By Ed Muniz-Photos by Renee Kaspar
**Additional Photos are Available for Purchase at https://justallsports.zenfolio.com/p675673839 **
Intimidation can play to one’s advantage in football.
Hard hits, aggressive play and even some verbal spattering during a contest can change the efforts by opponents.
This contact sport is the perfect environment for that to happen, teams and players often test the limits and use their intimidation tactics to gain the upper hand.
The Pioneers Junior Varsity played two completely different halves of football when they squared off against H-F United on September 3 in Flossmoor.
The first halve saw the Pioneers battle on every down and take a 7-6 lead into halftime, but an injury to a key player on the last play of the first half and watching him being carted away by ambulance, may have had a bigger effect on their effort after the intermission.
Losing your starting quarterback on the first play of the second half to a shoulder stinger didn’t help either, resulting in a 25-7 loss.
“I think we have a team of mentally tough kids, but when we got down by a couple scores against a ramped up aggressive defense, it got difficult,” said Coach Andy Rybak. With Caden (Votteler out and Ashoton (Brennan) out, its seemed like they smelled blood in the water and really to start attacking physically.”
“I thought we controlled play in the first half and felt we had the right game plan frankly, but then to lose Caden on the last play of the first half was huge but we are comfortable in our depth at his position.
But their first play of the second half, on the big run, he broke like six tackles, and one was where Ashton was injured, to lose your starting quarterback, it just felt like things unraveled.”
A mixture of runs by Enzo Angone, Ben Snider and Ashton Brennan began the Pioneers opening series. The 8-play drive stalled at the H-F 36-yardline after a Brennan incompletion.
It took the host just a single play to jump ahead when a short pass turned into a 69-yard jaunt for a touchdown. The 6-0 H-F lead remained after a failed kick after.
The Pioneers next series saw Brennan connect with Angone for 6-yards, mixed in with a couple runs by Snider and Angone and end with Brennan again connecting with Angone for 50-yards for the tying touchdown.
Angone got clear to the near sideline and caught in stride the perfect pass from Brennan. He eluded a tackle and raced the rest of the way to the endzone.
Snider banged in the go-ahead point-after to open the second quarter that now had the Pioneers ahead 7-6.
A pair of tackles by Terrin Lovitt and a solo by Brennan forced a H-F punt after three plays.
The Pioneers maintained nearly the rest of the quarter, using runs by Snider and Angone again. Brennan was also hitting his targets, he connected on a pass-play for 19-yards to Jude Doftert which moved the Pioneers to the H-F 37.
A sack and two incompletions ended the promising drive.
A couple tackles by Snider and Mason Overmyer and a sack by Ryan Duckhorn ended the first half.
Lying and wincing in pain at the spot of the sack was defensive end Caden Votteler. His injury required an ambulance, after 20 minutes, he was finally taken to the hospital as his teammates looked on.
The second half would turn out to be all H-F.
The opening play saw them take the lead. A handoff saw the H-F runner break several tackles and score from 59-yards.
During H-F latest score, the Pioneers starting quarterback’ Ashton Brennan suffered a shoulder injury that had him sidelined.
With his back-up out to illness, the Pioneers went to Kyle Krokos, their Wednesday Night Football League quarterback.
He is a capable of producing some big plays as he did earlier in the week with a pair of touchdown tosses for the comeback win, but now down two starters, the host became more aggressive and disrupted play, preventing the Pioneers offense and causing fumbles.
“Kyle doesn’t take snaps from our starting center, so that was a big factor during our difficulties. He is a capable player, but in this situation, it was very difficult,” said Coach Rybak.
The Pioneers’ ensuing snap was fumbled and recovered by H-F. With the short field, the Pioneers defense showed some grit and forced a turnover on downs at their own 13-yardline. Tackles by Ryan Beeler, Overmyer and William Reilly were key in the stop.
After two plays that produced 2-yards by Angone, Krokos fumbled trying to get outside, the loose football was picked up and returned for the H-F touchdown, upping their lead to 18-7.
Brennan did return to the game and tried bringing his team back. He completed a pair of passes to Doftert for 15-yards as the game was now in the final quarter.
Four plays later, the Pioneers drive stalled which gave possession back to H-F.
H-F is a big play team, they showed that again on the next play, a pass completion ended up in the endzone 65-yards later and a converted extra-point, H-F led the Pioneers, 25-7.
After four tries, the Pioneers had succumbed to H-F. One last tackle by Angone and a knee later, the game was over.
H-F remained unbeaten at 2-0 and the Pioneers dropped to 1-2 on the season.
Fifth Quarter play saw the Pioneers have some successes on both sides of the ball.
Offensively, Krokos found his passing game more productive while also running in a touchdown from seven yards out.
Runs by Colin Kluever, Nicholas Baniewicz, Hanry Byrne, Logan Helman, Gavin Loman and Finnian Redmond helped move the football positively.
Cade McNulty and Layth Zughayer led the Pioneers defensive efforts as they chipped in with tackles and assists.
Several Pioneers played hard during Fifth Quarter action and the Regular scheduled game. They include David Kopec, Dylan Butler, Colin McElligott, Evan Lavelle, Luke Rybak, John Werner, Keegan Fogerty, Drake Ulaszek, Nicholas Davis, Luke Makuch, Dylan Gavin, Michael Sraga, Luke O’Reilly, Ryan Marek, Brock Lenzen, Aidan Rios, Qais Naser, Steven Mullin, Nicholas Hertzog, Jack Bordelon, Justin McNamara, Erik Baran and Rhett Capps.
The Junior Varsity Cheerleaders were at it again, keeping the sidelines loud and giving the Pioneer fans a show at halftime. Great efforts and displays of talent came from Carys Atraje, Aubrey Baran, Keira Barrera, Brittney Blazys, Brooke Blazys, Annabelle Briseno, Hayden Campbell, Giulia Cangelosi, Avery Carroll, Elliyana Connors, Charlotte Day, Annabelle Deloya, Darcy Dorigan, Frankie Ficaro, Emma Golonka, Delaney Grenda, Arabella Hernandez, Ariana Hinton, Leah Janota, Bianca Kapusciarz, Ella Kluever, Brinley Laniosz, Malayna Marable, Emily Minard, Natalie Ocon, Emma Overman, Gia Parisi, Emily Pastiak, Makayla Roman, Emma Ruisz, Luciana Rupp, Alyse Sparacino, Kamilla Ulaszek and Nora Velez.
