By Bobby Narang- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
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NEW LENOX– The 13U Mokena Jr. Celtics wanted to make season-turning move on Saturday night.
The Division 3 team was coming off an impressive shutout victory against the Plainfield Saints on September 22. The Jr. Celtics gained a big advantage in Pop Warner League play by knocking off the Saints on their Homecoming.
But they wanted to keep their momentum heading into Saturday’s key home game.
Now, the Jr. Celtics returned home to a raucous crowd on a late Saturday night. As the feature game on a day filled with football at Providence Catholic High School, the Jr. Celtics didn’t disappoint their fans.
The Jr. Celtics scored a touchdown on their first possession of the game to roll to a 21-0 victory over the Tri-City Wolverines.
The Jr. Celtics pieced together another memorable effort on offense, defense and special teams to move up the standings.
Getting together at midfield in a circle following the game, the 13U Jr. Celtics were a ball of energy and ear-to-ear smiles following their near perfect execution on the field.
“The team was prepared and this was a must-win game for us,” Coach Dave Cercone said. “They prepared all week. My biggest thing I pushed to the kids was the details. I think we hit on all aspects of those. We had a couple of silly penalties but it was all mental mistakes of them being overly excited before the game. We had to win this game. We’re now 4-2 after this game and we’re tied with them in the brackets. This is playoff seedings. We’re the sixth-place team on the bubble, so this win hopefully solidifies us.”
The Jr. Celtics did not score in the first quarter but showed consistency in their offense by mixing the run and pass to score a touchdown in each of the final three quarters.
Cercone said the offensive line set the tone with their blocking to open up big gaps for the running backs. The Jr. Celtics finished with 198 yards rushing and scored all three TDs on the ground.
“My whole offensive line did outstanding,” Cercone said. “The offensive line all blocked. It was a team aspect and they all did their jobs and blocked.”
The Jr. Celtics scored their first touchdown by getting the ball late in the first quarter. Elliot Roethle broke off a 10-yard run to get the drive flowing. He added a nine-yard burst to put the ball across the 50-yard line before ending the possession with an impressive 46-yard scoring run. Roethle broke through the line, darted to his left and sped along the sidelines for a 7-0 lead with 6:48 left in the third quarter. Roethle sparked the running attack with 104 yards rushing.
On their first drive of the third quarter, the Jr. Celtics hit paydirt with another time-consuming possession. Quarterback Kalan McCarron hit Tyler Fox for an 11-yard reception on the first play. Two plays later, Dylan Fox burst loose for a 10-yard run for a first down at the 15-yard line of the visiting team. On the next play, Maddox Sperry went untouched for a 15-yard TD run to extend the lead to 14-0 with 7:03 on the clock in the third quarter.
With just over a minute left in the third quarter, the Jr. Celtics offense went back to work by grinding out yards and eating clock time. Tyler Fox sped free for a 20-yard run on the first play. Three plays later, sparked by an 11-yard run by Maddox on the previous run, the Celtics found the end zone for the third time on Dylan Fox’s 22-yard run for a 21-0 lead.
“The offensive line did so much on that play,” Dylan Fox said. “I hit that hole and it was wide open. I just had to hit it after the offensive line and backs blocked amazing on that (play) and all game. We have a lot of versatile and good backs so that made it hard to stop us. When you throw in the pass, that makes our offense amazing.
Defensively, the Jr. Celtics pitched a shutout thanks to a solid push by the defensive line, great pursuit by the linebackers and a ball-hawking secondary that made the visiting team a one-dimensional offense forced to run the ball.
Defensive back John Carter IV was happy to contribute in the shutout, picking off a pass on the goal line to end a threat by the Wolverines late in the second half to keep his team ahead 7-0.
“We all listened to our coaches today,” Carter IV said. “We did exactly what they told us to do and watched the players they told us to watch. We ran around and flew around and brought the energy. I was happy to get an interception. Our coaches told us to stay home, stay on our man and get in those gaps. I did exactly what they told me. It felt great to get that (interception). Our defense was great and did what he said on his plays and we brought the energy really good today.”
Defensive tackle Jack Fletcher said the defense played inspired and fought hard to keep the Wolverines from building any momentum. Maddox added a key sack late in the second quarter to slow down the Wolverines’ momentum.
“I think the defense did really good today and had a really good effort,” Fletcher said. “Everyone was cheering on the sidelines and that helped us bring up our mood. I think it was a very good team win. I’m very excited for our next game. We’re on a good run headed toward the playoffs.”
Fletcher agreed that the defense buckled down every time the Wolverines crossed into their territory.
“I think when they got past the 50-yard line, we got really motivated to stop them and not let them score,” Fletcher said. “We didn’t want to give up a touchdown. We’re on a good road right now and hope to make the playoffs.”
Linebacker Honor Montelongo said the defense was motivated to come out with a big win to help them in the standings. “We did really good and way better than last week I would say after practicing really hard,” Montelongo said. “The key was talking about bringing in a lot of energy before the game and we were really happy, which helped set the tone for the game. I think we all were hyped up and had good energy and played way better.”
Maddox, who also plays safety, said all three segments played in perfect harmony to record the shutout.
“We played like a team and had good energy and executed everything we practiced,” Maddox said. “We had great blocking and our running backs found open space and we executed across the board. We played good defense and perfected ourselves from practice. We have to keep playing as a team and bring the same energy.”
The Jr. Celtics had help from everyone else on their roster, including Kayden Carter, Jeremiah Turman, Tegan Walsh, Michael Fryza, Ademide Bobade, Austin Palacios, Jaxon Chalupa, Christian Flores, Quinton Hoffman, Jack Fletcher, Henry Ambrose, Cameron Wade, Blake Roberts and Victor Lapointe.
The Junior Varsity Jr. Celtics Cheerleaders were a fun group throughout the game with their complex routines and nonstop energy supporting the football team. The cheerleading team consists of Audrey Larson, Grace Corwhurst, Alexis Firlit, Raelynn Anderson, Vivienne Andresen, Riley Hoffman, Elle Dobblehoff, Skyler Guinea, Roe Lubovich, Mia Calleros, Charlotte McDonald, Emma Hamstra, Maleah Capadona, Charlotte Ozinga and Gianna Kettwig.
