| Joliet Catholic offense too much for Normal West |
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By Jim Benson
jbenson@pantagraph.com
About 50 minutes before Friday night’s kickoff, Normal West High School’s football team gingerly took its first steps on the rain-soaked turf at Joliet Memorial Stadium.
The steady rain halted just before the Class 6A first-round playoff game started. However, the Wildcats never got on equal footing against powerful Joliet Catholic.
Second-ranked Joliet Catholic rolled up 443 yards of total offense and 42 points — in the first half. The rain returned just before the intermission, but the running clock made the second half much shorter for West as the Hilltoppers cruised to a 49-7 victory.
“They are a great team. They earned all the respect they get,” said West senior receiver/defensive back Erich Bushong, whose jersey was covered with mud. “They’re not just all talk. They back it up on the field.”
Joliet Catholic (9-1), the No. 2 seed in the lower bracket, advanced to next week’s second round to play at 10th-seeded Crete-Monee (8-2).
West (5-5), the 15th seed, did show some life in the first half. The Wildcats had 113 yards with five first downs. But, after Bushong intercepted John Ruettiger on the first series, the West defense was no match for Joliet Catholic’s offense.
Halfback Tyler Hudetz (143 yards) and fullback Brandon Geiss (108 yards) paced the Hilltoppers to 361 yards on the ground. Ruettiger completed 8 of 11 attempts, all in the first half, for 184 yards.
“Our kids played with a lot of heart for four quarters,” said West coach Darren Hess. “We did have some offensive execution in the first half, but they kill teams with big plays. That’s why they are where they’re at and where we hope to be.”
Geiss, showing no effects of a sore hip, blasted up the middle for a 60-yard touchdown run with 9:11 left in the first quarter. Geiss also ran for the two-point conversion.
Connor Krisch added a 3-yard TD run while Ruettiger, an Arizona State baseball recruit, threw a 17-yard scoring pass to a wide-open Tim Bennett on the last play of the first quarter for a 23-0 lead.
Krisch scored twice on runs of 17 and 1 yard in the second quarter, while Hudetz added a 2-yard TD run.
Hudetz’s 26-yard scoring run in the third quarter upped the margin to 49-0. The Wildcats’ lone touchdown came when Todd Albert directed a 67-yard, 18-play drive capped by Darius Bell’s 1-yard run with 3:03 left. Dario Marotta added the conversion kick.
“We didn’t give up. This is the last game of the season and we didn’t want to leave with a sour taste,” said Bushong, who caught five passes for 51 yards. “We wanted to salvage something for the team.”
After losing in the first round last year to Morris, Joliet Catholic coach Dan Sharp wasn’t worried about his team looking past the Wildcats.
“We had some adversity with injuries and sickness. We exchanged film and saw how good their tailback and quarterback were and how quick their defense was,” said Sharp. “We know you can’t get to the next one without winning the first one. Our kids came out very focused.”
Bell gained 86 yards on 19 carries as the Wildcats amassed 205 yards of total offense. Albert completed 10 of 21 attempts for 87 yards.
“You have to be so perfect in your execution, offense and defense. We came out and tried to use some (shot)gun and spread them out, but they’re so fast to the football. But I saw a lot of positive things,” said Hess.
“We’re going to use this as a learning experience. We’ve got to beat these teams. They’re not going away. If we’re going to compete in 6A, we have to take this step.”
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