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Hinsdale South keeps the Cannon

Standing by himself at the Downers Grove South 10-yard line, waiting for quarterback Marquese Garrett's pass to descend, Hinsdale South receiver Jaylon Smith got a better understanding of what it means for time to stand still.

"It felt like it was moving in slow motion. It was crazy," Smith said.

When the football did arrive, he corralled it, spun away from a late-arriving Mustangs defender and ran in for the winning 50-yard score with 59 seconds left in a stirring 33-28 Hornets victory.

"I saw it was a mismatch, (the cornerback) bit on the short route and I just ran," Smith said. "I was waving my arms making sure Marquese could see me."

That wasn't as easy as it sounded for Garrett. He was running for his life.

"It wasn't a designed route," Garrett said. "I just kept my eyes up and Jaylon got open like he always does."

The winning score came 90 seconds after the Mustangs (2-3, 1-2 West Suburban Gold) had moved ahead 28-27 courtesy of Richie Pecenka's 6-yard run on fourth down followed by Sean Steele's critical point-after-touchdown kick. It was the third of four lead changes in a topsy-turvy, back-and-forth contest that saw the first eight0 touchdowns scored with a brisk, drizzly wind at the scoring team's back.

The Hornets (3-2, 2-0) struck first thanks to their defense. Marquez Wesley intercepted a pass on the game's first play to set up Jeremiah Kinsey's 5-yard run. Wesley recorded his second pick six minutes later and turned it into a 26-yard TD return that made it 14-0 after one quarter.

Working with the wind in the second quarter, the Mustangs answered with three scores in less than five minutes for a 21-14 halftime lead. Jayden Lambert got the Mustangs on the scoreboard with a 26-yard scoring run. Then Mitch O'Halloran and Kyle Vogt combined to block a punt to set up Pecenka's 1-yard run, also on fourth down, to knot the score. Lambert's weaving 27-yard sprint to paydirt closed the first-half scoring with a minute left.

"That was supposed to go up the middle, but I saw the open space outside and just used my speed," Lambert said. "That's what I always try to do."

The Hornets' two wind-backed third-quarter possessions covered a total of 155 yards and culminated in Garrett's 3-yard run and a scintillating 40-yard score that saw him somehow spin out of three tackles along the sideline before covering the final 30 yards untouched.

An added bonus for the Hornets was that the win kept the Rebel Cannon in their possession for another year.

"Our theme all week was tradition," said Hornets coach Mike Barry. "We keep the Rebel Cannon for the third year in a row and five of the last six, which is unprecedented for us as the smallest school in the conference."

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