8U FALCON TEAM FALLS JUST SHORT
The Hinsdale 8U Falcons lost a Gavinn to Bartlett 8U Chrome 13-12 on Saturday, falling just short in the waning moments of the game after battling throughout the afternoon in the heavy rain, cold and wind.
The Falcons fell behind on the first play of the game when Bartlett broke a 65-yard run on the slippery field. However, Hinsdale was able to tie the game when Cole Sherwood bust a 45-yard run of his own to begin the second quarter. Sherwood was an absolute force throughout the afternoon, whose tough, physical running behind the blocking of Hinsdale’s line, including Keats Caruso, Parker Brey, Michael Cannizzaro, Teddy O’Toole, Wyland Holmes, RT Kouba, Charlie Hillegass and Ben Vula, allowed him to score both of Hinsdale’s touchdowns.
Hinsdale’s defense, led by Keats “The Barbarian” Caruso, who was in the backfield disrupting plays throughout the afternoon, pitched a shutout in the second half and forced a number of turnovers throughout the game, including a fumble forced by Caruso that gave the Falcons the ball back on the Bartlett 20-yard line with less than two minutes in the game. Unfortunately, Hinsdale wasn’t able to convert on the following drive, but their performance was gutsy nonetheless. Other notable performers on defense included Cade Phelan, Brooks Jaqua, Luke Schroeder, Broderick Slavik, Henry Gastevksi and Dan Campbell.
The Falcons look to put the final touches on an impressive season on Sunday vs. Lemont 8U at 8:30 a.m. at Hinsdale Central High School.
9U FALCONS STAY STRONG ON ‘D’
Defense, defense, defense. That was the name of the game for the Falcons on Sunday morning in Arlington Heights. When the dust settled on the Falcons 23-0 victory, the defense had forced six turnovers and a safety.
It started with the D Line anchored by Enzo Allegra, JP Rago, Quinn Houser, Elijah Trombly and John Dunn delivering relentless pressure all game. This resulted in two fumble recoveries for Will Jones and one for Grant Garber. Luke Wanless, Kanas Zitkevicius and Tate Pitts tackled anything that made it past the D line. The Cowboys, searching for anything positive, attempted to throw the ball against the Falcons. This led to three interceptions for Massimo Buttitta, Cooper Milburn and Henry Appel.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Falcons finished their first three drives with touchdowns. Nate Morris sitting in the pocket created by AJ Siepker, Max Breton and Dean Winfelder hit Henry Appel on a 35-yard throw. Appel made an acrobatic catch over the defender then sprinted to the end zone to open the scoring. Morris plowed in for one of his 3 extra points on the day and a 7-0 lead. On the Falcons’ next possession, Billy Jaqua capped off the drive by punching in a 4-yard TD run behind Jack Slavik and Brody Sobieraj. Appel scampered in from 25 yards out following Julian Tabuena for the final TD and 21-0
halftime lead.
As the Falcons prepare for the playoffs, they are determined to get better each and every practice.
10U SILVER EARNS CONVINCINg win
The 4-3 Lemont Hornets came to Dickinson Field to take on the second place 10U Silver Falcon team. The Falcons started fast and never let up throughout the contest, which ended in a 24-0 convincing victory.
The Falcon defense again led the charge and gave the Hornets’ offense fits all game long. Marco Oliverio, Jacob Zager, Rohan Sheth, Miles Perucki, Grant Garver, Jack O’Malley, Luke Hanson, Blake Bazan, Theo Messeih and Rahil Thakkar were all responsible for keeping the Hornet offense out of the endzone the entire game.
Great secondary play from Leo Solorio, Rohn Ramani, Danny McFarland and Luca Striltschuk forced the Lemont passing attack into submission, as the Hornets didn’t complete a pass. When the secondary wasn’t defending the pass, they were supporting the first two levels of defense.
The offense, led by Sawyer Mhyra and Brennan Smith, was efficient and moved the ball with chunks of yards per drive. The blocking from Will Rooney, Nico Will, Joey Hillegass, Hayden Sobieraj, Carter Cox AND Parker Otzen paved the way for the backs to find lanes to run and for Frankie Levato to score his first touchdown of the year.
Keeping the opponent in their own end is a great weapon to have. Viren Singh has done this with his deep kick offs. On Sunday, all the Lemont offensive drives were started in their own end.
On Sunday, the Falcons host the Arlington Heights Cowboys at Dickinson Field to wrap up the regular season. Kickoff is at 11:30 a.m.
11U Gold D1 still on a Roll
Another week, another dominant performance by the Hinsdale Falcons 11U D1 Gold team in all three phases of the game, leading to a 28-0 win over Downers Grove. Behind the strength of a defense that hasn’t allowed a point in two weeks, the Falcon offense controlled the ball with a balanced attack that resulted in a season-high point total.
The teams traded scoreless drives to start, with the Falcon’s defensive line, led by Torsten Wood, Leo Crooks, Sal Calandriello and Ben Kurinsky, taking up residence in the Panther backfield. The Hinsdale offense rode the legs of Michael Kipnis and Kellan Goodwin to get themselves on the doorstep, with quarterback Dillon Phelan finding Charlie Lynch in the endzone, making it 8-0 at the end of the quarter.
The defense again stifled the Panthers and the offense made quick work of a short field with a Kipnis touchdown dive. The Falcon defense wasn’t done flexing. With 30 seconds left in the half, Jaxon Uthe grabbed his second interception of the game and returned it 55 yards to the Panther 3-yard line. From there, the Falcon beef, including Grant Wanless, Oliver Johnson and Connor Gaylord, opened a hole for Kipnis to find paydirt once again. The Falcons led 22-0 at half.
The second half was more of the same, with the defense suffocating the Panther attack and the offense moving the ball. The final blow came in the third quarter with Phelan capping a terrific day by finding Goodwin in the back corner of the endzone.
11U D2 TEAM GETS STUCK IN THE MUD
Saturday was a cold, wet and muddy day at Four Season Stadium in Plainfield. The field was a total mud bog and the Falcons struggled from the outset to get their footing.
The Falcons’ defense played very strong against a powerful Plainfield offensive line. This weather was perfect for their style of offense, ground and pound. The defensive front held strong most of the contest. Rayan Sheik, Alex Vivanco, Mossimo Burdi and Luke Lieberenz led the fight in the trenches, trying to withstand their powerful run game. Nick Carbonara, Kaine Ortega and Ryan Pieczikowski led the team with tackles as they were a muddy mess at the end of the game from throwing their bodies all over the field.
The offense had a tough road to hoe. The muddy condition led to a slimy ball and yards were tough to come by. The passing game was impossible, so the run game led by Spencer Marnell, Grayson Danek, Johnny Trombly, Gavin Schuler and Brady Madden had to carry the load. Unfortunately the Falcons could not get into the endzone. The final score was 12-0 Plainfield.
The Falcons last game of the season is this Saturday in Lombard at 2:30 p.m. The team hopes to finish strong.
