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Glenbard North finishes on a good note

Senior quarterback/safety Brett Gasiorowski and his Glenbard North football teammates already had been eliminated from the playoffs no matter the outcome Friday against Naperville North.

He and the Panthers went out the best way possible.

Gasiorowski and fellow senior captains Luke Greenberg, Matt Michalak and Dillon Warnecke played big roles in a 45-14 DuPage Valley Conference victory in Carol Stream for their high school finale.

Glenbard North (4-5, 2-3) scored 38 consecutive points after the Huskies (2-7, 0-5) had an 82-yard TD drive on their first possession.

"Basically, it was get a win," said Gasiorowski, who rushed for 176 yards with TD runs of 80 and 94 yards. "We were dealt with a situation and there was nothing we could do about it at this point. We just wanted to go out with a win and we did. I'll definitely remember this night, everything about it."

This is the first time that Glenbard North and Naperville North are out of the playoffs since 2002 and 1996, respectively.

The Panthers lost their previous two games by a combined seven points. Friday marked their second straight game minus key offensive players because of an athletic code violation.

"That's what is disappointing. We were in such close games, all of them, and now we're on the outside looking in," Glenbard North coach Ryan Wilkens said. "Our seniors had a heck of a night. I couldn't ask more out of the kids. There hasn't been a complaint about their effort all year."

Naperville North, which scored three points its previous two games, came out strong with the first of two TD passes from quarterback Evan Kujawski to Matt Herring.

After a touchback, however, Gasiorowski rolled right, got a key block from receiver David Chamberlain and completed an 80-yard TD run that completely shifted the momentum.

"I was looking back, trying to see if anyone was behind me," Gasiorowski said. "It was tiring, all of the yards, but it was fun. I had to get a blow (from safety) after that play."

Defensive end Michalak had a sack and a key fourth-down stop at the 23 in the second quarter with the score 14-7. Michalak then recovered a fumble caused by Matthew Kos in the third quarter that led to a 37-yard field goal by Steve Adamatis.

"Knowing that we're not playing next week, I just kind of laid it all on the line, our last time out here," Michalak said. "We wanted to dominate the last time on our field, the last time playing with all of these guys I've been playing with since like third grade."

Greenberg, a linebacker/tight end, caught Gasiorowski's only two completions for 47 yards on the fourth scoring drive.

On his final carry fullback Warnecke scored the Panthers' final TD on a 54-yard run - his first score this season and for more yards than he previously gained all season.

"It was great, a feeling nothing like it," Warnecke said. "When I saw the open field, I was like, 'Holy cow. I might score.' It's always going to be a special game for me."

Glenbard North also saw a glimpse of the future in freshman tailback Jayleen Fitzpatrick. In his second varsity game Fitzpatrick rushed for 3 TDs and 157 yards on 31 carries.

The Panthers' second and third scoring drives consisted of 136 combined yards on 21 plays - all of them carries by Fitzpatrick.

"Jayleen is going to be a great football player for us," Wilkens said.

With only six DVC teams this year, each team played a conference foe in Weeks 4 and 9 with the second game counting in the DVC standings. Glenbard North won the first meeting 20-19 with a late TD after the Huskies led 13-0 at halftime.

"In my 20 years coaching at North we've been in this position one other time," Naperville North coach Sean Drendel said. "That makes it tough, but like I told the kids, you learn from adversity and this will make you stronger somewhere down the line. Our kids are great kids. We played hard. We didn't make enough plays and that's what it comes down to."

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