St. Charles N. 34, South Elgin 7
Tim Ohlrich revived the St. Charles North football fortunes on the opening kickoff, and South Elgin never had a chance against its redemptive-minded foe.
The North Stars' senior wide receiver returned the game-opener 45 yards, and Nic Higgins and Nick Neari did the rest for St. Charles North.
"We were one second away from going all the way," said Ohlrich.
Ohlrich was stopped at the Storm 30 yard-line, and Neari had the first of 2 keepers for scores six plays later to inaugurate the North Stars' 34-7 Upstate Eight victory in St. Charles Friday night.
The North Stars' Nic-and-Nick Show was too much for South Elgin too overcome.
Higgins, the North Stars' senior wingback, touched the ball only 15 times on the night in the Upstate Eight Conference contest, but South Elgin never found a remedy for his quickness and agility.
The senior had 104 of his game-high 128 yards rushing
by halftime, scoring on a sweep from 21 yards out to double the North Stars' first-quarter advantage.
Higgins later added a 13-yard burst to set up the second Neari scoring run early in the third quarter, and the two later collaborated from 42 yards out on a scoring reception to give St. Charles North a commanding 27-0 lead at the intermission.
"I think we played all four quarters," said Higgins, who finished with 196 all-purpose yards. "We didn't take any quarters off."
The North Stars' swarming defense limited South Elgin (2-4, 2-1) to 25 yards of first-quarter offense, and Tim Janeway was one of many notable members to step up for St. Charles North (3-3, 2-1).
The senior blocked a punt in the first quarter and ended the most promising drive South Elgin could muster through the opening three quarters with a fumble recovery.
The Storm did not have an answer either for Jake Juriga, the North Stars' junior middle linebacker, who wreaked havoc all evening.
"We put together more of a complete game," said Juriga. "We came out with a lot of energy."
"Our backs are still against the wall," added St. Charles North coach Mark Gould. "We can't come out and think we're going to roll over people. I was a little bit surprised (by the margin of victory)."
For South Elgin, the Storm dropped its first conference game.
The North Stars harassed quarterback Pete Scaffidi all evening, but the senior connected with Ian Sosna for a 9-yard, fourth-down completion to avoid the shutout.
The lone scoring drive for the Storm came following Higgins' final score of the night with an 18-yard cutback run.
"We thought we had a pretty good shot (to win)," said South Elgin defensive coordinator Jason Schaal. "We thought we would play more competitive."