Bartlett defeats Metea Valley
The Bartlett football team is on a roll and sniffing the postseason.
A week after throttling former No. 5 South Elgin, the Hawks jumped all over Metea Valley in the first half Friday night on their way to a 41-7 Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division win.
Bartlett (5-2, 3-1) is just a win away from securing its 10th playoff berth in 11 seasons and will host Neuqua Valley next week.
"We run our own destiny right now," Bartlett coach Tom Meaney said. "If we win next week, we should win a share of the Upstate Eight and that's something the kids would love to have. I know Neuqua's gonna be a great challenge, they have a great running game and big players so it will be a big challenge for us."
Maybe it was because the Hawks ran so much against South Elgin that they threw and threw often against Metea (1-6, 1-4), but it didn't matter. At the end of the game, Bartlett (5-2, 3-1) had 491 yards of offense 277 in the air, 214 on the ground.
"We're just trying to get first downs," Meaney said. "That's our game tonight. Anytime you see a weakness, that's kind of our game plan."
Hawks wide receiver Zach Karys went off, scoring on passes of 53 and 23 yards on his way to a 201-yard night, while also intercepting a pass. Karys' 10-yard out route on the first play of the game turned into an emphatic 53-yard scamper up the left sideline for the game's first score.
"He's making strides," Meaney said. "He was a sophomore last year. He's kind of our go-to guy now. He's playing better. Playing defense has made him more aggressive, more confident so, yeah, we're happy with his play."
Said Karys, "Whatever they're gonna give us they're gonna give us and we're just going to attack it."
Bartlett quarterback A.J. Bilyeu continued his solid play, going 13 of 15 for 277 yards and 3 touchdowns.
"A.J. is getting better every week," Meaney said. "He has 16 games under his belt now. He's gonna be a force. He's only a junior, but he's really developing into a nice player."
Bilyeu's only mistake came late with under a minute left in the half when Metea safety Alan Williams stepped in front of a pass in the end zone to halt a scoring drive.
"I know now, I gotta see who can hurt me," Bilyeu said. "He was the only guy who could hurt me and he made a great play on the ball."
Bilyeu and tailback Andrew Puccini teamed up to keep Williams from scoring as the Hawks took a 27-0 lead to half. Puccini was strong again on the ground, rushing for 164 yards and two short first-half touchdowns.
"He's our workhorse, he's the guy that carries the ball," Meaney said. "Tyler (Hess) got a little dinged up so he was carrying the load tonight."
Metea, struggling to find itself in its first year with many young players, scored late in the game when quarterback Jarrett House found receiver Raysean Parker on a 47-yard strike. The Mustangs' offense took a positive step forward as House threw for 201 yards.
"We just have to keep fighting," Metea coach Ted Monken said. "In a lot of ways, we're a JV team. I know it would hurt our kids to hear that, but we really are. We don't have seniors, we have a bunch of young guys, sophomores we pulled up. Taking this show on the road, we're actually doing some things very well for such a young group."