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Wheaton Academy shuts out West Chicago

Wheaton Academy got its season off to a great start on Friday night with a 21-0 win at home over cross-town rival West Chicago.

Both sides felt the opening-night jitters. They combined for just 3 first downs in the first quarter. The second quarter included more of the same up until Wheaton Academy put together an impressive drive in the two-minute drill to take a 7-0 lead heading into halftime.

Wheaton Academy took over with 1:01 remaining in the second quarter at its own 25-yard line and proceeded to march 75 yards in 7 plays. The drive ended when junior quarterback Ben Thorson found senior Miles VanderKlok in the front corner of the end zone for a 16-yard strike with three seconds remaining.

"I felt like we were a little tight on offense and then defensively we were on the field for a long time in that first half. Credit to our guys for fighting through it. But that was big. That meant going into halftime we had a little bit of a cushion and had something to build on," Wheaton Academy coach Brad Thornton said.

In the second half Thorson and the Warriors offense picked up where they left off, marching 53 yards on 8 plays to take a 14-0 lead on their first drive of the third quarter. Thorson finished his day 13-of-19 passing with 178 yards, a touchdown and an interception to go along with a rushing touchdown.

Wheaton Academy's defense also buckled down in the second half, allowing just 5 yards of total offense to West Chicago in the final two periods.

"We've got a lot of returning starters on defense," Wheaton Academy junior defensive back and wide receiver Noah Jones said. "It felt good (to make a few plays), we just have to continue to capitalize on those moments when we get them."

In the fourth quarter Wheaton Academy cemented its victory with a 5-play, 55-yard drive that ended in a 1-yard sneak by Thorson for a touchdown to give the Warriors (1-0) a 21-0 lead with 3:12 remaining.

Wheaton Academy wound up outgaining West Chicago 329-130 on the day. Kent Harmon helped keep the Warriors offense balanced with 83 yards on 12 carries.

As for West Chicago (0-1), the Wildcats had their chances and they're eager to get into the film room to see where things broke down and get the mistakes corrected.

"We were inside their 30 twice and inside their 20 once and we just couldn't come away with points," West Chicago coach Ted Monken said. "We had some wide open receivers deep. Whether it was an issue with quarterbacks or receivers, the film will tell us that."

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