Fans pumped up for another Elk Grove road trip

Most of Elk Grove's football players had no idea where they were going for the school's first playoff game since 2004.

"I had no clue where it was," Elk Grove senior wide receiver Matt McEnery said of the trip north of Rockford to face Machesney Park Harlem. "I thought we were playing someone in Chicago, but when I heard Rockford I said, 'OK.'"

It's safe to say no one associated with the Grenadiers will forget where Machesney Park is after a 28-21 Class 7A first-round victory. Especially McEnery, whose 9 catches for 125 yards included a dramatic grab of a deflected pass and run for an 80-yard touchdown.

Now it's back on the road for the Grenadiers (7-3) for a second-round game at 7 p.m. Friday at St. Charles North (7-3).

"The atmosphere is crazy around school, even this week from last week," McEnery said after the Grens matched the combined victory total of the previous four seasons. "People are coming up during school and wishing me luck who I don't think I've talked to in the four years I've been here."

McEnery's dramatic deflection was one thing for people to talk about. Junior Eddie Stahl got drilled by a defender as he tried to catch a Nick Meyer pass and McEnery suddenly found himself with the ball and some 70 yards of open field ahead of him a la the Pittsburgh Steelers' Franco Harris and his "Immaculate Reception" in the 1972 playoffs against the Oakland Raiders.

"I was running my route and I thought it was a first down," McEnery said of the pass to Stahl. "Then I caught it, saw a defender to my left and ran as fast as I could.

"When I got to the end zone I was relieved I didn't get caught and relieved we were up 14-7."

Stahl, a junior who can play quarterback, continued to show his versatility. He moved into a starting spot in the secondary during the season and caught 4 passes for 88 yards with a 45-yard touchdown Friday.

Joey Bishoff also had 4 catches for 53 yards, Mike Wary had 2 for 19 yards, and Kyle Pfister had the game-winning 8-yard grab in the fourth quarter.

"Our receivers just played amazing," said Elk Grove coach Brian Doll. "Nick found guys and just converted. His confidence is so high right now and he's throwing so well."

Pfister also came through in the clutch at linebacker at the Grens' 35 as he preserved a 28-21 lead with a highlight-reel hit on fourth-and-4.

"We all put it in the top five hits we've seen in high school football," Doll said, "and it was on fourth down."

And the Grens' ability to handle losing a 21-7 lead on the road and recover is a testament to a team which rebounded from a 21-10 Week 2 loss to Palatine and consecutive losses to Rolling Meadows (12-3) and Prospect (33-26).

"When we first drew the (13th) seed we didn't know Machesney Park Harlem at all except they were an 8-1 team," McEnery said. "Kyle, Nick and I were talking and we were thinking, if we get a call here and there or the ball bounces our way here and there we're an 8-1 team.

"Prospect and Meadows are just as good as they come in the state. We came out of that (Palatine) game and felt it did more good than bad. We've grown up so much since that game."

On the road again: If last week's traveling party to Machesney Park is any indication, then the Elk Grove caravan to St. Charles figures to be even bigger Friday.

"I heard there would be a lot of people but then I looked over at our stands and thought, 'Oh my God,'" Elk Grove's Matt McEnery said of the fan support. "I felt like they were louder than the other team's fans, which was the cool part."

First-year Elk Grove coach Brian Doll said three student buses made the trip last Friday.

"When I took the job, one of the reasons I love this conference (Mid-Suburban League) is the way the communities support their teams," Doll said. "It was a fun night and a neat place to play."

Now, Doll gets a reunion he was hoping for with St. Charles North interim athletic director Jim Bloch. Doll was an assistant coach at New Trier during Bloch's tenure as athletic director.

"He's probably a large reason I got this job," Doll said of Elk Grove, "and he's been a mentor to me for a long time."

Off the beaten-up path: Prospect certainly felt as if it was on the fast track about an hour before the start of a 33-13 first-round victory at Carmel.

Playing on the artificial turf in Mundelein was a major change for the Knights after five weeks of mucking it up on the rain-soaked and sloppy MSL East fields.

"Me and Miles (Osei) looked at each other and knew it would be a special night," said junior running back-receiver-linebacker Peter Bonahoom.

Especially since both surpassed 1,000 yards rushing on the same night. Osei now has 1,114 and Bonahoom has 1,059 after they rushed for 210 and 169, respectively.

Prospect coach Brent Pearlman also thought the turf helped the defense allow only 234 total yards.

"We surely enjoyed playing on a dry field," Pearlman said. "These (windy) conditions don't play right to our game offensively, but defensively this was perfect for us.

"We got our feet and got our kids moving. It was awesome."

The Knights considered moving their second-round game to an artificial-turf field. But with a relatively dry forecast this week, they'll stay at home on their natural grass at George Gattas Field to host No. 15 Wheaton North at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Fremd and Lake Park did move their 8A game to the artificial turf at Conant at 1 p.m. Saturday. Both teams are familiar with the setting as Lake Park visited Conant for two of the last three season openers, and Fremd has actually played there each of the last three years.

The Vikings also pulled off a wild 37-35 last-second victory last year at Feutz Field when Schaumburg used it until its artificial surface was ready.

Happy homecomings: Leyden coach Tom Cerasani accomplished a couple of feats in Saturday's 25-7 win at Palatine.

"I've been waiting to beat Palatine since I was a sophomore in high school," the former Schaumburg all-area quarterback said.

Cerasani also joined Jack Leese (East Leyden) and George Duffey as the only coaches to win playoff games in program history. It was also a memorable night for his dad Tom Cerasani Sr., watching his son's first playoff victory on the same Palatine field where he picked up the first and last of his 112 career victories.

Prospect assistant coach Bruce Bazsali also returned to his old stomping grounds Friday at Carmel. Bazsali was there for three years and was the head coach in 1971 before moving to District 214 and Rolling Meadows.

Conference calls: Here's a look at how some of the area conferences fared in the first round - North Suburban (5-0), Fox Valley (6-1), DuPage Valley (4-1), West Suburban (4-3), Mid-Suburban (3-3), Central Suburban (3-3), East Suburban Catholic (3-4), Upstate Eight (2-3).