Glenbard North stuffs Naperville North, adversity

Glenbard North had walking, limping and sling-wearing wounded, and one of its best football players didn't even make the trip to Naperville North.

It still didn't keep the Panthers from pounding their way to victory in their DuPage Valley Conference opener.

Defensive back Sean Fogarty returned a second-quarter interception 35 yards to account for the game's only touchdown, and Glenbard North held on for a 10-3 victory over the Huskies in Naperville.

Both teams especially traded blows in a scoreless second half that featured three fourth-down red-zone stops by the Panthers. Joe Williams made two of the stops, including one at the 8-yard line, while Phil Jackson stuffed a third.

"The fourth-and-shorts were just huge," said Fogarty, who snared 2 interceptions. "Our linebackers stepped up, our d-line was huge and our DBs came in when they needed to make plays. It was just a big defensive game for us."

Glenbard North (3-0, 1-0) was without all-DVC running back Evin Natick because of a one-game disciplinary suspension, while Naperville North (2-1, 0-1) played the second half without University of Minnesota-bound quarterback Matt LaCosse due to a shoulder injury.

Both standouts are expected to return next week, but other Glenbard North players may not be so lucky.

Linebacker Austin Siperly and defensive back Aaron Smith didn't dress due to injury, while linebacker Tyler Knudsen and defensive back Tremel Smith were hurt during the game.

Others, including Brandon Clark in a move from defensive end to linebacker, rose to the occasion.

"It's a group effort and everyone does their job," Clark said. "We all played our heart out and came away with a good victory."

Both sides struggled mightily on offense as the teams combined for 13 punts. Naperville North opened the scoring with a 26-yard field goal by Ron Coluzzi to begin the second quarter.

Following Fogarty's interception return for a touchdown, Mark Ng booted a 26-yard field goal to put the Panthers' halftime lead at 10-3.

Jackson carried the running load for the Panthers in Natick's absence and responded with 108 of his 114 rushing yards in the second half.

With LaCosse out, Naperville North tried backup quarterback Bryan Sleik and running back Nick Sianta behind center. Sianta finished with 132 rushing yards on 31 carries.

Huskies coach Sean Drendel said LaCosse could have played in the second half, but the decision was made to hold him out for a return in next week's game against West Aurora.

"Matt's fine, he was able to play, we just chose not to," Drendel said. "He was just banged up a little bit. We decided that rather than risking further injury that maybe the best decision would be to hold him out. It's only one game."