Usual "D" by Vikings

Defensive success usually is the result of strong play from the front seven.

Count Fremd's defensive performance in Friday's 35-14 Mid-Suburban West football win at Barrington on Friday night as part of that "usually."

Over the game's first 46 of a total 48 minutes, the Broncos totaled just 171 yards of offense and zero points.

A 52-yard run by junior J.L. Etienne, and a 35-yard pass from backup quarterback Mike Lum to Ben LeCompte, both of which resulted in Barrington touchdowns, in the final two minutes of the game impacted the statistics behind the Vikings' (5-0, 1-0) dominant performance.

"We won up front," Fremd coach Mike Donatucci said. "We were more physical and tougher on both the defensive line and offensive line."

The Broncos weren't able to break many big plays before the final two minutes of the game, a testament to Fremd's disciplined, team-effort on defense.

"That's just our practicing," defensive lineman John Josif said. "We try to really practice that if they get a yard here or there, if they get a first down, even if they get a touchdown, we just need to come back the next series and keep playing hard every single play."

It was nearly impossible to single out a defensive star for Fremd on Friday night. It seemed with each new play, another member of the Viking defense was making an impact against a Barrington (1-4) team which rushed for 480 yards a week earlier at Prospect.

"It was just everybody working together," defensive end Andrew Mertes said. "It's the chemistry we have together. Our whole team, we're all real close. Everyone looks out for each other, and everyone goes 100 percent."

Donatucci attributed some of the defense's success to the Vikings ability to control the ball on offense, where they held an advantage in time of possession. Evan Wright rushed for 155 yards and 2 touchdowns and Richie Concialdi was 10-for-14 passing for 164 yards and a 23-yard touchdown to Josh Jyawook for a 21-0 halftime lead.

Concialdi and Isaiah Coleman also rushed for fourth-quarter touchdowns.

"When our guys (on defense) are off the field that much, they can play faster and play harder," Donatucci said. "It kind of snowballs from there."

Barrington coach Joe Sanchez said his team was dominated physically on both sides of the ball, and that when something started to get rolling offensively, Barrington couldn't catch the break it needed to sustain a drive.

Sophomore Chase Murdock rushed for 83 yards on 16 carries and senior quarterback Terrance Terry was held to 33 yards rushing on 11 carries.

"They did a real nice job tonight," Sanchez said of Fremd's defense. "They played hard, and made plays. We just couldn't come up with enough plays."

The Vikings are rolling through another fall, now off to their sixth 5-0 start since 1995. And they are doing it with a physical and disciplined defense that has allowed a total of 48 points this season.

"There's no better start than 5-0," Mertes said. "We just got to keep it going. We've got to come back to practice this week and go hard."