By Kevin McGavin-Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
** Additional Photos are Available for Purchase at https://justallsports.zenfolio.com/p695212046**
MOKENA— Garrett Hansen has had a leisurely beginning to his Pop Warner season. The starting quarterback for the Jr Celtics’ 12U team, Hansen entered the second week of the young campaign with all of one throw under his belt.
Hansen doubled his season attempts Saturday night during the Jr Celtics’ Homecoming game against Plainfield at Main Park in Mokena.
Hansen found a streaking Neyland Robinson for a 75-yard bomb early in the third quarter to not only double the Jr Celtics’ lead but also put his unmistakable imprint on the contest.
The Jr Celtics’ defense did the rest as the stingy outfit rendered the Saints’ completely impotent in its 28-0 whitewashing.
It was the second straight shutout victory for the Jr Celtics’ contingent as the Saints finished with negative three yards on 21 total plays from scrimmage.
“We are going to start throwing the ball more,” said Hansen, who connected with Robinson on a third-and-25 play-action pass three and half minutes into the third quarter to give the Jr Celtics a 13-0 lead. “We are dominating the run game. No. 17 (tailback Colin Bailey) and No. 99 (fullback John Chucri) are dominating. I threw it and hoped Neyland would catch it.”
“I’m old school,” Jr Celtics coach John Milosovic. “We are going to pound it, but we are going to throw it at the right time. We have receivers and a quarterback who can throw the ball. We told (the offense) we were going to be patient and hit (the Saints) at the right time.”
“In the huddle I was just thinking that I had to catch the ball,” said Robinson.
The speedster dashed 40 yards untouched after hauling in the Hansen strike.
“I just saw daylight ahead of me,” said Robinson, who raced past the Saints’ cornerback to create separation with ease. “It was just me against the safety, but he was too far away to catch me. We were expecting to throw a little more than last week, but we ended up dominating the run game.”
Thirty-one of the Jr Celtics’ 32 plays from scrimmage were on the ground.
Bryce Kaplan snuffed the Saints’ opening possession with a fourth-down stop, and Bailey and Co. did not waste much time in giving the Jr Celtics a lead never to be relinquished.
Bailey had five of his game-high 14 carries on the Jr Celtics’ ensuing 60-yard march; Chucri had a critical fourth-down conversion to sustain the seven-play drive that Bailey capped with a four-yard punishing run.
The Jr Celtics’ running attack was anchored by tackles Broderick Wallace and Jackson Shanahan, guards Dayton Jackson and Gavin Collins as well as center Sten Fleck.
“I just kept going through the hole,” Bailey said. “They (Wallace and Shanahan) were just dominating. I was getting more yards than I thought.”
Milosovic anointed Wallace “an unsung hero.”
Chucri, who terrorized the Saints with his defensive play, recording four solo tackles in the open field, ended any suspense as to the outcome with a pair of late ground scores.
The Jr Celtics’ physically imposing fullback had a 35-yard gallop with 3:26 to play to accentuate his game-high 84 yards on nine touches.
“You have to first listen to your coaches,” Chucri said. “If you listen to your coaches it shows the right way. I was trying to accomplish what my dad (Alain) said–to get three touchdowns. I just had that mindset.”
Chucri added two conversions after both touchdown runs.
If the Robinson 75-yard strike epitomized the Jr Celtics’ offensive performance, Nate Flynn authored the defining defensive moment in the contest.
In the first quarter, moments after an illegal block negated what would have been a potential game-tying 63-yard kickoff return for Plainfield, Flynn had the first of two interceptions to thwart the Saints’ only promising possession.
“On the first interception, the quarterback was under pressure,” Flynn said. “I realized he’s not very good under pressure. I just ran up to where the DB was guarding the wide receiver and intercepted it.”
“It looked like it was going to be a tied game,” Milosovic said of the first-quarter pick. “(Flynn) has really added a piece that has been missing at safety. We feel like we have nailed a key position for us.”
Jackson had one of the Jr Celtics’ three sacks in his role as a two-way lineman.
“I just wanted to get the quarterback because I didn’t have a sack yet this year,” Jackson said. “I am hoping to get many more.”
Flynn terminated the Saints’ final play with his second interception.
On the preceding play, Kaplan had a 12-yard sack to reduce the Saints’ offense to red numbers for the game.
The Saints could muster only one first down–midway through the second quarter–in the game.
Hansen, Lucas Gravitt, Jaxon Brown and Kristian Willis served as the Jr Celtics’ game captains.
Carter Bellik, Micah Barnett, Easton Breen, Elliott Bodine, Nikko Triolo, Nathan Quiroz, Austin Crites, Colin Guisinger, Adeyinka Bobade, Lorenzo DeCarlo, Charles Fletcher, Matthew Curry, Kaleb Kastys, Aiden Losieczka and Sten Fleck are the other members of the Jr Celtics’ that also kept them as the undefeated and unscored upon 12U contingent.
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 were among the 12U Jr Celtics’ corresponding cheerleaders along with others that performed to keep the Homecoming crowd entertained on Saturday.
