By Bobby Narang- Photos by Laura Stubbs
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ORLAND PARK – Sometimes imitation is not the best way to show flattery. That was the case late Sunday afternoon on September 22 at Sandburg High School.
The Orland Park Pioneers, of the Varsity Division, suffered a 12-0 defeat to the New Lenox Jr. Knights.
What was the score of the third game of the game, a battle between New Lenox and the Orland Park Pioneers’ Junior Varsity team? You guessed it, a 12-0 loss.
About the only good news from the fourth and final day of football at Sandburg was a ray of sunshine finally peeked through the clouds for 20 minutes after a rain-filled and dark morning and afternoon.
Although the Pioneers lost in the varsity game, it was a big improvement from the previous Sunday, when the HF United team blasted the Pioneers 50-0.
“The defense came out and played well with a lot of good effort across the board,” Pioneers’ coach Andy Rybaksaid. “They had a lot of good plays. The 12 points came from big plays. Our guys were in position but playmakers make plays. Offensively, we were chasing in the second half, so that was tough. We had to come out of our gameplan to throw the ball. We had success running the ball.”
Rybak said his players are improving each week, but have to fix some minor flaws, such as penalties, that are holding back their progress.
“It’s unfortunate because we were whipping the ball around in the fourth quarter,” Rybak said. “They had two big defensive tackles who were tough to handle. Our guys did a good job with pass protection at times, but every pass was forced. It was tough to get it going with the mistakes, and when we are chasing, we couldn’t give our quarterback time in the pocket. We have work to do.”
Sure, the Pioneers suffered another tough loss, but they showed growth in the game. Several players shined in the shutout defeat. They limited the visiting team to one touchdown in the second quarter and one in the third quarter to stay close for a possible comeback win.
Late in the third quarter, the Pioneers opened up a key drive at the 45-yard line of the opposition. Trailing 12-0, the Pioneers’ first play was a six-yard run following by a five-yard pass completion. After a running play led to a short loss, the Pioneers managed to get a first down following a penalty on fourth down. The Pioneers managed to cut the deficit in half – for a few brief seconds – when Thomas Elliott threw a touchdown pass, but the play was called back due to a yellow flag.
The Pioneers lost their momentum, ending the drive on downs with four straight incompletions. With four minutes left in regulation, the Pioneers started with the ball at New Lenox’s 45-yard line, but couldn’t take advantage of the good field position. The home team opened up the drive with three incompletions in a row before ending the possession with an eight-yard run by Elliott.
Elliott ran the ball four times for six yards and completed back-to-back passes of 14 and nine yards. He also hauled in a short reception. Ashton Brennan also took some snaps at quarterback for the Pioneers, completing four passes for 26 yards.
The Pioneers had one last chance to get on the scoreboard with 1:19 remaining in the fourth quarter but tossed an interception to end the threat.
Orland Park tight end/linebacker Nathniel Owei wasn’t too happy following the game, sitting on the ground in the parking lot digesting the difficult loss.
But Owei was a standout on the field, helping extend drives with his blocking and pass-catching and also keeping the Jr. Knights’ offense from piling up points with his tackling.
Owei hauled in receptions of 11, 6 and 14 yards for three catches for 31 yards to spark the offense.
“We did good, but we had barely any blocking and that’s why we keep losing these games, but hopefully we will get better,” Owei said. “I had a few catches, so I was happy we were moving the ball. It was good to see us move the ball up and field, but I was surprised we didn’t get in the end zone at least once.”
Orland Park offensive/defensive lineman Ezennaya Nwachukwu was a handful for the visiting team all game. His blocking, aggressiveness and ability to play hard on a tough day helped out both sides of the ball.
“On defensive line, we played really well and we controlled our gaps and didn’t really let them get runs in,” Nwachukwu said. “Their wide receivers are tall and that made it hard for our defense. We improved, especially on our tackling and being more aggressive.”
Ryan Almasri ran hard all game, helping set the tone that his team would not repeat another embarrassing blowout defeat. Almasri had a strong kickoff return to help his team get into position to score early in the game.
“I didn’t catch the kickoff return, but it bounced off the floor and I got some really good blocks,” Almasri said. “I started running through a hole I saw before I got tripped by a player.
Almasri wasn’t done with his day. He factored into the game on offense and defense with his energetic play to go with football IQ. He led the rushing attack with 27 yards on the ground, while also coming up huge on defense. Almasri, a strong and fast runner, did a great job at linebacker against an explosive New Lenox offense. Almasri had a key sack that led to a 10-yard loss in the second quarter. He saw the play developing, bursting through for the tackle with great pursuit.
In the third quarter, Almasri had a big run on offense, exploding for a 43-yard gain but the play was called back due to holding. Almasri said the Pioneers showed signs of a possible breakout game against the Warriors.
“It’s like a poem that we have to figure out,” Almasri said. “It’s been like that since day one. We have to do better in practice. On defense, I played contain. Their quarterback would always run outside to my area, so our coaches told us to contain that area the whole time even if the ball is in the middle. That helped me get one big play and that stopped them from doing it. It was hard with a lefty quarterback. We have to move forward, practice and study and get better with our blocking.”
The fifth-quarter game featured solid effort from both teams in a spirited game that brought energy to the crowd after the rain finally stopped. The Pioneers’ defense held tight, while the offense turned in a few nice plays to build momentum for the varsity game.
The Varsity football team nearly bounced back from a tough loss from the previous week by getting contributions from nearly the entire team during the week and on game day. The team roster includes Ryan Beeler, Colin McElligott, Connor Ward, Colin Kluever, David Kopec, Thomas Elliott, Santino Marrella, Josiah Johnson, Kyle Krokos, Ashton Brennan, Caden Votteler, Mason Overmyer, Wyatt Heinze, Luke Rybak, Henry Byrne, Keegan Fogarty, Layth Zughayer, Nicholas Davis, Ryan Almasri, Harley Camargo, Noah O’Kennard, Terrin Lovitt, Nicholas Baniewicz, Michael Sraga, Luke O’Reilly, Mark Grech-Lisula, Jude Doftert, Nathaniel Owei, William Reilly, Brandon Castillo, Aidan Rios, Jacob Morakinyo, Cameron Taylor, Abdallah Abuhamda, William Gardner, Ezennaya Nwachukwu, John Macros, Nolan Burns, Cristian Arevalo, Daniel Evers, Jack Bordelon, Joey Driscoll, Brady Straka and Rhett Capps.
The Varsity cheerleaders wrapped up a long and wet day with a scintillating performance that woke up the small crowd. The team includes Alyssa Abed, Lily Carroll, Erica Gonsowski, Layla Jeffries, Hope Majdecki, Madalyn Marable, AnaSophia Martin, Hailey McDonald, Ava Mendoza, Avery Nugent, Maeve O’Connor, Ava Pastiak, Paige Pomonis, Arianna Ramadani, Leah Ramos, Jordyn Shamma, Jozelyn Tamayo and Klaudia Willis.
