for the first time in three years; (3) Win its sixth game of the season and qualify for the playoffs for the eighth straight season.
Check, check and check.
Guided by a dominating defensive effort, South downed Jacobs 28-0 in a Fox Valley Conference Valley Division game in Algonquin.
"We played a very good game on both sides of the ball," said South coach Jim Stuglis. "We had good focus after last week and kids came ready to play. Our defense really shut them down."
The Gators' defense, led by defensive back Steve Rogers, totally stymied the Jacobs (1-7, 0-4) offense. Jacobs managed only 6 first downs and 77 yards of total offense, 51 rushing and 26 passing.
Rogers, who recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass, also had two breakups and two tackles for losses.
"On the fumble, I was in the right place at the right time and got a lucky bounce," said Rogers. "The interception was like a jump ball situation and my timing was good.
"This was a great bounce back win after last week and it was good to beat Jacobs after losing to them the last two years. Our goal all week was to shut them out. We had a good game plan and we had good pursuit to the ball."
Stuglis praised Rogers' efforts.
"It was the best game of Steve's high school career," said the South coach. "He was outstanding, was all over the field and he came up with a couple of key turnovers."
The Gators (6-2, 3-1) did all their scoring in the first half. Colin Masterson, who gained 138 yards on 18 carries, scored on runs of 14 and 4 yards, and caught a 43-yard TD pass from Drew Ormseth. Derek Mortensen, who bulled his way to 76 yards on 15 carries, scored on a 1-yard run.
The lone highlight for the Golden Eagles, who blanked the Gators in the second half, was an interception by Mike Stein.
"I thought we played much better in the second half on both sides of the ball," said Jacobs coach Dean Schlueter. "South is a very good football team which is very physical."