Spartans do their part in win over Immaculate Conception
St. Francis is proving it has more to offer than Mark Kachmer running the football.
Granted, the county's leading rusher added 150 more yards to his total Saturday at Immaculate Conception and returned the game's opening kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown that was brought back by a penalty.
Kachmer had plenty of support in St. Francis' 45-21 Suburban Catholic Conference win over IC at Lewis Stadium in Elmhurst.
Stan Bobowski scored 4 touchdowns on the way to 113 yards on 23 carries, while receiver Brett Robinson scored on a 42-yard Jeff Reckards pass.
Kicker Matt Krese's 32-yard field goal came on top of his 6 straight extra points, and Dave Sufranski's late 10-yard run popped the last balloon on IC's senior day.
"Everybody else knows that they have to step it up and help do their part," Bobowski said. "Because they're keying on (Kachmer) a lot, that's going to help open up holes for other people, help open up the pass game and a lot of other plays for us."
Making IC (4-4, 3-3) work to earn a playoff slot next week while positioning itself for a possible first-place SCC tie, St. Francis (7-1, 5-1) scored on its first four possessions and six of eight overall.
"I think we were more focused on 'Aurora Central's next,' not, 'St. Francis right now,' " said Knights linebacker Erik Hansen.
It looked to be a shootout when just over a minute after Bobowski scored on a 3-yard run, IC guard Robert Rivera laid out three Spartans and Carlos Rodriguez rambled 52 yards for a touchdown and 7-7 tie.
There was no slowing St. Francis. The Spartans scored 3 unanswered touchdowns on 2 Bobowski runs and Reckards' 42-yard pass to Robinson behind the coverage.
"The outlay of the game helped us kind of just go with the flow," said Robinson, who had 9 catches for 146 yards.
IC tried to reverse the flow late in the first half. Paul Hornstra's 37-yard reception and Dan Muisenga's 11-yarder from Will Cronin had the Knights first-and-goal at St. Francis' 6-yard line.
First, Antonio Taylor's 4-yard touchdown run was whistled back. Then on fourth-and-goal from inside the 1, Sufranski and friends denied Hornstra.
"In all respect," said St. Francis coach Greg Purnell, "that's pretty deflating for a team when you're down there and that happens."
Bobowski's fourth touchdown run gave St. Francis a 35-7 fourth-quarter lead. IC crept within 38-21 with 3:16 left on Nick Perrone's 35-yard return of a blocked punt. Rodriguez, who ran for 130 yards, scored from 14 yards out. Robinson covered an onside kick and St. Francis closed that window.
"They were faster, they were more physical, and they were a better football team than we are," said IC coach Bill Schmidt.