York roars past Willowbrook
The home stands were filled and the crowd was roaring well before York took the field Friday night for its homecoming game against Willowbrook.
It didn't take long for the Dukes to give their fans something more to cheer for, beating the Warriors 42-7.
The running game led the way for York. Lucas Alexander carried the brunt of the weight, scoring 5 of the team's 6 touchdowns.
"The kids played well," York coach Matt Monken said. "We're battling a few injuries right now, but there's a lot of kids that stepped up and we're proud of them for sure."
Despite going three and out to start the game, the Dukes went on to score on the next three drives. Kyle Coughlin scored the first touchdown with a 15-yard run. That was followed by the first two Alexander scores before York's punt team saw the field again.
At halftime the Dukes led 28-0 partially due to ideal field position through most of the half. They opened the second half much the same way with a 91-yard sweep for a touchdown by Alexander, who cut across the width of the field to score.
Willowbrook's offense continued to fight throughout the game. The Warriors' lone touchdown came on a 10-play drive finished off with Josan Murphy's 2-yard run.
"The second half was 14-7," Willowbrook coach Nick Hildreth said. "We just move forward from there, take a look at the film."
Hildreth found the positives in the loss and said he challenged his team to take ownership.
For York it's a game Monken said he hopes to build on coming off a tough loss to conference rival Hinsdale Central. Monken said he will give his team plenty of time to enjoy the homecoming win before focusing on their next game.
"It's hard to not enjoy this right now, it's homecoming. It's what they've worked hard for the last, you know, however many months since June," Monken said.
Monken said his team will need to limit its turnovers going forward. York turned the ball over twice Friday night and recovered three of its own fumbles. The Dukes go on the road next week to Oak Park.