Lakes' special season comes to an end at Lemont

Jordan Eder's first season as Lakes' football coach was one to remember. The Eagles went 8-1 in the regular season and waltzed to a 48-22 victory over Chicago Westinghouse in the first round of the Class 5A state playoffs.

Unfortunately for Lakes, its season came to an end on Saturday night. The fifth-seeded Eagles traveled to No. 4 Lemont and went home with a 42-6 loss in a second-round game that the Indians dominated from the outset.

"We had a great year," Eder said. "Nine-two is a great record to hang your hat on. Proud of the guys. They fought hard."

Lemont established an offensive balance on its second series and never deviated from it. Indians running back Anthony Martin broke a scoreless tie with a 29-yard touchdown run with 3:29 remaining in the first quarter. On their next possession, the Indians marched 92 yards on 10 plays to take a 14-0 lead, and a score on their next drive gave them a 21-0 lead that they took into the half.

Lemont (10-1) will next play top-seeded Chicago Phillips (11-0) in the quarterfinals.

"They're aggressive. I'll give them that," Lakes linebacker and Western Michigan commit Ryan Selig said of his opponent. "Size comes into it, but they were more aggressive than us, and you've got to give it to them."

In the second half, Lemont continued its dominance on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Marcus Mathias found wide receiver Matt Slee for a second time on the night and then added a score on a sneak. A fourth-quarter score by Joshua Pack gave the Indians the running clock.

Lakes continued to fight late in the game with the outcome already decided. On their final possession, the Eagles went 68 yards on 8 plays, capping the drive with a 10-yard touchdown run by quarterback Jake Johnson that made the score 42-6.

"I think that's just a Lakes thing," Selig said. "That's just like our community. You just fight. That's what it is."

Eder lauded his seniors for taking him in and accepting him after he was named coach late in the spring.

"They had a coach (Luke Mertens) their whole career and they found out late that he was leaving," Eder said. "That's always tough. For the seniors to welcome me in and buy in right away to my vision was big. It was a special year for me, too."