Wheeling 32, Buffalo Grove 21

The long wait is finally over for Wheeling's football team.

The Wildcats ended a 9-game losing streak to arch-rival Buffalo Grove on Friday, spoiling the Bison's homecoming with a 32-21 Mid-Suburban East victory.

There was plenty of credit to go around for the Wildcats (3-3, 1-1), who never trailed.

Quarterback Matt Holmes completed 9-of-15 passes for 173 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also kicked a 25-yard field goal and 3 extra points.

Pat Splon (11 carries, for 60 yards) put the Wildcats on the board with a 45-yard touchdown run on the third play of the game.

"The line fired off the ball faster than they did all year," Splon said. "Tim Powell made a great block, and it was up to me to get into the end zone."

Abel Rangel's 7-yard run made it 13-0 for Wheeling with 4:59 left in the opening quarter. Holmes connected with wideout James Kurtz (5 receptions, 102 yards) on a 37-yard, third-down completion to keep the drive alive.

Holmes kicked a 25-yard field goal with 8:58 left in the first half to make it 16-0, and the Bison (2-4, 1-1) broke through with their first score, a 3-yard sneak by John Bakun with 5:29 left before halftime.

Holmes' 4-yard pass to Kurtz gave Wheeling a 23-7 lead with 1:42 left in the half. The Wildcats had taken a timeout to decide whether to go for it on fourth-and-goal or take the chip-shot field goal.

"James is the type of receiver if I put the ball around him, he's going to get it," Holmes said.

Twice BG struck for quick scores in the second half by speedy halfback Josh Hampton (11 carries for 116 yards) on a 27-yard sweep to his right and a 64-yard run on a lateral from Bakun. When Hampton cut back near midfield, he had clear sailing, and no one could catch him.

Wheeling added 2 points to the lead when Ryan Whitecotton tackled Bakun in the end zone for a safety, and the Cats scored an insurance touchdown when Holmes and Jordan Stephani hooked up on a 44-yard quick screen with 7:56 left.

"'Just work hard,' is what we tell them," said Wheeling coach Dave Dunbar. "We tell them to take it one play at a time, to concentrate on the now."

"They just played harder than us," BG coach Rich Roberts said. "In the first quarter, there was still a possibility of coming back. If the mindset isn't ready to play, it's not easy to win."