A good trip south for Waubonsie Valley

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - The Waubonsie Valley football team is familiar with playing in close games.

The Warriors found themselves in another contest Saturday that came down to the end.

Tanner Westwood connected with Mike France with an 8-yard pass on a speed option play as No. 30 Waubonsie Valley claimed a 20-17 win in overtime against No. 3 Edwardsville in a first-round Illinois High School Association Class 8A playoff game.

"We're used to battling for 48 minutes in the DuPage Valley (Conference)," Waubonsie coach Paul Murphy said. "We went 5-4, but every game went down to the end."

The Warriors (6-4) were 1-2 in games decided by 2 points or less this season. They were determined to come out on top this time.

"Today we said, 'We're not coming out on the short end of the stick,'" Murphy said.

Edwardsville (9-1) had the first overtime possession at the Warriors' 10-yard line after the teams ended regulation tied at 14.

The Tigers made it to the 3-yard line on the first play but were forced to settle for a field goal after back-to-back stops by the Waubonsie Valley defense.

"They don't surprise me," Edwardsville coach Matt Martin said. "They were what we thought they were. They were what we told our kids. We had a feeling it would be a game like this."

The Warriors only needed two plays to win it.

Waubonsie Valley quarterback Jack Connolly received the snap and pitched it to Westwood. The sophomore scrambled in the backfield before he found France open in the back of the end zone.

"I had all the time in the world," Westwood said. "I just kept my eyes down field and completed the pass."

Things looked bleak for the Warriors late in the fourth.

With the game tied, Edwardsville found itself in an ideal situation after Kendall Davis ran for 53 yards to place the ball at the Warriors' 1-yard line and the clock winding down.

But the Tigers didn't find the end zone. Instead, they lost their fourth fumble of the contest and Waubonsie Valley took over at their own 7-yard line with 1:42 to play in regulation.

"All heart," Murphy said. "We asked them to battle. We're not the biggest team, we're not the fastest team, but we have kids with heart. They played their tails off. They don't quit."

It was the Warriors who controlled the tempo early, following Edwardsville first miscue of the game.

The Tigers fumbled on a punt return, Trevor Moore recovered at Edwardsville's 17-yard line and Max Ihry took it the rest of the way on Waubonsie Valley's next offensive play.

Edwardsville responded three possessions later when Jackson Morrissey broke multiple tackles to earn an 83-yard touchdown run down the left side to tie the game at seven with 4:48 to play in the first quarter.

The Warriors took a 14-7 lead with 3.9 seconds to play in the third quarter after a 53-yard touchdown run by Ihry, but the Tigers answered with 13-yard carry by Kendell Davis to tie the game with 7:20 remaining in the fourth.

It didn't matter in the end.

"It just shows the importance of playing a complete game and never giving up," said Ihry, who finished with 130 yards on 22 carries. "I'm sure some people's spirits were down, but we just kept fighting.

"I think everybody did their jobs well and I think that's what (allowed) us to beat a good team like this."

The Warriors will take on the winner of No. 19 Neuqua Valley and No. 14 Hinsdale Central (7-2) in a second-round game.

"We're just looking forward to next week," Westwood said.