Ormseth, CL South stop Grant
Crystal Lake South senior quarterback Drew Ormseth can beat an opponent in many ways.
Ormseth beat Grant with his legs.
Ormseth, a 3-year starter playing in his seventh career playoff game, ran for 115 yards and scored 3 times to lead the top-seeded Gators to a 28-7 win over 16th seed Grant in a first round game of the Class 6A playoffs at South's Ken Bruhn Field Friday night.
"Some of the juniors were a little nervous so my experience helped," said Ormseth. "Our offensive line really dominated in the second half and gave me some running room. We had some penalties and made some mistakes and I missed some throws. We know we have to play better."
The Gators (10-0) will play the winner of today's game between Lake Forest and Shepard next weekend. South would host Lake Forest but travel to Shepard.
Grant, which started the season 0-2, finished 5-5. It was the Bulldogs' second loss this season to South.
South, which held a tenuous 14-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter, finally seized control of the game during the final 12 minutes.
Ormseth, who scored first half touchdowns on runs of 36 and 1 yards, scored from 30 yards out with 11:46 left in the game. Bolek Mikulec scored from 33 yards out for the Gators' final score of the day. South scored the 2-point conversion when Ormseth, who was the holder on the extra point, completed a pass to Kean Lopee for the Gators' final points of the game.
Mikulec pounded his way to 149 yards on 19 carries. Ormseth completed 8-of-14 passes for 65 yards. Kenny King caught 5 passes for 34 yards while tight end Kevin Rogers grabbed 2 passes for 37 yards.
"At halftime we put it on the offensive line to carry us and they did," said Gators coach Chuck Ahsmann. "They really responded and played a great second half. Drew ran the offense well and Bolek really ran hard."
Grant (5-5), which got 87 yards from Leo Minne, scored its only touchdown of the game when Steven Niewiedzial reached pay dirt from 6 yards out with 1:33 left in the first quarter.
"The defense was outstanding, but we just couldn't stop Ormseth," said Grant coach Kurt Rous. "He is a tough quarterback and very elusive. Making the playoffs was a tremendous achievement for us. We started 0-2, but the kids kept fighting and overcame a lot of injuries."