By Francisco Avila- Photos by Renee Kaspar
** Additional Photos are Available for purchase at https://justallsports.zenfolio.com/p137166710 **
CHICAGO— It’s always a thrill to watch a team fire on all cylinders, both offensively and defensively. That’s exactly what the Jr Celtics 7U delivered on Sunday in a commanding 28–6 win over the Yorkville Foxes.
From the opening whistle, the Celtics showcased clinical execution on offense and gritty determination on defense. The young squad capitalized on nearly every scoring opportunity and held firm under pressure to secure a convincing win.
Celtics head coach Matt Cesek praised his team’s offensive intensity and the key role played by the blockers.
“We came out firing back. Our offense is pretty good. Our lead blockers are great,” said Coach Cesek. “We need to focus more on lead blocking, but other than that, the offense played well. Then the defense came through with a bunch of stops.”
It didn’t take long for the Celtics to make their mark. Just one minute into the opening quarter, Logan Cesek caught a crisp 20-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sebastian Kouba to give the Celtics a 6–0 lead.
“I just wanted to win and score,” said Cesek.
Mezzo Funk narrowly missed the extra point attempt, and the Foxes answered quickly with a 40-yard touchdown of their own, leveling the score at 6–6. However, a critical stop by Leonidas Christou on the extra point attempt prevented the Foxes from taking the lead.
Three minutes later, the Celtics were back on top as Kouba connected once again with Cesek, this time for a 35-yard touchdown. The score put the Celtics ahead 12–6 after another narrowly missed extra point.
“I just ran toward the end zone, then cut back to get away from the tackler and scored,” Cesek explained.
The first quarter ended with the Celtics holding firm defensively, thanks to strong tackles from Liam Adent, Funk, Gannon Mathis, and Cesek.
The second quarter saw the Celtics pick up right where they left off. Just two minutes in, Kouba and Cesek combined again, this time for a 10-yard touchdown, Cesek’s third of the game. Funk followed up with a successful extra point to extend the lead to 20–6.
“That’s a really cool thing to do,” Cesek said. “I just want to play, be happy, win, and have a good time.”
Funk shared what changed on his successful kick.
“I just cleared my mind, imagined, and saw in my head that I could make it.”
The Celtics continued to impose themselves on defense with standout tackles from Ryan Sanders, Ronan Gleason, and Camden Styx. With just two minutes left in the half, Kouba found Liam Adent for a 25-yard touchdown, pushing the lead to 26–6. Funk nailed another extra point to make it 28–6 at halftime.
“My team was blocking, and I followed my blocker, cut outside, and ran as fast as I could,” said Adent.
“They just helped me up,” Funk added, reflecting on bouncing back after early misses. “I’m really happy to score on the kicks.”
While the Celtics couldn’t add to their scoring in the second half, their defense made sure the Foxes didn’t either. In the third quarter, strong defensive work from Adent, Mathis, Gleason, and Gavin Poulos helped preserve the lead.
In the final quarter, with just 32 seconds left, Ronan Gleason put the exclamation mark on the win with a big sack on the Foxes quarterback.
“I got through the line, and when they didn’t block me, I did a couple moves and sacked him,” Gleason said. “I didn’t want them to score another touchdown.”
With a dominant performance on both sides of the ball, the Jr Celtics 7U have set the tone for the rest of the season. Sunday’s win was a clear statement: this is a team with skill, heart, and the drive to keep winning.
Key contributors in the game included Liam Adent, James Dillon, Ryan Sanders, Camdyn Brigham, Colin Frainey, Fitzgerald Blythe, Cooper Surber, Brantley Fischer, Jackson Baker, Kaleb Cloutier, Clyde Miuccio, Gavin Poulos, Knox Kucala, Luke Rockett, and Grayson Erickson.
