By Bobby Narang- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
** Additional Photos are Available for Purchase at https://justallsports.zenfolio.com/p546777837 **
MOKENA— Mother Nature arrived at the wrong time for the 12U Jr. Celtics football team on Sunday afternoon.
Earlier in the week, the threat of rain and thunderstorms were scheduled for game, but the day started off sunny with oppressive heat. Early in the third quarter, the Jr. Celtics started slowly driving the ball down the field against Oriole Park.
Entering the red zone, the Jr. Celtics offense came to a sputtering halt when a gradual rain turned into a downpour and limiting the ball movement on the grassy and suddenly muddy field.
The surprising rainstorm led to the Jr. Celtics ending the drive on downs. From that moment on, it was all uphill for the home.
The Jr. Celtics broke open the game in the second half to cruise to a 20-0 victory at Main Park on Sunday in Mokena. The victory moved the Jr. Celtics’ record to 4-1 on the season.
The irony in the sudden rainstorm changing the complexion of the game wasn’t lost on several coaches and players on the Jr. Celtics. The Jr. Celtics had trouble moving the ball all game, but once the weather changed the offense picked it up and played better in the sloppy conditions.
The defense played outstanding all game, not allowing the visiting team to gain any momentum with sustained drives.
Late in the second quarter, the Jr. Celtics took over possession in a scoreless game with 34.4 left in the quarter. The Jr. Celtics ran the ball for 4 yards on the first play, not showing much urgency on offense. But then, like the third-quarter rainstorm, lightning struck but in the form of Jr. Celtics Neyland Robinson. The diminutive Robinson is fast, elusive and possesses next-level cutback moves, which he put on display on second down. Robinson took a handoff, burst outside to the right and darted 77 yards for a touchdown, shocking the crowd and players from both sides.
Robinson’s long TD gave the Jr. Celtics a 6-0 lead second before the end of the first half. When he burst into the end zone, several of his teammates ran toward him to celebrate the highlight play.
“When I was running, I saw three people on the side of my view, but then I made a cutback and I had great grass. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t get caught from behind. It felt really good because it was the first score of the game. That was my longest run I think. That brought us some momentum to the game and helped our team score more points.”
Jr. Celtics coach John Milosovic said Robinson is capable of a big play at any time for his team.
“(Robinson) is a big player for us, especially when we can get him outside,” Milosovic said. “We know a lot of teams really look for him, so we try and get other guys involved. That was a big play. We send him out and tried to get the ball in his hands. He can be really explosive.”
Milosovic said his players overcame a number of weather conditions in the game. After the rain stopped, the sun popped out and the temperatures soared back up briefly.
“I thought we played well,” Milosovic sid. “We got some big turnovers. We started to play really well in the second half and settled down and stopped with the penalties. We kept fighting. Some teams would’ve given up after the rain. We don’t worry about the rain or conditions. We don’t worry about that. We adjust and try to go through anytime. Colin Bailey had a very nice run and Dayton Jackson played nice for us and been plugging up the holes. Carter Bellik had a nice interception that set us up for a touchdown. We’re playing really well together as a team. That’s why we’re winning.”
At the start of the second half, Elliott Bodine recovered an onside kick to start the third quarter, but then the rainstorm hit to spoil the Jr. Celtics’ drive and momentum.
Dayton Jackson played stellar in the middle of the defensive and offensive line. He recovered pivotal fumble in the second half to set up John Chucri’s 5-yard touchdown that raised the lead to 13-0.
“I really wanted to get my first fumble recovery on defense, so I was happy,” Jackson said. “The defense played good. We were physical and strong and supported each other with solid play. It wasn’t hard playing in the rain.”
After Carter Bellik intercepted a pass and returned it to the 12-yard line of the visiting team midway through the fourth quarter, Colin Bailey burst free for a 13-yard touchdown run for the final points of the game.
“It was a weird game, but rain games are my favorite,” Bellik said. “I was glad to get an interception. I saw that the quarterback was going to overthrow it and it was coming right toward me. I thought I had a touchdown. I didn’t want to get caught. The defense played great. We kept our foot on the gas and didn’t slow down.”
Bailey showed his toughness on the final possession, sealing the game with runs of 14 and 13 yards to end the game.
“I felt really good running the ball,” Bailey said. “I’ve been going to the gym a lot. My dad makes me work on my legs. It was nice to score that touchdown. I kept moving my legs and my teammates also motivated me. It was great to get a shutout. I was tackling everyone I could. I’m really happy. It was a fun game. It was really fun to play in a game like this.”
The Jr. Celtics received contributions from their entire team, including Micah Barnett, Gavin Collins, Easton Breen, Nikko Triolo, Lucas Gravitt, Nathan Quiroz, Garrett Hansen, Austin Crites, Adeyinka Bobada, Lorenzo DeCarlo, Jackson Shanahan, Bryce Kaplan, Jaxon Brown, Broderick Wallace, Charles Fletcher, Matthew Curry, Kristian Willis, Kaleb Kastys, Aiden Losieczka and Sten Fleck.
The cheerleading team consisted of Vivienne Andresen, Charlotte Fowler, Bevin Scanlon, Anais Nunnally, Eloise Morrison, Brianna Adair, Skyler Guinea, Luciana Kolenko, Gabrielle Migacz, Madison Varnado, Olivia Freyer, Ashlyn Woods, Charlotte Ozinga, Teagan Smith, Anya Stojak, Gianna Ponzi, Penny Oeser, Ella Dobbelhoff, Gianna Picciola, Mia Rhodes, Jessica Short, Chloe DiBennardi and Charlotte McDonald.
