Montini ends Marian Central's season again
Montini quarterback Chuck Norgle did not mind some sudden discomfort during a Class 5A football quarterfinal matchup with Marian Central on an unseasonably cold and windy Saturday afternoon in Woodstock.
The Broncos' defense quickly turned the ball back over to Norgle and the offense with 3 first-half interceptions. All of them came on the second play of Marian possessions and two of them led to 10 points.
That helped lead sixth-seeded Montini to a 23-13 victory as it ended 15th-seeded Marian's season for the sixth consecutive year.
"I've got a big overcoat I wear, and when I'm sitting on the bench with the linemen talking about plays I'll be looking through everyone to see what's going on," Norgle said with a smile after hitting 26 of 36 passes for 283 yards. "As soon as they get it, my coat's off and I'm out on the field.
"I'm always ready - especially with those guys. They've been stepping up the last couple of weeks, and they're playing lockdown and shutdown defense."
Austin Warden, Terrell Johnson and Mitch West increased the Broncos' interception total to 21 and they limited Marian (7-5) to 193 total yards to advance to next weekend's semifinal in Lombard against top-seeded Geneseo (12-0), a 23-13 winner over No. 12 Sycamore (7-5).
And sophomore two-way lineman Joe Spivak's fourth-and-1 takedown at the Montini 36-yard line with 9:11 to play stopped Marian's last real opportunity to cut into a 20-13 deficit.
"Our defense has been working together all season ... and you know the guy next to you is going to do his job," Johnson said of the Broncos (9-3) allowing only 55 points in a five-game winning streak since a 31-7 loss to St. Francis.
"They're playing great and confidence-wise, for the whole team, it's a lift," said Montini coach Chris Andriano. "It gives you the belief that no matter what happens, our defense can respond and get a stop."
Warden's deflection and leaping interception of Miami (Ohio)-bound Billy Bahl on the second play of the game set up the first of 3 field goals by Northwestern-bound Mason Weissenhofer from 30 yards. Another brief Marian possession led to a 12-play, 58-yard drive capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by sophomore Prince Walker.
Johnson's team-leading sixth interception and 21-yard return led to Walker's 10-yard scoring run and a 17-0 lead 7:15 before halftime.
"It's all about proper preparation prevents poor performance," Johnson said. "We knew (Bahl) was an out-of-the-pocket quarterback and he likes to escape. We knew as long as we can contain him and slow him up we can pick him off."
Marian responded with a 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Jordan Neimeyer, and it got the ball back at midfield on a fumble. But Johnson's sack forced a three-and-out and Weissenhofer hit a 40-yard field goal 1:39 before the break.
A 3-yard touchdown run by Mike Velazquez got Marian within 20-13 with 3:32 left in the third. Niemeyer then had a 49-yard return of a partially blocked 51-yard field-goal attempt, but Spivak stopped that threat about a foot shy on a fourth-down run.
Weissenhofer sealed the win with a 34-yard field goal, his 10th of the year, with 1:18 left. That also brought an end to the 24-year head coaching career of the retiring Ed Brucker, who was 178-72 with state titles at Woodstock and Marian.
"We had to play our best," said Andriano, whose team lost to Geneseo 46-15 in the 1982 semifinals. "Brucker is as good as they come, and he had his team ready. They played really well today."
Norgle hopes better things like a sixth straight title-game trip are still ahead for him and top receivers Tyler Millikan, Patrick Maloney, Stephen Dennis and Leon Thornton III.
"We felt good about the first half, but we just need to execute in the red zone," Norgle said. "That's pretty much it. We're extremely confident going into our next game."