By Patrick McGavin- Photos by Jenn Anne Gledhill
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ORLAND PARK—The past is never exactly predicative of what follows next, and the worst habit is thinking the same thing is bound to happen over and over.
The game is too unpredictable to follow an easy script.
The Junior Varsity of the Orland Park Pioneers waltzed through the first portion of their schedule with dominance and comfort. The trap was plainly visible.
“This week we got a little bit too cocky,” quarterback Luke Krokos said. “I think we know now that we can’t act like that.”
Mistakes and breakdowns haunted the Pioneers, who were uncharacteristically out of step and seemingly always trying to catch up.
The team showed admirable fight and a never-quit mentality until time ran out.
The near miraculous comeback staged by the Junior Varsity fell short in a 12-8 Homecoming loss against the Tinley Park Bulldogs in a River Valley Youth Football League game at Sandburg High School on Sunday, September 6.
“We have to learn that we can’t just treat these games like a cakewalk,” linebacker and kicker Anthony Richardson said. “We got a little cocky with it, and we thought we were going to destroy this team.
“We didn’t think they were going to come out with a touchdown, and we had to step it up in the second half.”
The passing game directed by Krokos optimizes every other aspect of the attack. It sets up the powerful two-back running game of Michael O’Connor and Carter Erwin.
The opening drive symbolized the day to come. Erwin blasted around the left edge for a 13-yard gain. He followed with a four-yard burst, and a six-yard dive by O’Connor.
The Pioneers were humming, or so it seemed. Disaster struck with an errant snap in the shotgun formation that resulted in a 13-yard loss. The drive ended on downs.
The running game never again really took off.
“The linebackers all collapsed, and I couldn’t bounce outside,” O’Connor said. “I think we needed to adjust better in the first half.
“With our next game, I think we’re going to need a better response than what we did today.”
The standout play of the first half came on the defensive side for the Pioneers. The Bulldogs used a big pass play to create a first and goal at the Pioneers’ five-yard line.
Noah Cordoba crashed from the left end for a one-yard loss, and Owen Garrity deflected a third down pass attempt. George Petraitis stepped up with a huge fourth down interception in the end zone.
On the ensuing possession, he also caught a 12-yard pass. The Pioneers still felt lucky to go into the break with a scoreless tie.
“I thought we did a pretty good job defensively, but offensively we just struggled trying to move the ball,” Petraitis said. “There was not a lot of space to run.
“They loaded the box up.”
Lucca Morandi, Michael Galivan, O’Connor, Petraitis and Richardson keyed the strong defensive actions that slowed down the athletic and fast Bulldogs’ playmakers.
Revitalized to start the second half, the Bulldogs marched down the field through a shrewd use of the power running game and a sharp passing attack.
The Pioneers experienced their first deficit of the season after giving up an 11-yard touchdown pass on the opening possession of the second half.
Staring down a 6-0 deficit, the Junior Varsity stayed composed and did not panic. With the running game contained, the offense became more predictable.
Passing was the only way to get back into the game, the Bulldogs knew that. Making matters worse, the wind picked up, and started playing havoc with the trajectory of Krokos’ passing.
Krokos suffered an interception on the first play following the Bulldogs’ score.
The defense got the ball back. The story remained largely unchanged. The Pioneers were left to ponder what if. Colton Gutkowski got free on a deep route.
The ball was just beyond his diving grasp.
“I felt like I wasn’t catching the ball as well as I normally do,” he said. “I feel like I let us down. I felt like I should have caught that pass.”
Krokos was also forced to make passes on movement to avoid the Bulldogs’ rush.
“When I was making some of those throws, I wasn’t really reading the wind,” he said. “The ball was sailing, and I didn’t really see that at first.
“I got upset with myself.”
Krokos made amends with a great open field tackle that denied a potential touchdown. Richardson stepped up with a fourth down stop.
A Pioneers offense that has been zipping up and down the field could not get untracked—until it was too little and too late.
The Bulldogs appeared to put the game on ice after the Pioneers were caught off guard, and allowed a long touchdown run for the 12-0 lead with just over a minute to play.
A funny thing happened. When the game appeared at its bleakest, the Pioneers showed exactly what they are capable of when the offense is at its best.
Krokos had sufficient time in the pocket, and uncorked a beautiful ball down the left sideline that Garrity caught in stride for the gorgeous 65-yard touchdown pass.
Richardson’s two-point kick pulled the Pioneers within four points.
“We just knew if anything went wrong, it didn’t really matter at that point, and we just decided to go for it,” Krokos said. “It showed that we weren’t out of the game.”
The only problem was the lack of time. Just 22.4 seconds remained on the clock. The Bulldogs ended any hope of a great comeback by recovering the onside kick with 17.9 seconds to play.
“They did a really good job of filling the hole, and none of our running backs could really run it outside,” Garrity said. “We couldn’t get any holes. The wind was affecting throwing the ball.
“They were ready for the onside kick. We just have to put this game behind us, and get ready for the next one.”
In the Fifth Quarter, Jimmy Elsberg was a two-way force on the offensive line and linebacker.
“When we were on offense, we were moving the ball,” he said. “Defensively we were stopping them, and making all of the tackles.
“Most of us have been playing together for anywhere from two to three or four years now, and we have really good chemistry and a connection out there when we play.”
On this 50th anniversary Homecoming, the players were not the only attraction. The cheerleaders performed with grace and passion.
“We are a really strong community,” Sana Kishta said. “We have a great bond together. We’re in fifth and sixth grade, and we get along so well together.
“We do two-hour practices three or even four days a week. I’ve been doing this for two years now. I really love doing the stunts.”
Ola Burda loved taking part in the ritual.
“It’s been really fun to get all glittery, and have fun with all of our friends,” she said. “This is my third year doing this, and I love learning the new cheers.”
Despite the bittersweet Homecoming defeat, the Junior Varsity had many standout contributors. They were Gunner McCarthy, Thomas Sutter, Cooper Elslager, Joey Zotto, Will Poore, Emmett Kane, Jackson Biskup, Ameen Musa, Ryan Lukas, Jase Enstrom, Patrick O’Boye, Talon Tyrakowski, Jason Erwin, Christopher Medina, Caden Kolodziej, Anthony LaPapa, Christian Paulson, Scott Gumienny, Laith Hammami, Cody Godlewski, Dominic Gabriele, Nick Pomonis, Dominic Lach, Collin Valan, Bradley Patterson, Vincent Shervino, Connor Kvelland, Michael Ordman, Zechariah Torgerson, Jude Morrar, Rayder Slabenak and Adam Krokos.
In addition to Kishta and Burda, the other cheerleaders were Sydney Scharpf, Lila Gavin, Brielle Lenzen, Marissa Gumuls, Mabel Lukasiewicz, Annie Milosovic, Adaline Johnson, Ainsley Moore, Ava Janota, Emily Okrasinski, Maeve Smith, Kaitlyn Minick, Skylar Shlepakov, Brooklyn Loman, Morgan Collins, Molly McGeever, Ayya Ramadani, Madison Davis, Sophia Molina, Margot Joda, Olivia Hufford, Aaliyah Medina, Delaney Piencak, Kyla Kwiatek, Olivia Ally, Allison Guest, Ella Mrowca, Khaliaha Brown, Liliana Holmes and Liliana Darlak.
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