By Ed Muniz-Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
**Additional Photos are available for purchase at justallsports.zenfolio.com/2022pioneers.**
The JV Pioneers were hoping to get back to their winning ways when they hosted the Jr. Warriors of New Lenox on October 2 at Sandburg.
Coach Time O’Reilly and Coach Vince Annel had righted a ship that opened the season with a loss and strung together three straight wins.
Pioneers’ Vinnie Annel and Mason Marable were instrumental offensively and defensively during the win streak.
Last week, the Pioneers were without the services of Marable due to injury. Annel was asked to carry the team and he did the best he could with others stepping up. But the loss of Marable was too much, resulting in Annel taking punishing hits all game and the Pioneer streak ending in the loss.
Marable did return this week but on the docket was the tough-tackling hard-hitting Jr. Warriors who had not been tested all season, coming in unbeaten.
Injuries became a huge factor in this game, but all seemed to be on the Pioneer side including starting quarterback Jack Bullington being carted off via ambulance with a neck injury.
By the time the game was in the fourth quarter, the starting backfield for the Pioneers was sidelined with injuries and both Annel and Marable were watching from the sidelines.
The Jr. Warriors had run roughshod over the Pioneers and won easily, 22-0 increasing to 5-0 while the Pioneers dropped their second in a row and third of the season to go 3-3 in the standings.
From the opening snap, the Jr. Warriors were a confident group, almost machine like as they took their first series and went on a 12-play drive that ended in the Pioneer end-zone using nearly the entire first quarter. About the only thing the Jr. Warriors did wrong was the conversion kick which had them up 6-0.
The Pioneers tried to respond on their first touch. The running of Annel and Marable did extend their drive but came to end after a fourth down fell short of the needed yards.
Consuming clock and maintaining control is the Jr. Warriors game. They hit you with a dose of running plays. Occasionally trying a pass, but they specialize in churning up yards via the run.
During late in the second quarter, Linebacker and Quarterback’ Jack Bullington collided with a visiting Jr. Warrior and fell to the turf. He suffered an Injury which stopped the game for several minutes as an ambulance was called and arrived.
With 1:49 left in the first half, the coaches met and decided to go to halftime and continue at that sport after the ambulance cleared the playing field.
When the teams returned and the ambulance left, the game was picked up at the spot it was stopped. The Jr. Warriors extended their lead to 14-0 on the next play with a 3-yard run, concluding the second quarter.
Both teams went directly to the third quarter. Marable took over for Bullington at quarterback. His first passing attempt found Thomas Elliott for 10 -yards.
The Pioneers stalled on their next set of downs, a penalty and a bad snap loss them yards and eventually had to punt,
Elliot, Marable and Nathaniel Owei finished off the third quarter with tackle and Owei opened the fourth quarter batting down a pass on fourth down.
Not getting much offense going, the Pioneers looked to punt but a bad snap again went over the Pioneers head and was recovered in the end-zone by the Jr. Warriors for the defensive touchdown. With the added kick, the lead grew to 22-0. The Pioneers never threatened to score the last 6-minutes of the game.
The Fifth Quarter offense faired better. Joshua Montel provided the scoring for the Pioneers with his 22-yard touchdown run. Montel also added a run of 11-yards along with some additional short runs.
Quarterback Ashton Brennan connected on passes to Matthew Bullington and Caden Votteler for 13, yards, Montel and Nicholas Baniewicz.
Defensively, the Pioneers were steadfast. They made tackles and had several players to the ball.
They did give up one score but played hard and stood toe to toe. Led by Terrin Lovitt who was active with five tackles. Michael Sraga, Luke O’Reilly, Christian Czerwonka, Joey Driscoll, Henry Byrne, Nicholas Davis, Jacob Oberman and a quarterback sack by Colin McElligott, each managed to get tackles.
Other Pioneers playing hard were Ryan Beeler, Colin Kluever, Ethan Vinson, Kyle Krokos, Mason Overmyer, Wyatt Heinze, Ayden Toth, Sam Basiorka, Dominic Gigliotti, Kyree Gills, Layth Zughayer, Ryan Almasri, Ameen Rayan, Alex Kantzavelos, Eli Citlau, Nolan Burns, Jude Doftert, Santino Marrella, William Rielly, Andrew Wojtanowicz, Dominic Rizza, Nick Shamma, John Curran and Brady Straka.
Providing Cheers throughout the game were Alyssa Abed, Lily Carroll, Issabela Enriquez, Erica Gonsowski, Madeleine Heinz, Layla Jeffries, Madalyn Marable, Hailey McDonald, Liliana Minard, Lucy Moran, Avery Nugent, Maeve O’Connor, Paige Pomonis, Arianna Ramadani, Taylor Ruisz, Jordyn Shamma and Klaudia Willis.
