South Elgin racks up 71, downs East Aurora

After giving up 96 points in its last two games, South Elgin knew the defense would have to improve and make changes if the Storm wants to have a shot at reaching the playoffs this year.

The changes worked as the Storm caused 5 turnovers and scored 2 defensive touchdowns in cruising to a 71-24 victory over East Aurora in Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division play at Roy E. Davis Field in Aurora Friday night.

From the opening kickoff, which was returned 85 yards by Derek Kumerow for the first score of the game, the Storm (3-3, 2-2) was in control. After the Tomcats got the ball for the first time and looked strong running the ball to start, South Elgin needed its defense to step up and make a play.

On the first pass play by East Aurora, quarterback Michael Gonzales threw wide of his intended receiver and was intercepted by defensive back Chase Lazopoulos. The Storm offense then to work from there with Shawn Griffin sprinting 29-yards to the end zone to make it a 14-0 contest after less than four minutes of play.

East Aurora (0-6, 0-4) would fight back and finish what it had started on its first possession by driving 59 yards, capping it off with a 20-yard TD pass from Gonzales to sophomore wideout Maurice Nichols, who finished with 66 yards receiving and another touchdown, to cut the lead down to 7.

The Storm would respond once again with Kyle Ware getting the call and scoring from 20 yards out to make it a 21-7 game. A late 31-yard field-goal by Tomcat kicker Richar Barajas would make it 21-10 before the first horn sounded in a back-and-forth and a high scoring affair. A shootout looked to be on, but that would be the last points to go up for East until the second half..

After Ware opened the second half with another touchdown, South Elgin shut the Tomcat offense down. Three turnovers and a punt led to 28 unanswered points by the Storm, with two of the turnovers going for touchdowns. Nickiel Williby ran back a 42-yard return while fellow DB Joey Rohde had a 36-yard return for a score and the Storm would go into halftime with a 50-10 lead.

"Quarterback is one position we struggle at," Tomcats' coach Kurt Becker said about the interceptions. "Michael hasn't gotten much experience for us this year so it was difficult for him to adjust to the speed of the game."

"Overall our DBs did an awesome job tonight," Storm coach Pat Pistorio said of his defense. "We practiced a turnover circuit and it gave them more confidence in the passing game. We also kept it simple for them, making sure they read their keys and played fast football."

When the defense was not on the field, it was a pair of quarterbacks and running backs doing the damage. Through the air, Jacob Amrhein got the start and finished with 79 yards passing and a touchdown, but senior Hayden Nelson also had a TD and saw time during the early part of the game. On the ground, Ware and Griffin both had a pair on long TD runs and finished with a combined 110 yards, giving each other blows on the sideline when needed.

"(Having two backs) allows us to stay fresh for the whole game," Griffin would say of the running mate. "If one of us goes down we have a backup. It helps us stay flexible in the offense."

Pistorio agreed with his running back and added about his two quarterbacks that they are in a unique situation.

"Hayden is a great player, (but last week) Jake was able to manage the second half and make some plays. I told them before the game that 'if you don't score you are out of the game.' "

While it seemed to be a one-sided affair, the Tomcats fought and clawed their way back and kept pace with the Storm in the second half, using big plays from running back Nathaniel Booker, who gained 61 of his 71 yards on the second play of the second half to score, and Nichols, who was Gonzales' favorite target and could turn out to be a special player.

"Maurice could be a special kid. He's only a sophomore and he's already a heck of a football player," Becker said of his wideout. "He has to dedicate himself to the game of football, and if he does that he would have fantastic opportunities in the future."

The Tomcats now have a chance to play spoiler the rest of the way to the UEC Valley playoff picture, but Becker knows they must work on the small things first.

"We need to try and rededicate ourselves to doing the small things," he said. "It keeps coming back to that but if we can rededicate ourselves to the discipline part of the game, maybe the Xs and Os won't be so difficult."