Lake Zurich survives scare from Libertyville
Following a stunning overtime win over Stevenson last week, Lake Zurich was deadlocked with Libertyville for the majority of Friday night.
But one big fourth-quarter play provided all the separation the Bears needed.
Lake Zurich quarterback Matt McGraw tossed a 5-yard screen pass that wide receiver James Piggott turned into a 56-yard touchdown, and the Bears' defense held late as Lake Zurich (4-2, 3-1) downed Libertyville (1-5, 1-3) 14-7 on the Wildcats' homecoming night for a key North Suburban Conference win.
The Bears' lone big play undid three quarters of lackluster offense, which stalled for two turnovers on downs in Wildcat territory in the first quarter.
Lake Zurich coach Luke Mertens said those two stalled drives were the result of lack of execution.
"That's really what it boiled down to," Mertens said. "That was momentum changing for us, it built up their momentum and they just kept coming."
It seemed like Lake Zurich was almost destined to run out to a double-digit lead in the first half. After turning over on downs on its first drive, linebacker Blake Hill intercepted Libertyville quarterback Thomas Monken to set up first-and-goal.
The Bears would eventually turn it over on downs inside the Wildcats' 5-yard line, but would punch in their first touchdown in the second quarter on a 2-yard run by Bryan Sanborn.
"Because we're going to see everyone's best effort, we have to play almost perfect football and we're not right now," Mertens said of his offense's execution. "We're playing great teams and they're giving great efforts to beat us."
Libertyville's best effort came in the second half, as the team recovered well after being shutout in the first half.
The Wildcats' first drive of the second half ate up nearly eight minutes of the third quarter, and featured running back Niko Christensen. Christensen carried the ball 30 times for Libertyville for 113 yards and scored the Wildcats' lone touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.
However, following that drive, Libertyville's offense never got in Lake Zurich's red zone for the rest of the night.
"Our defense got us the victory," Mertens said. "Our offense got us the one play we needed to go ahead."
McGraw, who was 12-for-18 for 146 yards and a score, said his long touchdown came "better late than never."
"The linemen made some really good blocks downfield, and he did the rest," McGraw said of Piggott's touchdown. "It's pretty easy for him when the linemen do such a great job."
Libertyville will get a chance to build off a solid defensive performance next week at Mundelein, which has scored 9 combined points in the last two weeks.
"They really played tough, they're fighting for their season," McGraw said of Libertyville. "We just hung in there."
The Bears' playoff aspirations will be challenged next week against Warren, which is currently on a five-game winning streak.
"We're still fighting for a playoff spot right now," Mertens said. "There's not a lot of margin for error when you're fighting for the playoffs. We've just got to keep getting the wins."