Ratay, Geneva win ground battle

On paper, it was a game in which neither Geneva nor Carmel could boast of a huge statistical advantage. But the Corsairs, an East Suburban Catholic Conference powerhouse, were hanging their hat on an astounding number - having allowed only one rushing touchdown all season, going into Saturday afternoon's Class 7A quarterfinal in Geneva.

In the end, that number only added to the legend that has become Geneva running back Michael Ratay, who scored three more touchdowns and rushed for 191 yards in helping the Vikings roll to a 35-21 win and chalk up the most impressive number in school history with a record 12th win against no defeats.

A quarter-by-quarter breakdown illustrates how Geneva finally took control of the contest in the second half to advance to next weekend's semifinal against Crystal Lake South in Geneva.

First quarter: Carmel's wing option rushing offense had wreaked havoc on opponents all season, but on the game's first play, Corsair quarterback Andrew Nerup tests Geneva's 4-3 and cover 2 defensive alignment by firing a long downfield pass to wideout Matt Felicelli, who was momentarily open until cornerback Alex Olenek knocks the ball away at the last moment.

It turns out to be the only play in the quarter in which a potential score was thwarted. The Vikings control the ball for more than five minutes on their first possession against Carmel's 3-3-5 defensive set, sending a signal that being able to march downfield would be significant later in the game.

The Corsairs were doing all of the things that made them so dangerous in their 10 victories - physical gang tackling as well as effective open-field tackling and pass coverage.

Nerup misses a wide open Felicelli late in the quarter, but Geneva has worries on its sidelines as stellar middle linebacker Brennan Quinn is hobbled by an injured shin and takes a seat for about five plays.

Score: Geneva 0, Carmel 0.

Second quarter: Corsair fullback Mike Taylor shows why he is one of Carmel's main offensive weapons as he gains 20 yards on a drive and becomes a decoy when Nerup follows the block of standout left tackle Patrick Lyons for a 27-yard touchdown run less than two minutes into the quarter for a 7-0 lead.

The Corsair drive is sparked by a shift toward attacking the middle of Geneva's line, rather than the corners, where Carmel had little luck in the opening quarter.

Bret Shannon makes a nifty over-the-shoulder catch on a short kickoff, giving Geneva good field position at its 41-yard line. It proved to be important, as Ratay started to rev his engine, rushing four times for 32 yards and grabbing a screen pass for 16 yards during a drive he capped with a 4-yard touchdown run.

When Geneva's kickoff went out of bounds, it was Carmel's turn to cash in on good field position - and the Corsairs did it quickly.

Halfback Jimmy Miller ran a "wheel" route, swinging out of the backfield and heading downfield where Nerup found him with a pass that fought its way through the wind and past the outstretched fingers of Viking safety Sean Grady as Miller pulled it in and galloped 53 yards for a touchdown.

Each team went three-and-out on their next possession, but Geneva found a way to attack Carmel's stingy interior defense by breaking Ratay loose with a 20-yard screen pass that ignited another scoring drive.

Using Ratay as a decoy on a first-down play at the Carmel 8-yard line, Viking quarterback Brandon Beitzel threw a touchdown pass to a wide open Michael Santacaterina, who lined up as the fullback on the play and slid to the left side of the end zone after Ratay ducked into the right side and drew the attention of nearly every defender.

Score: Geneva 14, Carmel 14.

Third quarter: "We defer the kickoff to the second half so we can get the ball," said Geneva coach Rob Wicinski. "At halftime, we put the challenge to our offensive line that it was time to step up and just take this game."

Geneva's offensive line did just that, establishing itself early in the third quarter as Ratay started attacking inside the tackles to ignite a 65-yard drive that he capped with a 14-yard touchdown run after one of his patented moves - breaking a sure tackle near the line of scrimmage.

The biggest play of the drive was aided by a well-executed crack-back block by wideout Brandon Lee on a 21-yard scamper by Ratay.

With momentum now shifting to Geneva, the Vikings defense snuffs Carmel's first possession of the half, with Andrew Clausen notching a sack on third-and-8 at the Carmel 43-yard line.

The Vikings dominated possession by using up the rest of the third-quarter clock in marching 89 yards to take a 28-14 lead on Beitzel's 1-yard plunge. Beitzel had two other quarterback keepers on third downs that kept the drive alive, but more importantly connected on three sideline passes in areas where Carmel's talented safeties weren't able to help in coverage.

Ratay was now wearing down Carmel's defense, running for 18 yards on a third-down play after two Corsairs appeared to have him wrapped up behind the line of scrimmage.

He entered the fourth quarter with 148 yards on 25 carries.

Score: Geneva 28, Carmel 14.

Fourth quarter: Desperate to get back in the game, Nerup and Taylor grind up yardage and Carmel quickly moves downfield. Nerup connects with Felicelli for 11 yards on a fourth-and-9 play at the Geneva 20-yard line. But the Viking defense is holding strong, forcing Carmel to run extra plays - and lose precious time on the clock.

Taylor finally finds an opening right over center and scores from 6 yards out with 6:44 left to trim Geneva's lead to one touchdown.

On Geneva's next possession, Jason Holmes breaks a tackle after pulling in a short pass from Beitzel and scampers 25 yards. Ratay takes it from there, pounding his way through Carmel's defense to set up a first down at the Corsair's 15-yard line.

A key play before that occurred when the ball was knocked loose from Ratay, but Greg Gregory came up with the crucial recovery for Geneva.

After attacking the corners with sweeps the previous two runs, Ratay cuts back inside, breaks two tackles and puts the game out of reach with a 15-yard touchdown run with 2:21 left.

Carmel makes a valiant charge downfield, with Taylor making runs of 8, 11 and 13 yards to move the Corsairs to Geneva's 7-yard line with just over a minute left.

As it has all season, the Viking defensive front put an end to the game with defensive end Corey Hofstetter stuffing Nerup at the line of scrimmage, Rich MacDonald stopping Taylor for no gain and, on Carmel's final chance, Trey Hemming batting down a Nerup pass attempt.

"This was just a real good win for our program," Wicinski said afterward.

Final score: Geneva 35, Carmel 21.