Fremd finds its groove to win Battle of the Tracks game vs. Palatine

Palatine’s Pirates got off to a flying start.

Fremd’s Vikings?

They got rolling.

And once Fremd's football team found its groove Friday night, there was no stopping it in the 59th Battle of the Tracks.

Junior quarterback Will Clark ran for a touchdown, threw for two more and helped the visiting Vikings erase an early seven-point deficit en route to a 28-7 victory over crosstown rival Palatine in the Mid-Suburban League West regular-season finale at Chic Anderson Stadium.

Four touchdowns.

Twenty-eight unanswered points.

Quite a way to snap a two-game losing streak.

“Fremd-Palatine games are always physical, always tough,” Vikings coach Lou Sponsel said. “A win in this game — always special, living for the moment. I'm happy for our seniors.”

Fremd (6-3, 3-2) needed a spark after consecutive losses.

Sophomore defensive lineman Joey Glass supplied one.

And another.

Palatine (4-5, 2-3) had capitalized on a muffed Fremd punt return in the first quarter, with junior Jhonathan Hernandez recovering the ball and senior Jayden Evans scoring on a 13-yard Wildcat run at 6:47.

The Pirates led 7-0.

Fremd's response took a while.

Clark's 1-yard touchdown run at 9:34 of the second quarter tied it. Glass then batted a Palatine pass into the air and snatched it with one hand for his first interception of the season.

Two plays later, sophomore Raizo Ruiz scored from seven yards out.

Fremd led 14-7 at halftime.

Glass wasn't finished. He added a second-half sack for a four-yard loss.

“He means everything to our defense,” Clark said.

Glass was quick to share the credit.

“Our scout team did an amazing job in practice,” he said.

But the night's prettiest play belonged to Fremd's offense.

With 4:09 remaining in the third quarter, the Vikings executed a flea flicker, and Clark delivered a gorgeous 39-yard touchdown spiral to junior Ben Riddle.

The play?

Hardly spontaneous.

“We ran it five times at every practice,” Clark said.

Sponsel had his own explanation.

“We practiced that every day,” he said. “It doesn't cost anything.”

Neither did Fremd’s next touchdown. Unless you count a little nerve.

Facing fourth-and-7 late in the third quarter, Clark connected with junior Dominic Sponsel for a 36-yard score with 14 seconds remaining.

Suddenly, it was 28-7.

Clark finished 5-of-10 passing for 115 yards and rushed 16 times for 77 yards. Dominic Sponsel caught three passes for 59 yards, while Ruiz rushed 12 times for 57 yards.

Evans paced Palatine with 55 rushing yards on five carries and caught two passes for 23 yards. Senior Tim Bello added four receptions for 27 yards.

“We weren't disciplined, and that's on me,” Pirates coach Chad Bobbit said. “I have to be better. Our seniors led and played their tails off.”

Both teams now await their state playoff assignments.

The Vikings, meanwhile, left the tracks with something else.

Momentum.