9U SILVER WINS ON THE ROAD
The 9U Silver Hinsdale Falcons battled a tough Bartlett team in the rain on Sunday.
The Falcon defense, led by linemen Theo Siepker, Liam Waden and SJ Groetsema shutout Bartlett in the first half while forcing two fumbles that were recovered by the defense. The Falcon offense was humming on all cylinders in the running game, scoring twice on two long runs by Henry Gastevski in the first half, making the score 12-0 at halftime.
The rain intensified during the second half as the Falcons were down a few key players due to injuries. Charlie Hillegass stepped in as backup quarterback and led the Falcons on another touchdown drive to start the half. The defense continued its dominance, with linebackers Broderick Slavik and Robbie Knight forcing and recovering another fumble deep in their own territory.
Despite the downpour, the Falcons came out victorious 18-6 in a tough battle on the road.
9U GOLD SHINES VS. TRI CITY
The Falcons (4-0) defense pitched their second shutout of the year Sunday at Hinsdale Central, limiting the Tri City offense to only one first down on the afternoon and less than 10 yards of total offense.
Noah Jones led the unit with FOUR tackles along with Wyland Holmes and Dan “The Hammer” Campbell, who each recorded two tackles for a loss. Other Hinsdale defenders who were seen swarming around Hinsdale’s field included Keats Caruso, Brooks “Honeybadger” Jaqua, Luke Schroeder, Michael Dombroski, Cade Phelan, Parker Brey and RT Kouba.
Meanwhile, Bryce Lee and Cole Sherwood put on a show on both sides of the ball. Lee Finished the game with 66 rushing yards, 71 receiving yards, 3 touchdowns and 4 tackles. Sherwood had 51 rushing yards, 37 receiving yards, and recorded an interception and three tackles on the defensive side of the ball.
The offensive line, led by Teddy “The Terminator” O’Toole, Bennett Wilson and Michael Cannizaro, was equally dominant, opening gaping holes for the backfield and providing quarterback Connor Pauley (5 for 9, 108-yards, 1 TD), with a plenty of time to deliver the ball to the Hinsdale receivers.
Next game: 1 p.m. Saturday at Hinsdale Central
10U SILVER WINS IN OVERTIME
The 10U Silver Falcons took on the Downers Grove Panthers this past Sunday in steady downpour. The Falcons walked away soaked, but as 12-6 victors.
Clay Parker and Brody Sobieraj each had multiple carries on the opening drive as the Falcons marched down the field. Sobieraj punched in the game’s first score, scampering off the left side behind blocks from Paul Voight, Mike Sandberg and Miles Wos. The offense stalled as the rain picked up. Penalties and sloppy exchanges thwarted the Falcon offense for the remainder of regulation play.
The defense kept them in the game. The defensive line, led by Jack Slavik, Mark Sandberg and Miles Post, would limit the DG offense to 6 points on the day. Massimo Buttita would grab an interception late in the fourth quarter and help send the game to overtime.
It took only two plays in OT for Hinsdale to seal the victory. Quarterback Caden Mitchell carried the ball up the middle for four yards and Brody Sobieraj added another tough run for the final six yards running over a would-be tackler on the goal line for the win behind the blocks of Max Breton, Arya Vafa and Dean Windfelder.
10 GOLD FALCONS PUT UP A FIGHT
The resilient yet undermanned 10U Falcons headed to Bloomingdale to take on the undefeated Bears. Missing three key players — Owen Moon, Tate Pitts and John Hooper — the team was determined to continue playing with a toughness and discipline that has impressed their coaches.
After a scoreless first half, quarterback Nate Morris orchestrated a scoring drive highlighted by a fourth down completion to Billy Jaqua. AJ Siepker, Johnathan Meyer, JP Rago and John Dunn created running room for Elijah Trombley before Jaqua punched home a touchdown.
Running back Luke Wanless was already sidelined with a wrist injury when Jaqua was lost for the remainder of the game.
The defense stymied the dangerous Bears all day. Quinn Houser, Enzo Allegra, Danny O’Malley and Will Jones controlled the line of scrimmage. Cooper Milburn and Henry Appel (interception) shut down the passing game.
As the temps grew hotter, the 12 desperate Falcons tried to hang on, but alas the Bears were able to reach pay dirt as time expired. The point after let the Bears escape with a 7-6 victory.
As tough as the loss was, better days are ahead for this gutsy bunch.
