St. Charles East lifted by unlikely hero

TREAMWOOD – St. Charles East junior Zach Zajicek rose to the occasion and became an unlikely hero Friday night.

With the top two Saints running backs sidelined by injury, Zajicek picked up the slack and with the help of a punishing offensive line sparked a 21-14 Upstate Eight Conference win against previously unbeaten South Elgin at Millennium Field.

With the top two Saints running backs sidelined by injury, Zajicek picked up the slack and with the help of a punishing offensive line sparked a 21-14 Upstate Eight Conference win against previously unbeaten South Elgin at Millennium Field.

With senior Corey Campbell out from the start with a shoulder injury and senior Matt Payne knocked out in the second quarter with a left ankle injury, Zajicek delivered when it mattered most. He racked up 114 of his 152 rushing yards in the final 15 minutes and put East ahead for good with a 2-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, capping a 12-play drive that featured 10 Zajicek carries.

With senior Corey Campbell out from the start with a shoulder injury and senior Matt Payne knocked out in the second quarter with a left ankle injury, Zajicek delivered when it mattered most. He racked up 114 of his 152 rushing yards in the final 15 minutes and put East ahead for good with a 2-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, capping a 12-play drive that featured 10 Zajicek carries.

"All week during practice I was getting reps," Zajicek said. "Campbell was out all week and then when Payne went out I knew we were prepared because we prepared all week for it."

The Storm looked ready to surge to a fourth straight victory when its high-octane offense hit its stride late in the second half. Junior quarterback John Menken's 1-yard touchdown run with 3:02 left in the third quarter capped a four-play, 81-yard drive. Sophomore David Reisner's extra point tied the score at 7.

South Elgin (3-1, 1-1) appeared to get another break when East right guard Rafael Flores hobbled off the field with an injured right knee after the first play of the ensuing drive. The Saints (2-2, 2-0) didn't miss a beat, though, as Zajicek answered by running for 86 yards on 10 carries – including a 2-yard touchdown run with 10:09 left in the game – to cap a 12-play drive that put his team ahead 14-7.

South Elgin's next drive was cut short when East's defensive line sacked Menken twice and forced the Storm to punt after four plays.

Zajicek was back at it moments later, picking up 28 yards on four carries to lead a six-play, 48-yard drive that ended with Charlie Fisher's 1-yard touchdown plunge.

"You've got to give their line credit," South Elgin coach Dale Schabert said. "They did a great job. They come off and they buried down on that right side. The trap was easy and the running back just tucks in behind that. You can't find him if that wall comes down. If you don't pick off the guys with the linebackers you're in trouble."

South Elgin gave itself a chance for a dramatic comeback when Menken connected with Sheldon Chaney for a 9-yard touchdown pass to cap a 20-play, 82-yard drive to pull within 21-14 with 28 seconds left.

An East penalty allowed the Storm to kick off from the East 45-yard line, and Reisner's on-side attempt appeared to succeed when teammate Jake Kumerow recovered the kick.

But the officials ruled the ball was touched before traveling 10 yards, giving the Saints possession at their own 36 and allowing quarterback Nolan Possley to take a knee to run out the clock.

"I've got coaches right on the line and they're watching that line and they said (Kumerow's) foot was on the line and the ball was over when he grabbed it," Schabert said. "I still think it's our ball. It's a close enough call, (the officials) have to make a quick call and there's all the emotion. The officials are doing the best that they can."

Menken didn't complete a pass in the first half as the Storm found success moving the ball on the ground. Junior Bradley Birchfield finished with 159 yards on 17 carries. Menken finished with seven completions on 15 attempts for 75 yards after throwing interceptions on his first two passes.

Possley also threw a pair of interceptions but played a big role in the Saints ground attack, running for 93 yards on 21 carries while splitting time under center and at fullback.

East finished with a season-high 335 yards and before South Elgin's 20-play drive late in the fourth quarter the Saints held a 59-23 advantage in plays from scrimmage.

Coach Mike Fields was pleased with his team's play on both sides of the ball as East maintained four drives of 10 plays or more while limiting the Storm to only one drive of more than nine plays.

"I can't compliment enough the defensive coaches for putting a great game plan together," Fields said. "We're so proud of that defense doing what it does to allow our offense to come around as we've hopefully been getting better each week. Tonight I think we took a step in the right direction."

ST. CHARLES EAST 21, SOUTH ELGIN 14

St. Charles East           0   7   0   14   --  21

South Elgin                  0   0   7    7    --  14

SCE – Striedl 19 pass from Fisher (Keller kick), 8:27

SE – Menken 1 run (Reisner kick), 3:02

SCE – Zajicek 2 run (Keller kick), 10:09

SCE – Fisher 1 run (Keller kick), 5:52

SE – Chaney 9 pass from Menken (Reisner kick), 0:28

TEAM STATISCTICS          SCE          SE

First downs                                22            17

Comp.-att-int.                        8-14-2      7-15-2

Passing yards                            89              75

Rushing att.-yards                  52-246      36-192

Total yards                              335             267

Fumbles-lost                            2-1             1-0

Penalties-yards                       9-67            6-45

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing:

SC EAST – Zajicek 23-152, Possley 21-93, Payne 4-14, Gomez 1-2, Fisher 1-(-5), Nutting 1-(-10).

SOUTH ELGIN – Birchfield 17-159, Randich 5-34, Menken 14-(-1).

Passing:

SC EAST – Possley 4-10-2 58, Fisher 4-4-0 31.

SOUTH ELGIN – Menken 7-15-2 75.

Receiving:

SC EAST – Nutting 5-62, Striedl 1-19, Russell 2-8

SOUTH ELGIN – Kumerow 3-46, McGinn 2-22, Cheney 1-9, Birchfield 1-(-2).