Redskins overwhelm Rockets

Matt McCurdy

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MORRIS -- Burlington Central's first foray in the Class 5A state playoffs proved as difficult as expected.

The Rockets were outmatched by a bigger and faster Morris team in a 41-12 season-ending loss on a rain-soaked field on Friday night.

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Burlington Central pitcher Mackenzie Scott threw a no-hitter and struck out 18 in a victory over Streamwood on Wednesday.

The defeat marks only the second time in Central's last eight playoff appearances that it failed to reach the second round. However, the Rockets -- who made all their previous postseason appearances at the Class 4A level or below -- faced a tough task against a Redskins squad that plays a Class 6A schedule.

"You got to give them credit, they are a good team," Central's Curt Mastio said. "But it's obviously not the result you want to see on the scoreboard in your last game as a senior."

The mismatch was most evident in the game's final statistics as the Redskins racked up 410 yards of total offense, while holding the Rockets to only 88 total yards. Nevertheless, Central (6-4) managed to stay within striking distance well into the second half.

After falling behind 20-0 in the game's first nine minutes, the Rockets clawed to within 27-12 when Greg Dickson scored on a 5-yard run with Central facing fourth-and-goal in the final seconds of the first half.

That's what the score remained until Morris (8-2) put the game away with a pair of touchdowns in a span of just more than two minutes late in third quarter.

"Football reveals a lot about character and these guys never gave up. They fought and they gave it their all," Rockets coach Aaron Wichman said. "We got beat by a better team."

The Rockets found themselves behind quickly after the Redskins needed only three plays to march 62 yards for a touchdown on the game's opening drive. A pair of lengthy runs by Adam Tondini highlighted the quick strike.

Central managed to push into Morris territory on the ensuing drive, but was forced to punt five plays into the possession. The Rockets got the ball back in a hurry when Dan Hagberg intercepted a pass from Redskins' quarterback Drew Hanson at the Morris 33-yard line on the first play of the next drive.

Any momentum shift in the Rockets' favor didn't last long though, as three plays later Hagberg was intercepted by Morris' Zach Thetard, who returned the pick 78 yards to put the Redskins up 13-0.

Morris scored on its next possession to open a 20-0 lead with three minutes left in the first quarter before Central got on the board moments later thanks to a pair of fluke plays. Rockets senior Drew Halstead returned a botched Morris kickoff 31 yards to the Redskins' 4-yard line. On the first play of the drive Hagberg fumbled at the goal line before lineman Matt VanAcker scooped up the ball to make the score 20-6.

A fumble recovered by Mastio late in the second quarter set up Central's 10-play, 35-yard drive that ended with Dickson's scoring run three seconds before halftime to make it 27-12.

"We definitely showed some heart there," Hagberg said. "There was no way we weren't going to score there."

The Rockets went three-and-out on the opening drive of the second half. Central's defense then managed to put Morris in several precarious positions on the ensuing drive but the Redskins responded each time.

First, Morris converted a fourth-and-one deep in its own territory and then converted a third-and-eight from near midfield. The backbreaker came when Hanson connected with Stephen Wagner for a 28-yard pass on third-and-17 to set up a Tondini 6-yard scoring run.

"I thought defensively we did a pretty decent job," Wichman said. "It just seemed like when they had to execute and get the big play, they were able to do it."

Central saw its chances completely slip away when Hanson connected with Thetard for a 27-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the Redskins' next possession. The score put Morris ahead 41-12 with 1:30 left in the third quarter.

"At halftime coach (George Dergo) said not to underestimate these guys," Thetard said. "In this mud anything can happen. We just relaxed, stay focused and came out and played a good second half."

The Redskins finished with 272 rushing yards on 40 carries. Tondini led the way with 176 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. Morris advances to play either Chicago Harper or Rochelle next week.

Freshman Tim Maroder led the Rockets with six carries for 40 yards. Central was held to only 2.3 yards per carry as its season ended in disappointing fashion.

"We made the playoffs and that was our goal from the start," Hagberg said. "We definitely didn't accomplish what we wanted to tonight though. In the long run, football is a great team sport. The bonds you make with your teammates are ones you will keep the rest of your life."