11U SILVER TEAM NOW 5-0
The 11U Silver Falcons moved to 5-0 as they beat the Lemont Hornets 35-8 on a rainy first day of fall.
For the first time this season, the Falcons were behind after the Hornets scored on their opening drive, which took the entire first quarter.
The lead was quickly erased as the Falcons punched in two scores before halftime.
The Falcons responded to that opening score form Lemont with a workman like drive that resulted in a touchdown by Jacob Zager. Just like the Hornets, the Falcons scored on their first drive of the day. After some tough Falcon defense, the Falcons got the ball back with under 2 minutes left in the half. Again, the Falcon offense went to work. Sawyer Myhra and Joey Hillegass connected on a long pass to get into good field position, which led to an electrifying touchdown run by Danny McFarland to take the lead.
The offense was paced by Jacob Zager who ended up scoring three touchdowns on the day.
The Falcons leaned on the defense the rest of the way.
Next up: Park Ridge at Maine South on Sunday
11U Gold team Dominates Lyons
The 11U Gold Falcons delivered a commanding 26-0 victory over Lyons in a rain-soaked game on Sunday.
The Falcons struck early, with Kellen Brown dashing into the end zone behind key blocks from Soren Carlson, Mikey Adamo, Ivan Burt, Joshua Castro and Grant Omiecinski.
As the rain continued to pour, so did the Falcons offense. Luca Striltschuk scored his first touchdown of the season tiptoeing his way down the sideline, aided by excellent blocking from Keerthan Tucke and Matthew Kalish. Ben Murphy and Bo Cuclich completed the scoring with a 2-point conversion. Teddy Ouimette cemented the scoring with two long touchdown runs of his own. The ground game, combined with relentless blocking proved too much for the Lyons to handle.
Defensively, the Falcons were just as dominant, keeping Lyons off the scoreboard. Christian Kirchev recovered two fumbles, as the defense took advantage of the wet conditions. Hard hits from Christian Gernot, Luke Schremser, Marcello Salamone and Owen Parry set the tone for the defense that never let up throughout the game. Rohn Ramani and Nate Thangamani helped seal the shutout by not allowing Lyons to complete a pass.
JV Gold still undefeated
The JV Gold Falcons took down arch rival Lyons 14-8 in a physical game that saw the Falcons execute in all phases.
The hitting started early and often, with the Falcon defense giving up no ground to the explosive Lyons offense. Charlie Lynch, Grant Kirchheimer, Leo Crooks, Sal Calandriello and Ben Kurinsky stuffed the run and contained the air attack, holding Lyons scoreless in the first.
In the second quarter, Angel Roman gave the Falcon offensive great field position with a blocked punt. Dillon Phelan scored on the next play and then hit Kellan Goodwin for the conversion.
With the score 8-8 in the third, the Falcons started making game-changing plays. Dominic Cresap stopped a Lyons drive with a great interception and Torsten Wood was a terror, racking up two sacks. Hinsdale’s offense started to impose their will as the game went on behind physical blocking from Sullivan Camp, Brock Bradley, Oliver Johnson, Grant Wanless, Connor Gaylord and Logan Sullivan. Finally, with minutes remaining, the big boys popped open a beautiful hole that Michael Kipnis sprinted through for a 54-yard touchdown making it 14-8 Falcons. Kipnis then sealed the win with an interception on Lyons’ next drive.
Varsity Gold Runs Down Raiders
The Varsity Gold Falcons faced Bartlett in the peak of Sunday’s rainstorm.
On the opening kickoff, Charlie Koridek forced a fumble that was quickly covered up by William Smith. Good blocks from Wolf Pohlenz, Blake Schnur and Koridek led quarterback Keaton Cassell in for the quick score.
Amidst the downpour, the remainder of the first half was a defensive battle, but the Falcons were having a blast. Big hits from linebackers Hank Scheri, Jack Gray and Smith stuffed the Raider offense from start to finish.
The weather cleared in the second half, benefiting the Hinsdale passing attack. Tight end Knox Apple took Cassell’s pass 60 yards to the house. The Falcon defense and special teams finished strong. Bear Kumskis secured an interception, setting up kicker Colin Parry for the 3-point field goal. On the ensuing kickoff, Schnur’s hit knocked the ball loose for his buddy Apple, who scooped and scored as time expired.
“I think Coach Cassell manning the slip and slide at Friday’s walkthrough really helped us prepare for today’s conditions,” Schnur said as the team celebrated the 25-0 victory.
