Storm beats Marmion in solid start

STREAMWOOD -- From the start of practice, South Elgin football coach Dale Schabert has sensed something different about his team this year. A lot of it has to do with the winning aura the incoming junior class has brought to the team.

As underclassmen, the juniors went 16-2, and on Saturday they showed why they have been so successful. The Storm fell behind 14-0 early on in the season opener against visiting Marmion Academy. But behind a junior contingency led by quarterback John Menken, tailback Bradley Birchfield and defensive back Robbie Green, along with some big time help from seniors Sean Kolber and Jake Kumerow, the Storm rallied for a 24-14 win. It's the first time South Elgin has won its season opener and also marks the first time in school history that the Storm is above .500.

"When we got down early on, I was thinking 'Here we go again,' " Schabert said. "But this team has a different demeanor. We have guys on this team that know how to win. They want to win, and they showed today they are going to fight to win. This is huge for us. Winning that first game is the greatest medicine in the world. I'm really starting to see things come together for us."

The passing combo of Menken-to-Kumerow, along with an opportunistic defense that forced three turnovers, sparked the comeback.

Menken threw for 169 yards, 114 of which came on four throws to Kumerow, including a spectacular 34-yard touchdown grab with 7:33 left in the third quarter, which gave the Storm a 17-14 lead. On the play, Menken lofted a pass down the right side into the end zone. Kumerow reached over a defender and bobbled the ball momentarily before hauling it in with his right hand as he fell to the ground.

"That's stuff I work on every day," said Kumerow. "I try to run all my routes hard and you just have to want the ball more than the other guy."

Kumerow had another outstanding one-handed diving catch for 32 yards on the final play of the first quarter, which helped set up the Storm's first score. South Elgin went on to march 88 yards on the drive, resulting in a 5-yard touchdown run by Birchfield to cut the deficit to 14-7.

Kicker David Reisner added a 33-yard field goal just before the half to pull South Elgin to within 14-10.

In the first half, Marmion had run rough shod through the Storm's defense for 219 yards on the ground. But South Elgin stopped the Cadets cold for just 32 yards rushing in the second half. Kolber and Green spearheaded the defensive effort. Kolber had a team-high 9Β½ tackles, while Green had four tackles and broke up four pass plays.

"They were running right through us in the first half," said Schabert. "We knew we were going to have to dig deep and stop the bleeding if we were going to have a chance to win. I thought Kolber really stepped it up and showed a lot of leadership. The other two junior linebackers, Jake Randich and Dillon Gardner, had some big hits, too. Then Robbie Green came up with some big plays for us in the defensive backfield."

Twice the Storm's defense forced fumbles to stop Marmion drives. A third forced fumble by defensive lineman Andre York, that was recovered by Trevor Hansley at the Marmion 18-yard line late in the third quarter, helped to set up the Storm's final touchdown.

Birchfield scored on an 18-yard run on the very next play to all but seal the win for the Storm.

SOUTH ELGIN 24, MARMION 14

Marmion      14   0   0    0 — 14

South Elgin   0   10  14   0 — 24

MARM — Andres 16 run (kick failed), 5:28

MARM — Winkel 2 run (Pircon from Stearne), 0:39

SE —Birchfield 5 run (Reisner kick), 9:36

SE — Reisner 33 FG, 0:02

SE — Kumerow 34 pass from Menken (Reisner kick), 7:33

SE — Birchfield 18 run (Reisner kick), 2:04

Team statistics          MARM           SE

First downs                     15                 12

Comp.-att-int.             9-17-0         14-22-1

Passing yards                 28                 169

Rushing-att-yds.         38-243            27-71

Total yards                   271                 240

Fumbles-lost                 3-3                 2-2

Penalties-yards            6-55                7-40

Individual statistics

Rushing:

MARM — Lally 6-100, Winkel 14-79, Andres 5-32, Pircon 5-24, Scoliere 3-5, Meyer 2-7, Stearn 3-(-4).

SE — Birchfield 12-50, Menken 9-23, Randich 2-8, Collins 1-(-4), Siazon 3-(-6).

Passing:

MARM — Stearn 9-17-0 28.

SE — Menken 14-22-1 169.

Receiving:

MARM — Andres 3-1, Tyde 3-25, Scoliere 1-8, Carbonara 1-0.

SE — Kumerow 4-119, McGinn 1-3, Hurschman 1-15, Kabala 1-9, Failla 3-28, Randich 1-(-2), Birchfield 3-7