Harper wins Waldstein's first

Scoring touchdowns on its first two possessions and receiving a stellar second-half effort on the defensive side, Harper College's football team defeated host Rock Valley 14-8 on Saturday afternoon.

The victory is the first for rookie head coach Eric Waldstein, joining John Eliasik (1971 vs. Prairie State) in picking up his first win in his second game as Harper coach.

The Hawks (1-1 overall, 1-1 Midwest Football Conference) got their first TD when Roderick Alton (17 carries, 85 yds.) took it in from 15 yards to cap an 8-play, 86-yard drive.

Harper's second score came on a pass from starting quarterback Pat Czerwiec (7-for-16, 101 yards, 2 interceptions) that bounced off a Rock Valley defender inside the 5 and into the hands of Barrington alum Brian LeSeur in the back of the end zone for a 14-0 lead less than 61/2 minutes into the game.

From that point, the Harper defense would make a statement.

Outside of a third-quarter TD pass, the Hawks limited the Golden Eagles (0-2, 0-2) to just 71 yards of offense (minus-3 rushing) in the final two periods.

In all, the Hawks held RVC to 96 yards total and minus-11 rushing. They recorded 4 sacks and 4 interceptions on South Elgin product Peter Scaffidi (14-for-35, 107 yards) and also turned in a third-quarter goal-line stand.

Interceptions on Rock Valley's last two possessions capped the afternoon.

Sophomore Tyrance Stuckey got his second pick at the Harper 5 with 2:49 left. Nathan McNeal's theft at the Rock Valley 45 with just two minutes to play set up backup running back Xavier Steward's game-clinching 26-yard run on a third-and-9.

Harper hosts North Dakota State College of Science at 1 p.m. Saturday.