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St. Edward picks up 1st win; Geneva eyes big game

St. Edward broke into the win column in a big way in Week 4 with its 37-0 win over future conference compadre Chicago Christ the King.

Defensively, the Green Wave limited Christ the King to 4 plays on its first 4 possessions. For the game, Christ the King completed only 2 passes in 17 attempts and ran for 60 yards.

St. Edward scored 30 of its 37 points before halftime, 22 coming in the second quarter.

Luciano Rolando's 46-yard touchdown pass to Manny Esquibias opened the scoring gates and St. Edward never looked back. Rolando later hit Carson Busto with a 50-yard scoring strike in the second quarter.

"We were 0-3, but we really wanted this game," St. Edward coach Mike Rolando told Green Wave supporter Mark Harrington for an article Harrington wrote on the game. "We really wanted this game. It proved we can play. We are fighters. It's extremely important (to get a win), because it's hard to be confident when you are losing, and they need to be confident to win. I think our team is better than our record showed."

In terms of the next five weeks, St. Edward sits at 1-3 and would need to win out to secure a guaranteed playoff spot or go 4-1 to become playoff eligible.

Geneva update:

Geneva and St. Charles North both enter this week's contest both 2-0 in the DuKane Conference.

Something is going to give, but senior safety/running back Jackson Reyes and the Vikings are keeping focused.

"There are a lot of emotions for this week's game, especially because of homecoming," Reyes said. "As a team, we are all focused and feeling sharp. We know this is a big game for the program and we are ready to get the job done."

South Elgin update:

Storm coach Dragan Teonic had high praise for Jabari Pruitt, Isaiah Alejandre and Danny Viscuso in the team's win over Larkin, a game that saw South Elgin post more than 40 points for a third time already this season.

"Jabari played well, giving us great special teams reps and minutes on offense," he said. "Isaiah and Danny played really well at defensive end for us, each recovering a fumble and forcing quick throws."

And a quick toxic ratio update where South Elgin now stands at plus-88 for 2022.

"This means we have created more explosive plays and given up fewer turnovers than our opponent 88 times."

Streamwood update:

Kicker Tovi Parayno continues to make headlines.

"We have recovered 8 of 16 onside kicks from Tovi," Streamwood coach Keith McMaster said. "Eight of 16 onside kicks is fantastic. We've had at least one every game. Hopefully, the offense continues to roll and we can start putting up those stats as well."

Also registering in the not too shabby department is two-way lineman James Rivera.

"James plays offensive line and defensive line and stats just don't show up too often for those guys," McMaster pointed out. "He's in the trenches on both sides of the ball most of the game, has a great work ethic and gets the job done for us."

Elgin update:

Wide receiver TJ Singson is an example of why a player's importance goes beyond the stat sheet, Maroons coach Anthony Mason noted.

"TJ is not getting many stats and targets, but he is doing everything we ask of him without any hesitation."

Defensive back Josh Ninan also has been a difference-maker. "Josh has had some good plays filling in and doing what we ask of him on the island," Mason said.

Julio Soto had 86 yards receiving last week and hauled in 2 passes, both of which went for touchdowns.

Aurora Christian update:

Coach David Beebe continues to sing the praises of the Aurora Christian offensive line.

"Our unsung heroes are the members of the offensive line," he said. "They have been very consistent each game, paving the way for our running game, which is led by Drew Kegebein."

West Aurora update:

The Blackhawks have also been one of the area teams benefiting from superb special teams play, such as that from Casey Roney.

"Casey has been great on kickoffs and keeps making field goals and PATs," West Aurora coach Nate Eimer said.

Larkin update:

One key bright spot for the Royals has come with distribution of passing and rushing attempts.

"Offensively, we are balanced in our run and pass yards through four games," Larkin coach Grant Dietz said. "It may not seem like it when you watch us."

After starting 1-1, Larkin lost to Glenbard South and South Elgin on the road.

"Defensively, we gave up more than 100 points in two games (the last two weeks)," Dietz noted. "Our defense is working hard to get back to the basics. We are looking forward to the matchup this week (against Fenton at home) and in the weeks to come."

