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Vernon Hills knocks off Elk Grove

A fast start did not translate to a strong finish when host Elk Grove met Vernon Hills for the first time on the football field Friday night.

The Grenadiers did jump out to an early 7-0 lead, but a couple of very costly turnovers completely turned the momentum over to the Cougars as they capitalized on the crucial miscues.

Vernon Hills (3-0) wound up scoring 35 unanswered points beginning late in the first quarter before rolling to a 35-13 nonconference victory.

Junior quarterback Joe Gaskill (10-for-13, 108 yards passing) got the Grenadiers' offense going with a 68-yard scoring drive on their first possession of the game.

A 12-yard run by junior Ian Ridge (43 yards on 11 carries) put the ball on the Vernon Hills 31-yard-line. Six plays later, Ridge ran left before cutting back to the right for a 12-yard touchdown run. The extra point by Antonio Sandoval staked the Grens (0-3) to a 7-0 lead with 2:55 left in the first quarter.

"That was the first time we were scored on first this season, but I like the way we responded with 28 unanswered points (in the first half)," said Vernon Hills coach Bill Bellecomo, whose team had 303 yard of offense overall. "We wanted to win the special teams, it's something we work on from week to week, and the ball bounced our way."

The Cougars got going on offense on their second possession when a 3-yard TD run by junior Ryan Mann (101 yards on 20 rushes) capped a 74-yard scoring drive. The first of 5 extra points by Shane Moncayo deadlocked the score at 7-7.

The special teams were golden for the Cougars as they squib kicked on the ensuing kickoff leading to Elk Grove mishandling the bouncing ball and Vernon Hills taking over at the Grens' 34.

This time, Mann scored on a spin move for a 4-yard TD run and a 14-7 lead.

But miraculously, the Grenadiers also fumbled away the next squib kickoff and the Cougars took over at the Elk Grove 29.

Vernon Hills quarterback and Libertyville transfer student Thomas Monken (17-for-29, 143 yards passing) would find 6-foot-4 teammate Justin Morris in the back of the end zone for a 21-7 lead less than three minutes later.

"The coaches over there do a good job, and they outfought us," said Elk Grove coach Miles Osei. "They did execute their game plan well, they out-physicaled us, and we did not get better from week two to week three."

Mann closed out the first half with another 3-yard TD run as a 23-yard run by teammate Kamrin Martin (40 yards rushing) was a key play on the scoring drive late in the first half.

"We were able to put up some points and keep turning it on," said Mann. "It (the running game) worked well with the linemen doing a great job, and they stayed on their block."

A 15-yard TD pass from Monken to Giovanni Zullo just inside the left corner of the end zone near the pylon boosted the lead to 35-7 late in the third quarter.

"We try to be balanced, we want to finish drives," added Bellecomo. "And that is a backbreaker that makes us hard to defend."

Sophomore Nathan Lee and junior Jackson Wiegold had the key fumble recoveries for the Cougars.

A 23-yard TD pass from Gaskill to Shane Crimmins accounted for the final score. Senior Mark Matos had a big game receiving for the Grens with 79 yards on 8 receptions.

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