CHICAGO -- While the first trip to the state high school football playoffs for Plainfield North did not last as long as the Tigers would have liked, they still end their season knowing that they have come a long way in four years.
Unfortunately, the Tigers drew powerful Chicago St. Rita in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs and were sent home to pack their gear after a 40-14 loss to the Mustangs on Saturday night.
"This was a great experience for all our kids," said North coach Tim Kane. "These guys kept battling every week to improve. But tonight, we didn't tackle well enough and in a game like this, you have to capitalize on your opportunities."
The Mustangs took the opening kickoff and started play at their 31-yard line. After a 1-yard gain by Jahwon Akui on his only carry of the game, Matt Meyers tackled his replacement, Travis Starks, for a 2-yard loss. Facing a third-and-11 situation, the St. Rita quarterback connected on a pass to Kyle Jachim that was good for 13 yards and a first down.
After that key conversion, the Mustangs methodically moved the ball on a 12-play, 69 yard scoring drive that was culminated by a Starks 6-yard touchdown run. That score came with 7:51 to play in the first quarter, gave the Mustangs a 7-0 lead and was the first of four touchdowns for Starks.
The Tigers, who close the season with a best-ever 7-3 record, seemed to ready to match St. Rita's early success on offense.
Kapri Bibbs returned the ensuing kick 25 yards to the 31-yard line, giving quarterback Bryce Corrigan and the offense decent field position to start the Tigers first possession.
The Tigers missed a sure touchdown when a Corrigan pass went off the fingertips of a wide-open Devonta Davis. North eventually drove the ball to the Mustangs' 18 yard-line, picking up four first downs along the way, before the drive stalled and North turned the ball over on downs.
The Mustangs, who improved to 8-2 with the win, had advanced the ball into Tiger territory before Starks fumbled. Three Tigers had a chance to recover the elusive ball, and eventually senior Brent Shelton emerged from a pileup with possession.
Once again, the Tigers were unable to capitalize, missing another golden opportunity when an apparent catch by Shelton was nullified when he was ruled to be out of bounds.
"We had some passes open, but we just didn't have any big plays to help us out," said Kane.
St. Rita took a 13-0 lead on its next possession, with quarterback Robert scoring the first of his two touchdowns on a 1-yard quarterback sneak.
The Mustangs added another score in the final minute of the first half to lead 20-0 at halftime.
Bibbs, who rushed for 130 yards on 16 carries, gave the Tigers some hope on the first play from scrimmage in the second half when he broke free for a 65- yard touchdown. Unfortunately, St. Rita answered with another touchdown on its next possession to take back the momentum.
Comment on this story.
heraldnewsonline.com
Close
Community Login
You've successfully logged in to the Sun-Times Media Community, click the close button to return to browsing.
Facebook App
Font Size
Email
Bookmark
Black Text
Cell Phone Alerts