By Patrick Z McGavin- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
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PLAINFIELD— A fast start is the one of the strongest paths to success, the direct means to electrify the crowd and get the team fired up.
In one pulsating moment, Justin Lopez achieved just what the Plainfield Saints’ 12U Division 3 team needed against a very athletic and imposing Joliet Titans’ squad.
“The whole play developed with me picking the ball out of the air after it came hard off the ground,” Lopez said. “I saw the gap open right up in the middle. There was one person blocking for me and creating the opening.
“He blocked one way, and I went the other and I was able to get the touchdown.”
Lopez’s game-opening 65-yard kickoff return touchdown was the highlight of the Saints’ 34-6 Homecoming loss in Pop Warner League play at Plainfield Central on Sunday, September 22.
The Titans ripped off four unanswered touchdowns to go up 27-6 at halftime.
“We knew this team was going to be tough,” Saints’ coach Chris Kuncytes said. “They were undefeated for a reason. They’re big, they’re fast, but we told our team this was a character game.
“We focused less on what the scoreboard said, and more on just fighting every play.”
With the normal starter at quarterback unavailable, Lenix Hogan was pressed into emergency service. The wet conditions and constant rain created a lot of havoc.
“I’m not really the quarterback,” Hogan said. “I guess today my favorite part was running the ball and getting the ball to our running backs.
“The backs did a good job, and the inside runs were doing pretty well.”
The Saints struggled to get clean snaps and run their offense. Special teams breakdowns also helped set up short fields for the Titans to exploit.
“We tried going with the shotgun snap, and it didn’t really work out,” Kuncytes said. “Then we went more under center. At times today, we got some good blocks.
“When we get those kinds of blocks and play hard, we get positive yardage. We are going to continue to work on that.”
Lopez was the most consistent offensive threat for the Saints.
He has excellent size, good speed, and he has the ability to run either between the tackles or get outside and do damage on the perimeter of the attack.
With the game still competitive during the first half, Lopez moved the pile and got to the outside.
“I like to gallop a little bit when I run,” he said. “I’m more of a contact and juke guy.
“I think the return touchdown definitely got the team fired up. I think, overall, we probably could have played a better team, blocked better and gotten through their line and created some pressure.”
If the euphoria created by Lopez’s return touchdown faded by the scoring onslaught of the Titans, the Saints still played hard and showed toughness and resolve.
Lopez, Samuel Kuncytes, Matthew Hurst, Simon Osuch, Aidan Brogan, Rhys Walker, Cooper Keen, Colin Supak and Wyatt Henschen played valiantly and with considerable courage on the defensive side.
If nothing else, the Saints made the Titans work for every play. Few things came easy or without resistance.
James Shirley stood out with his excellent two-way play. He came up with an alert defensive stop by intercepting a tipped pass that prevented another Titans’ touchdown.
“I just saw it coming towards me, so I grabbed it and tried running with it,” he said.
Shirley ended the first half with the Saints’ longest play from scrimmage, a 27-yard run.
“I just played my best and hoped that we could do something to get back into the game,” Shirley said. “The way the game was going, when you get behind like we did, you can’t really think about the score.
“You just have to focus on the next play.”
Running back Jayden Wilson was another spark on the offensive side. He ripped off a 12-yard run in the second quarter. Like the entire team, he did his best to create positive actions from a difficult context of being down and not having a realistic chance of coming back.
“The defense played well, and we had some good runs out there today,” Wilson said. “When we had the time, we were able to get some good blocking out there today. The outside run was there a couple of times, and we tried our hardest to get there.”
Staying positive is not always easy against daunting odds. The Saints limited the Titans to just one second half touchdown. The team is trying hard to accommodate new players and develop chemistry and camraderie. To their credit the Saints never quit or lost their desire to make something happen.
“We tried to keep it going even though we were down,” Lopez said. “We tried to work more as a team. During the game, everybody has to give their best. That’s what we tried to do.”
Despite the disappointing Homecoming loss, the 12U Division 3 Saints’ team had many enthusiastic players perform at their highest level. They included John Green, Knox Waldron, Luke Hartmann, Tu Tran, Ivan Valencia, Aidan Brogan, Jaxon Brown, Colin Supak, Juliann Gonzalez, Justin Lopez, Adrian Kowalczuk and Brody DeRoss.
The Jr. Pee Wee Cheerleading squad was there to cheer on the players through the downpour. They included Liliana Atwood, Payton Breeding-Walsh, Gianna Briggs, Willa Busche, Angelina Del Valle, Gianna Figueroa, Isabella Garcia, Everly Harter, Meliana James, Ella Murphy, Skyler Pocius, Ella Smiley, Maeven Smiley, Shakira Smith, Sophia Stehlin, Gracelyn Townsend, Amaya Whitaker, Breanna Wilson and Charlotte Wilson.