Larkin is in the same boat as other 1-3 teams, needing to win out to guarantee a playoff spot or go 4-1 to achieve playoff eligibility. The Royals' first four opponents are 12-4 combined, while their final five opponents are a combined 7-13 so far with only Bartlett heading into Week 5 with a winning record out of the remaining Larkin Upstate Eight Conference foes.

Cary-Grove update:

Since 2009, Prairie Ridge and Cary-Grove have played for a combined nine state championships, all but one of those was in Class 6A.

The rivalry of Class 6A powerhouses resumes at 7 p.m. Friday when C-G visits Prairie Ridge. Prairie Ridge won Class 6A state titles in 2011, 2016 and 2017. C-G won in 2009, 2018 and 2021.

"We just have two quality high schools in Prairie Ridge and Cary-Grove, two programs who historically have had success, especially lately," C-G coach Brad Seaburg said after the Trojans' 18-0 victory over McHenry on Saturday. "I know our kids look forward to it, and our fans do. We want to get back to work on Monday and get ready to play them."

St. Charles North update:

The first month of Ethan Plumb's sophomore varsity season has been a whirlwind.

Plumb entered the season with the starting quarterback job for St. Charles North.

Plumb was then replaced by senior Will Vaske during Week 2. Eight quarters of play later, Plumb finds himself back in the starting spot after an unfortunate shoulder injury to Vaske two plays into the North Stars' eventual wild comeback win over Wheaton North last week.

The roller coaster, so-to-speak, allowed a bit of reflection for Plumb, who started all nine games as a freshman.

"I took it as it was," Plumb said. "I reflected what I could get better at. I knew I still had to be there for my teammates. I still have a big presence and leader on the team and I wanted to continue to be that. I wanted to make sure I didn't deviate from that and for what I could do leadership-wise.

"That second week of practice, I kind of just said [to myself: 'You know what? I'm going to be the best scout team quarterback I can be' ... hopefully, with enough hard work, hopefully, I can get another chance sometime soon," Plumb continued. "I kept working and preparing whenever they needed to call me up and if I'd have my shot, I'd be ready for it."

Vaske's throwing shoulder was seen in a sling on the sidelines last Friday. As of Monday, Plumb is the likely starter for this week's game against undefeated Geneva.

"I think with Will being out and he's got his injury now, I think they're going to go with me as the starter this week," Plumb said.

"It's not fun for anyone to get hurt. No matter what happens, you never want to wish that on anybody. So, for that to happen to Will, it's tough. It's the game of football. You just have to be prepared for when that kind of stuff happens and be able to bounce back from it. As a team, be able to keep going no matter what happens. Find a way to win no matter what."

Find a way to win no matter what, indeed. The North Stars led 6-0 at halftime and later trailed 21-6 late in the second half against Wheaton North. Drew Surges scored a touchdown with 49 seconds left and later flipped the two-point conversion to tight end Jake Furtney to put the finishing touches on the comeback.

"I always say: 'The game is not over until it's over' You never know what can happen in the game of football or any game for that matter," Plumb continued. " ... I just tried my best to go up to every single one of my teammates and go, 'guys, this game isn't over. It's only a two score game [at this point]' and having that faith and belief we can still do what we wanted to do at the beginning of this game and what we talked about all week."

Batavia update:

Ben Fiegel feels the momentum of Batavia's 42-0 win over Lake Park should carry over for the next couple weeks.

"Actually, I know it's going to carry over these next couple weeks because that's how we're going to play every week from now on," the junior linebacker said.

Fiegel had 10 tackles in the blowout win.

"I feel like we have a culture here where those last [two losses] didn't sit right with us and we really focused and put in the work the week before Lake Park, even though it was homecoming and had a lot of distractions," Fiegel said. "I feel like the team as a whole really came together. It was a big week for us because we had something to prove."

- Jake Bartelson and Joe Stevenson of Shaw Local contributed to this story

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