St. Francis takes the action to Plainfield South
Mike Fitzgerald's St. Francis Spartans made the big plays on their home opener, routing Plainfield South 42-0.
The Spartans scored 35 points in the first half, with both sides of the ball getting in on the action.
"Our coaches did a great job preparing these kids, and these kids have really bought into what we've been preaching," Fitzgerald said. "We have two goals, play for each other and respond to adversity. That's how we define winning, and they play hard every single snap."
Spartans running back Steven Fassnacht and quarterback Clint Bobowski found huge holes running up the middle of the field in the first half, and they made the Cougars pay.
The duo put up a rushing touchdown each in the first half before a Michael Shaw 31-yard interception on Plainfield South quarterback Brandon Lentini led to a touchdown.
Up 21 points, Bobowski decided to add another touchdown on the ground and one in the air to make it 35-0.
"I thought we had a good night," Bobowski said. "My success all comes from the offensive line and my receivers… . They all do a great job."
The Cougars defense came out with a new energy in the second half, cumulating with a Nick Portz interception. But the offense couldn't capitalize on any momentum the defense might have brought it.
"We had talked at halftime about what we needed to do in terms of getting back into this football game and I think our defense responded extremely well," said Plainfield South coach Ken Bublitz. "Unfortunately, we just couldn't make anything happen on offense. It was inconsistency."
In the dying minutes of the fourth quarter, Plainfield South even found itself on the goal line. But St. Francis didn't stop. The Spartans made a fourth-down stand to shut out their opponents.
"Defense has been relentless the last two weeks," Fitzgerald said. "The first week I think we allowed 13 yards. They've been flying to the football and creating turnovers… . They play every snap hard and they play for each other and that's what we've been really preaching."
The Spartans only allowed the Cougars 153 yards of total offense while they had 403 yards at the end of the night.