By Bobby Narang- Photos by Jenn-Anne Gledhill
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ORLAND PARK – Connor Kvelland let his instincts take over early in Sunday’s football game.
With the Orland Park Lightweights aiming for some early fortune, Kvelland provided the highlight against the Chicago Cowboys.
His teammate, Sean Kikilas, forced a fumble in the opening minutes, causing the ball to squirt loss. That’s when Kvelland was in the right place, scooping up the fumble and racing 24 yards for a touchdown.
The Pioneers added an offensive touchdown to record a gritty 12-7 victory over the Chicago Cowboys at Sandburg High School.
Kvelland said he immediately pounced on the loose fumble, choosing to avoid a recovery and go for the touchdown.
“I saw a chance to get to the quarterback and he was getting tackled,” Kvelland said. “I saw the ball come out. I scooped the ball up and scored. I wanted to scoop it. It was so nice. It felt pretty good. “That’s really my first touchdown all season. The defense played really well, with our defensive ends and linemen getting into the backfield to sack the quarterback. They had a good offense and good runs, but we stopped them.”
Not to be forgotten, but Kikilas started the play with his hard tackle that caused the fumble. Kikilas said he was happy to make a key early contribution. Kikilas said the touchdown had an extra special meaning to him.
“The snap was bad, but their player was able to recover it,” Kikilas said. “I wanted to be able to be there and hit him or recover the fumble, so I hit him as hard as I could. It was great to see us score that touchdown. That was a good team we beat. They were really tall.
“We had a great day. The line did really well and the whole team did well, including the players on the sidelines.”
Coach Dan Kolodziej said it was a tough battle for the Pioneers, but he was happy to see the entire team rally together to stay undefeated on the season at 6-0.
“We had to grind it out,” he said. “It was a battle for the entire game. You have to credit the Cowboys. They were aggressive, physical and fast. We were able to take advantage of the fumble on the snap and run it in. That was a big for us and gave us some early momentum. It set the tone for us. We made hard the whole game and squeaked this one out with just offensive touchdown.”
The Pioneers nearly added an offensive touchdown in the second quarter. They strung together an eight-play drive that ate up a lot of clock. Jason Erwin kept the drive alive by converting a short run on fourth down with a great spin move. Adam Krokos added two runs totaling eight yards and Kvelland had a one-yard run. The drive ended on downs when Kvelland’s pass fell incomplete.
Defensively, the Pioneers kept the visiting team in check with numerous big plays. Kikilas had a nine-yard tackle for a loss with 4:07 left in the second quarter. Krokos added two tackles to force a punt on the same possession.
In the second half, the Pioneers recovered an onside kick to set up their first and only offensive scoring drive. Erwin started the possession with a 19-yard scamper, then a 13-yard run until ending the three-play drive with a six-yard TD. He broke several tackles, slightly turned his body to glide into the end zone for a 12-0 lead with 9:12 on the clock in the third quarter.
“The offensive line gave me big holes, so I just ran hard through them,” Erwin said. “Our defense was really good and they helped us get the win. They kept trying to run the ball outside mostly and I just tried to find the quarterback and tackle him. The season has been so much fun. We practice hard and play hard in the games. We can actually practice harder and get better.”
The Cowboys scored their only points on the ensuing possession to slice the gap to 12-7 after converting the point-after-attempt via a run.
The Pioneers struggled offensively for the rest of the game, failing to move the chains on a key third down, but Erwin saved the day with a big punt. The Cowboys followed with a six-play drive but were hurt by two penalties that led to the series ending on downs early in the fourth quarter.
The Pioneers pieced together a six-play possession that ended with an incomplete pass by Kvelland. The Cowboys tried to win the game on their final drive, but Kikilas had a punishing hit on second down and the visitors followed with two straight incompletions to end the game with 14.1 left.
Lineman Jimmy Elsberg was an unsung hero in the game with his big blocks that opened up holes for the offense.
“The offensive line played awesome,” Elsberg said. “It’s awesome to see when our running backs break free. It was hard to move because the other team had some big guys. Everyone was aggressive. It was hard to play in this heat. It brought a lot of us down.”
Kolodziej said the Pioneers’ undefeated record can be traced back to good coaching, hard working players and discipline.
“We are aggressive, physical and stay on the kids,” Kolodziej said. “We play from start to finish. We couldn’t be here without our coaches, from my offensive coordinator to defensive guys. Everyone has a job out there, to see what’s working or not working and we’re all communicating and relying for each other and doing what’s best for the boys.
“Our left side of our line was dominating with Elsberg hoping up big holes. On defense, we had penetration and were able to get in the backfield. We just have to wrap up better on tackles.”
The Pioneers were satisfied with the tough win, mainly because the entire roster had a hand in knocking off the Cowboys, including Jaweed Abuzir, Gunner McCarthy, Nate Abbs, Keith Piekarz, Thomas Sutter, Taylan Morandi, Joey Zotto, Will Poore, Luke Bosack, Jackson Biskup, Ryan Lukas, Zachariah Ballouta, Ellis Hubbard, Mike O’Connor, Martin Groark, Brady Higgins, Alex Kopec, CJ Hufford, Christopher Medina Jr., Shane Sternberg, Luke Holoubek, Bennett Kersten, Brooks Foster, Michael Patterson, Gavin Garrity, Arthur Slabenak, Anthony LaPapa, Paxson Leithleiter, Laith Hammami, Ian Frost, Jonathan Mizera, Dominic Gabriele, Ammar Abdelmuti, William Jordan, Jordy Kolodziej, Luke McDoniel, Paul Rylan Davies, Amari Adigun, Dominic Maurella and Adam Krokos.
The Orland Park cheerleaders performed several inspiring routines to bring the crowd to its feet. The team consists of Lucy Bohanek, Kaitlyn Minick, Alexandra Burda, Mabel Lukasiewicz, Elena Schmaling, Adaline Johnson, Zoey France, Emerson Schweikert, Eleanor Koehn, Stella Bristow, Brooklyn Loman, Eila Richter, Aaliyah Medina, Ava Janota, Molly McGeever, Skylar Shlepakov, Makayla Sotelo, Vera Joda, Kara O’Meara, Sophia Molina, Emily Okrasinski, Ainsley Moore, Maevry Harmatys, Marissa Gumuls, Madison Hedger, Morgan Collins, Aleena Badwan, Scarlett Sternberg, Sadie Griffin, Grace Poore, Kennedy Krokos, Olivia Ally, Liliana Holmes, Morgan Burger, Evelyn Byrne, Lillian Fudala, Alaina Holoubek, Anderson Foster, Selena Rios, Gwendolyn Moffatt, Margaret Moffatt, Evelyn Moffatt, Quinn Heinze, Callie Juarez-Radovanovic, Eloise Sarhage, Jenna Michalczewski and Charlotte Dorigan.
