Glenbard West won’t share Silver crown

Glenbard West is a team that can beat you in many different ways — on the ground, in the air and on defense and special teams. York found that out firsthand in Friday’s West Suburban Silver showdown in Elmhurst.

After a bit of a shaky start, the Hilltoppers showed why they are one of the best teams in the area with a resounding 41-7 victory over the Dukes to capture the Silver title outright. With one more regular-season game to play, Glenbard West remains undefeated at 8-0 overall.

Running back Scott Andrews led the way for Glenbard West, rushing for 240 yards on 17 carries. He had touchdown runs of 40, 34 and 8 yards. With the offensive line opening up major holes, Andrews showed his explosive quickness in piling up those yards.

“I wanted the ball,” said Andrews, whose longest run from scrimmage was 52 yards. “My team called me up. We wanted to keep on pushing.”

Hilltoppers tight end Nathan Marcus also had a big game with 158 yards receiving on 6 catches, including a 58-yard strike for a touchdown from quarterback Henry Haeffner.

“He is a special player and is hard to defend,” said Glenbard West coach Chad Hetlet. “He played real well for us.”

Hetlet was not so pleased with his team’s early play. While the Hilltoppers came out and scored on their opening possession with Joe Zito capping a three-play drive with a 14-yard touchdown run, they gave up a score on a fake field goal. With his team lined up for the attempt, York quarterback Charlie Rose faked it as the holder and fired a pass to Emmet McCoy who ran it in 23 yards for a touchdown. The score was 7-7 at the end of the first quarter, much to the surprise of many in the crowd.

Glenbard West also coughed up a couple of fumbles and threw an interception. Hetlet said they talked about those mistakes at halftime.

Not to worry as the Hilltoppers then reeled off 34 unanswered points. The Vanderbilt-bound Marcus put on a catching clinic. He used his 6-foot-5 frame to pull in some receptions. All of his yards came in the first half. His big pass play for a touchdown put Glenbard West up 21-7 at halftime.

Devane Toney also scored a touchdown for the Hilltoppers, a 9-yard run early in the third quarter.

For the Dukes (0-8, 0-5), running back Jordan Peacock gained some tough yards. Peacock finished with 72 yards on 18 yards. York coach Steve Nye was happy with his team’s effort.

“We played hard,” Nye said. “We want to go out there and establish something — an attitude. Glenbard West is just bigger, stronger and faster than us. They wore us down.”

Joe Frost had an interception for York while Jordan Hassan had a pick for Glenbard West.