Maine South handles Conant

Maine South senior Cole Dow put on an offensive display Friday night at Conant.

Dow and his Hawks (3-1) bested the Cougars 42-14 in a Mid-Suburban/Central Suburban nonconference matchup.

Dow tossed three touchdown passes as well as rushing a keeper into the end zone racking up 309 all-purpose yards (210 through the air and 99 rushing yards).

Conant (2-2) just could not respond to the 2017 Class 8A state semifinalists. This is the Cougars' second loss in a row to a Central Suburban foe as Evanston topped the Cougars 20-7 last week.

"The little details go a long way," said Conant coach Bryan Stortz. "Every play we do almost everything right, but we continuously had 10 guys playing each play. (Conant) was not performing to the best of their ability."

Maine South took the early 7-0 lead, but Conant responded. Cougars' sophomore Malik Frederick broke a big gain as he galloped for a 72-yard run before being tackled at the 10-yard line. Conant senior quarterback Kevin Polaski put the finishing touches on that specific drive as he connected with Anthony Wachal for the touchdown, knotting the game at 7-7.

Maine South never looked back from the start of the second quarter as it tallied three straight scores from senior halfback Danny Wolf, junior wide out Ryan Kilburg and Dow.

During those three consecutive Maine South scores, Conant was forced to punt on three consecutive three and outs.

"I think we have to come out stronger," Polaski said. "We've got to come out and play four quarters. We have to keep the energy from start to finish. It's just working on the little things and we'll make the tweaks."

Conant's Achilles' heel was its third down defense. A combination of clever plays from Maine South and missed tackles by Conant kept the Cougar defense on the field. Maine South was 9-for-11 on third down conversions.

The Cougar offense found the end zone late in the fourth quarter as senior running back Joseph Perez violently bullied his way in for a touchdown. However, the late-game heroics were far out of reach for Conant.

Other Maine South Hawks reaching the end zone included junior running back Nathan Smith, senior receiver Josh Seiser and junior halfback Dan Lazic.

"When the guys put in the work and practice, they make the plays," Stortz said. "Wachal was a warrior (who finished the day with 7 catches, 55 yards and a touchdown). The guys just got to keep building their confidence."

The Cougars begin MSL West play as they host Barrington next Friday.