Riverside-Brookfield comes back to top Wauconda

Host Wauconda got off to a pretty good start with a first-quarter touchdown against Riverside-Brookfield in this nonconference football game Friday night.

But a very effective passing game definitely gave the visiting Bulldogs the advantage over the host Bulldogs, as Riverside-Brookfield (2-0) scored 34 unanswered points en route to a 34-19 victory over Wauconda (0-2).

Wauconda senior wide receiver Parker Fink reached over a Riverside-Brookfield defender and went in for the touchdown on a 38-yard pass play from quarterback Kevin Malisheski as the Bulldogs took a 7-0 lead following Andry Nevski's extra point with 2:51 left in the first quarter.

But Riverside-Brookfield quarterback Ryan Swift (23-for-39, 298 yards passing) took command of the game after that point as he got his team going with a 67-yard scoring drive on their next possession.

Senior wide receiver Dean Zigulich was Swift's favorite target by far as Zigulich had 9 catches for 109 yards and a touchdown in the first half alone before ending up with a total of 14 receptions for 158 yards.

Riverside-Brookfield's first TD was a 5-yard pass from Swift to senior Al'Lan Carter as Carter was wide open near the right pylon before Swift's extra point deadlocked the score at 7-7 with 10.6 seconds left in the opening quarter.

A play-action fake on another 5-yard TD pass accounted for the visiting Bulldogs' next score as Swift found junior wide receiver Jhalen Williams wide open in the back of the end zone for a 13-7 lead midway through the second quarter as the extra point hit the right upright.

Then came a huge play on Wauconda's ensuing possession as Malisheski tried a quick-kick, pooch punt on fourth-and-2 from his own 47.

But Riverside-Brookfield's Jake Campbell blocked the punt before scooping up the ball at the 22-yard-line and running it in for the touchdown and a 20-7 advantage with 5:15 left in the first half.

Despite three big kickoff returns by Nevski in the first half, Wauconda could not take advantage of the good field possession.

And Swift would work his magic once again as he hit Zigulich with an 11-yard TD pass near the left pylon on a fourth-and-7 play for a 27-7 lead 18.3 seconds before halftime.

"Give them credit, they were a very physical team and they controlled the game most of the night," said Wauconda coach Dave Mills, whose team struggled with only 87 rushing yards overall. "No. 24 (Zigulich) is good, and their quarterback stuck the ball in him. He (Swift) is just a really good quarterback whether it was finding room running the ball, and he made some big plays for them."

Riverside-Brookfield picked up where it left off in the third quarter as the Bulldogs marched 76 yards with John Mieczkowski scoring on a 3-yard TD run off right tackle for a 34-7 lead with 5:40 left in the period.

"We have some talented receivers, and (Swift and Zigulich) have great rapport," said Riverside-Brookfield coach Brendan Curtin, whose team had 431 yards of total offense. "What I was impressed with was our timing, and Ryan (Swift) is the kind of athlete who is always looking to get better."

Wauconda did mount a pretty good late comeback attempt as Malisheski (10-for-22, 178 yards passing) hit senior Jake Grobelny with a high-arching, 28-yard TD pass over the middle to cut the lead to 34-13 with 52.1 seconds left in the third quarter.

Then a quick three and out resulted in a huge blocked punt by Wauconda's Justin Klein less than a minute later. Alert teammate Tyler Stankiewicz picked up the ball and ran it in the for the TD from four yards out to pull to the Bulldogs to within 34-19 as time ran out in the third quarter.

That would be the end of the road for Wauconda though as Riverside-Brookfield was able to run the clock effectively in the fourth quarter with two interceptions off of Malisheski killing any chance of a dramatic comeback by the hosts in the final period.

Jacob Bicknase had 40 yards rushing on 13 carries for Wauconda while Swift rushed for 70 yards on 11 attempts. R-B had 27 first downs in the contest to 13 for the Bulldogs, who had 265 total yards of offense.