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IC Catholic scores convincing win against Wheaton Academy

If there was any question about a possible IC Catholic Prep letdown after securing its three-peat last fall, that has already been answered three weeks in.

Seven days after taking down fellow defending state champion Joliet Catholic, the Knights dominated Wheaton Academy 43-7 in their Metro Suburban Blue opener Friday in Elmhurst.

With rival Bishop McNamara looming next week, ICCP improved to 3-0 on the young season while capturing its 29th consecutive victory.

"It definitely starts with the work we put in during the off-season," said ICCP linebacker Kevin Cooke. "We are all pushing each other; the younger guys are pushing the older guys. It's always a team effort. That is how we keep rolling and make sure there isn't a drop-off."

One player whose production certainly isn't dropping off is Kyle Franklin. Coming into action with 4 touchdowns over the first two weeks, the junior running back doubled that total Friday.

Carrying the ball only nine times, Franklin accumulated 121 yards while scoring on runs of 8, 9, 31 and 39 yards.

"Our main formula is to always work hard and just focus on the next day," Franklin said. "We don't worry about the past or two weeks ahead. We worry about today and the next day. And we worry about working hard.

"We have a lot of great players on this team and a great coaching staff."

ICCP opened the scoring in the first quarter on a 32-yard field goal by Tommy Sloan and a 42-yard pass from Danny Cronin to Chauncey Lee. Cronin threw for 140 yards and also rushed for 64 yards.

Defensively, the Knights yielded just 7 first downs and forced a pair of early turnovers, an interception by Cronin and a fumble recovery by Connor McCoy, one of four sophomores starting on that side of the ball.

"I'm proud of the kids and I'm proud of all the young kids especially," ICCP coach Bill Krefft said. "Don't get me wrong, we are led by our seniors. But we have a ton of juniors taking lead roles and our sophomore group is very impressive. It's very impressive for them to keep their composure and do what they've been doing against high-caliber teams. It's a credit to the kids, just growth every day."

Wheaton Academy (2-1, 0-1) had sophomore David Dorn making his first start under center. Dorn completed 14 of 19 passes for 98 yards, including a 17-yard touchdown strike to Alejandro Ventimilla late in the third quarter.

"I'm proud of him, he's a competitor," Wheaton Academy coach Brad Thornton said of Dorn. "He plays with a bit of a chip on his shoulder. Overall, we had a better week of practice this week and I thought we executed well. At the end of the day, IC is a very good football team, tip your cap to them."

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