Small separation

Defensive struggle goes Wildcats' way

With weather conditions playing a major role in high school football games throughout the area Friday night, field position proved key in a Southwest Prairie Conference matchup between District 202 rivals Plainfield Central and Plainfield North as Central prevailed 16-14.

North won the pregame coin toss and deferred. As it turned out, that decision paid big dividends early for the Tigers.

Although the Tigers didn't have any success moving the ball on their first series, punter Tim Eulitz pinned the Wildcats deep in their territory when his first punt of the game was downed at the 1-yard line.

Central's first play from scrimmage was stopped for no gain and nearly resulted in a safety. On the next play, the Wildcats lost the ball again via a fumble, with North's Matt Meyers recovering at the Central 1.

North's Andrew Starks was successful on his second quarterback sneak, surging into the end zone for a touchdown with 8:48 to play in the first quarter.

North (0-3, 0-1 SPC) continued to enjoy good field position in the first half, and after the teams exchanged punts, the Wildcats found themselves starting a drive at their 20. Following two running plays for no gain, Jim Theodossopuolos sacked Central quarterback Alex Parks for a 5-yard loss.

On the ensuing punt, Alex Helriegel returned the ball 10 yards to give the Tigers great field position to start a drive, this time at the Wildcats 32-yard line. Unfortunately for the Tigers, the ball was difficult to hold on to and their great field position was erased by lost fumbles on consecutive possessions.

"It was nice to take the lead, but we had other opportunities that we needed to take advantage of," North coach Tim Kane said. "If we could have gotten a field goal from either of those possessions when we were down there, it might have been the difference in the game."

Central recovered North's second fumble early in the second quarter and put together its first scoring drive. Facing a fourth-and-4 at the Tigers 31, Matt Lancore broke off left tackle for a key 7-yard gain that gave Central a first down.

Three plays later, Brock Douglas put on a spin move at the line of scrimmage and broke through for an 18-yard touchdown that tied it at 7, which was the score at halftime.

Evan Engelsen's kick to open the second half pinned the Tigers deep in their territory. Starting from its own 8, North managed to gain a yard before disaster struck. With the rain increasing in intensity, Central's Keith Marry was credited with a safety after Starks was forced to fall on an errant snap from the shotgun formation.

That gave Central a 9-7 lead, and also swung the field position advantage to the Wildcats.

"We made some adjustments at half and were able to run the ball better in the second half," Central coach John Jackson said. "We followed the blocking of Steve Bosilovatz, and Tony Bjorklund was able to break a couple of runs."

Bjorklund's 28-yard touchdown run with 4:18 to play in the third quarter gave Central a 16-7 lead.

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