Minooka thumps Tigers in playoff opener
By MARK JOHNSON
-
mjohnson@morrisdailyherald.com
|
| QB Mitch Brozovich and the Minooka Indians defeated Edwardsville 44-25 Friday night in an IHSA Class 7A playoff football game. (Herald photo by Adam Nekola) |
MINOOKA — Scoring in every quarter, the Minooka Indians thumped Edwardsville 44-25 Friday night in an IHSA Class 7A playoff football game on their own muddy field.
The win did not come as easily as it appeared it might in the first quarter, when the Indians sprinted to a 17-0 lead. They did not completely shake the Tigers until the final minutes of the game, though their edge never shrunk below 12 points in the second half.
The win makes the Indians 8-2 overall this season, which means they have doubled the highest victory total they achieved in any of the past five years. They will await the winner of Saturday's game between second-seeded East St. Louis and No. 7 Bradley-Bourbonnias. The last Associated Press poll rated East St. Louis as the No. 1 team in the state in 7A.
"It doesn't matter," said Minooka junior Blake Montella, when asked about the possibility of facing highly-touted East St. Louis. "That's why we play, to see what we can do and try to win. We do what we have to do and play our game."
A brisk wind was blowing out of the south, and the Indians took advantage of it being at their back for the first quarter. Senior kicker Anthony Zalewski got them on the scoreboard 5:35 into the game when he nailed a 33-yard field goal. Minooka got the ball back quickly when cornerback Corey Krakowski recovered a fumble, and MItch Brozovich passed to Blake Montella for a 50-yard touchdown on the team's next offensive play.
Edwardsville junior Mason McBride had a long run called back on Edwardsville's second-down play on its next drive due to an illegal formation penalty. McBride attempted a pass instead, and Indians linebacker Matt Powers intercepted it in the middle of the field. Powers ran it back 41 yards for a touchdown and a 17-point lead with 2:24 still left in the first quarter.
"Absolutely, the Matt Powers interception was huge, and we had another one [turnover], the fumble recovery," said Minooka coach Bert Kooi. "Obviously they run an unconventional offense, but coach [Chris] Ferko and coach [Paige] Schoolman did a tremendous job of scheming them up and putting our kids in a position to succeed."
The Tigers came back with a 15-play drive that extended nearly 5:00 into the second quarter. Rodney Coe finished it with an 18-yard touchdown run. The Indians then fumbled away their next possession in Minooka territory, but forced the Tigers to turn the ball over on downs. A key pass from Brozovich to senior Steven Pullara for a fourth-down conversion keyed the ensuing Minooka drive, which Pullara then capped with a 1-yard touchdown run that gave the Indians a 24-7 halftime lead.
Brozovich had a pair of third-quarter touchdowns. He ended the opening drive of the quarter with a 40-yard run to the end zone on a sweep to the left. He later scored on a 50-yard run on which he went left, then cut to the right. Chase Westra of Edwardsville scored on a 3-yard run in between the Brozovich touchdowns, and Reggie Box added a 13-yard plunge into the end zone with a minute left for the Tigers.
The Tigers made it a 37-25 game when Coe scored from 4 yard out with 9:30 to play. Brozovich got another conversion on fourth down on a QB sneak early in the next drive, which lasted 16 plays and ate nearly all of the remaining time off the clock. Junior running back Kyle Banks ended it, and whatever faint hopes the Tigers had of winning, with a 1-yard touchdown run inside of the final minute.
"I think that is all Mitch," said Kooi of the Indians' ability to thrive in short-yardage situations. "We all know what kind of athlete he is, but I think one thing that gets overlooked is his poise."
Brozovich finished with 189 rushing yards on 15 carries and completed 4-of-6 pass attempts for 73 yards. Banks also got to triple digits in yards, gaining 112 of them on 23 carries.
Comments
