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St. Ignatius downs Aurora Christian

St. Ignatius' Quinn Donath attempted all of one pass against Aurora Christian Friday night.

But the Chicago Catholic League White quarterback did plenty with his feet.

"We run the triple option," Donath said after scoring three ground touchdowns in directing a 28-12 victory over the Eagles in Aurora. "We like to take time off the clock. A lot of us go both ways; that's our time for rest (on defense). We run the ball until the other team can't stop us. They didn't do that tonight."

Aurora Christian was looking to become playoff eligible for the first time in three years, but the two-time state champion fell to 4-3, 1-1.

The Wolfpack is 6-1, 1-0.

Aurora Christian had promising drives on its opening two possessions of the game.

But, in a sign of times to come, the Eagles were unable to convert critical third downs.

The Eagles' Trey Madsen put Aurora Christian on the board for its only lead of the game with a 36-yard field goal in the first quarter.

Aurora Christian also had to settle for another Madsen kick - this time from 33 yards away - on its second trip into Wolfpack territory.

But Donath, on the longest play from scrimmage for either team, cut across the grain for a 49-yard touchdown run to cap a 78-yard drive to St. Ignatius the lead for good late in the opening quarter.

With Aurora Christian settling for field goals on its first two drives, the Eagles had a chance to take the lead on their third possession.

But St. Ignatius' William Brady had the first of 3 interceptions.

Operating from a short field, the Wolfpack used a second Donath keeper to take a 14-6 lead into the break.

With Aurora Christian unable to sustain any type of a ground game - the Wolfpack would surrender a mere 18 yards rushing - the offensive onus was placed on southpaw quarterback Drew Clippert.

Mixing up his passes to running back Danny Russell and wide receivers Devan Cross, Clark Turek and Caleb Beebe, the senior finished with 276 yards passing.

Dropped passes, offensive holding calls and the three Wolfpack interceptions proved to be the demise of any Aurora Christian comeback attempt.

"Offensively, we really didn't click," said Clippert, a St. Charles native. "They definitely chewed the clocked up."

After a three-and-out to start the second half, St. Ignatius ran 11 consecutive ground plays to make it a 21-6 game.

Aurora Christian could never recover as its next drive started with first-and-46 after a series of spot fouls on the offense and a bench unsportsmanlike.

The lone Aurora Christian touchdown was a Beebe 22-yard touchdown reception.

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