Hilmer's homecoming heroics lift Palatine past Barrington
Mike Hilmer kicked a career-best 41-yard field goal with 1:23 left in the game to give Palatine a 26-24 Mid-Suburban West football victory over Barrington and send the Pirates' homecoming crowd home with a huge collective smile.
The victory throws the MSL West title chase into a three-way battle among the Pirates, Broncos and Conant with 2-1 division records with two games remaining.
Hilmer's fourth field goal of the season and second of the game came after Jovone Stricker returned Barrington's kickoff all the way to the Bronco 25. Barrington had taken a 24-23 lead when Johnny Davidson connected with Jake Zyzda on a 30-yard touchdown pass with 3:05 remaining.
The Pirates (5-2, 2-1) were unable to get a first down, but Anthony Portera's snap, Matt Lamm's hold and Hilmer's kick were picture perfect.
"That kid (Hilmer) is good," Palatine coach Rick Splitt said. "He kicked 8 field goals last year, which was a school record."
"They put a lot of pressure on me in practice during the week," Hilmer said, regarding Barrington's attempt to ice him with a timeout. "I just had to relax myself. It's great to get a win against them. We always want to beat Barrington."
That still left Barrington with nearly 90 seconds to keep its unbeaten season alive, and behind the passing of Davidson (18-of-22 for 181 yards and 3 touchdowns), the Broncos nearly pulled it off.
He completed a fourth-and-23 pass to Josh Babicz to keep the drive alive, putting the ball on the Bronco 49. With 2 seconds left, he lofted a Hail Mary pass that Babicz pulled down, but he was tackled on the 1 yard line after time had expired.
Palatine forged its first lead of the game a few minutes earlier when Zach Oles (15-of-22 for 160 yards) drove the Pirates 97 yards in 10 plays. He connected with Lamm 4 times for 67 yards, the final 25 for the go-ahead score with 5:11 left in the game. Oles ran for the 2-point conversion, which gave Palatine a 23-17 lead.
"Zach had time in the pocket," Lamm said. "It starts with the men up front, and Zach is the best quarterback in the area. He stepped up big time for us.
"This is awesome," Lamm said. "Words can't describe how I feel right now."
"We knew what we had to do," Oles said. "I couldn't be prouder. Our O-line was huge."
The game was as close as could be in the first half. Hilmer and Barrington's Damian Dembicki traded first quarter field goals, and a blocked extra point allowed the Broncos to take a 10-9 lead into halftime.
Barrington took the second-half kickoff 47 yards in 11 plays, the final 12 yards coming on a pass from Davidson to Babicz, which gave the Broncos a 17-9 lead.
Palatine answered with a 46-yard drive capped by Joshua Turner's 36-yard touchdown run with 2:52 left in the third quarter. Turner rushed for 67 yards on 13 carries.
The Broncos were stymied by penalties. They were flagged 8 times for 75 yards.
"We can't make mistakes and come out on top," Barrington Coach Joe Sanchez said. "We had our chances.
"We didn't make enough plays, and they made the plays they were supposed to," Sanchez said.