Glenbard West gets middle right
Glenbard West's football team didn't start strong and didn't finish strong.
The Hilltoppers became middle men.
Scoring all their points in the second and third quarters, the Hilltoppers seized control in Saturday's 35-14 West Suburban Silver victory over Downers Grove North in Glen Ellyn.
After a scoreless first quarter Glenbard West (4-1, 2-0) rattled off 21 points in the second quarter and added 2 touchdowns in the opening four minutes of the third quarter to build a 35-0 lead. Downers North (2-3, 1-2) pulled closer with a pair of fourth-quarter scores.
"The first quarter we came out a little slow," said two-way Hilltoppers lineman Hank Knez. "We weren't aggressive enough, but then we really started to play with that chip on our shoulder in the second quarter. We stayed connected and finished, and it really showed in the run game."
Glenbard West senior running back Tyquan Cox again paced the offensive effort, piling up 100 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in three quarters of action. Cox scored three touchdowns including a 52-yard catch from Tommy Bleker.
Bleker opened the scoring with a 33-yard run and Nick Seifert scored a few minutes later with a 6-yard touchdown run.
"During halftime our coaches gave us a little speech saying whatever plays we have to do, we have to execute on them," Cox said. "The offensive line did a great job in the second half, better than they did in the first half. It was all them up front, so props to them."
Downers North moved the ball throughout the game while notching 21 first downs compared to 19 for the Hilltoppers. Quarterback Drew Cassens ran for 66 yards and threw for 132, and he accounted for both Trojans touchdowns.
Cassens got the Trojans on the scoreboard with a 34-yard scoring pass to Henry Gates and added a 10-yard touchdown run.
"Our quarterback does a great job, threw the ball pretty well today, but we've got to continue to find some guys that are ready to make a play for us," said Downers North coach Joe Horeni. "I'm proud of the way the kids fought and proud of the way they moved the football."
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