No. 1 Lincoln-Way East shuts out Glenbard West
Lincoln-Way East is technically a team of high school football players.
The Griffins, however, looked more like a machine on Saturday.
They rolled to a 45-0 victory over Glenbard West in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs at Duchon Field in Glen Ellyn.
On par with most of its games this season, defending 8A champion Lincoln-Way East (11-0) notched its seventh shutout and its eighth victory by at least 38 points. It's the program's 25th straight win.
"It was a hard game, but we showed them how we can come out and play," said Griffins running back Devon Williams, who rushed for 143 yards and 3 touchdowns. "We really came together as a team."
Leading 3-0 after a quarter, the second-seeded Griffins exploded for 35 second-quarter points. With less than a minute left in the first half, they followed Kenny Palmer's 78-yard fumble return for a touchdown with a fumble recovery of a pooch kickoff. On the next play from scrimmage, A.J. Henning scored on a 29-yard reverse to put the lead at 38-0.
Lincoln-Way East scored on the opening possession of the first half to put the running clock in effect.
"They're definitely one of the best teams I've ever seen," said Glenbard West running back Tyquan Cox, who had 13 of the team's 82 rushing yards. "Turnovers, penalties ... we really shot ourselves in the foot. I'm proud of what we accomplished. We just shot ourselves in the foot today."
Eighteenth-seeded Glenbard West (8-3) battled injuries all season long, and Saturday was no different with key defenders Kyle Dell and Marky Winters in street clothes. The Hilltoppers' defense did its best while constantly dealing with short fields.
In a game where they had to play near perfect, the Hilltoppers turned the ball over five times. The Griffins' first five scoring drives all started in Glenbard West territory.
"It's going to sound crazy, but I thought we played good defensively," said Hilltoppers coach Chad Hetlet, whose team was co-champion of the West Suburban Silver. "They're a very good team. It's a special group of kids they have right now. Our kids fought, but it's a tough deal."
Lincoln-Way East advances to play Edwardsville in next week's quarterfinals.
"We kind of got it rolling in all three phases," said Griffins coach Rob Zvonar. "Hat's off to Glenbard West, of course, but heck of an effort by our guys."
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