South Elgin pulls away from Elgin in 2nd half

Good thing style points don't count in conference standings or playoff eligibility.

South Elgin's 29-0 win against Elgin Friday left something to be desired aesthetically but counts just the same.

Jordan Jones ran for 2 touchdowns and Jalen Jones returned a punt for another as the Storm scored 3 times in the third quarter after leading 3-0 at halftime in the Upstate Eight matchup in South Elgin.

Jalen Jones also had 1 of 3 interceptions for the Storm defense, which came up with big plays when it needed them. Denver Davis and Joshua Camacho also picked off a pair of Elgin quarterbacks. Kanye Smith forced a safety and Cody Doolin had a sack.

One critic who gave the Storm low marks for their performance was coach Dragan Teonic.

"I thought they outplayed us and out-coached us tonight in nearly every aspect," he said. "We lost the turnover battle, we lost the penalty battle. We slipped, they didn't. In many ways, they beat us tonight. Hat's off to them. I thought they did a phenomenal job. We have a lot of work to do."

Elgin (3-4, 3-4) stayed right with South Elgin in the first half. The Maroons defense did its part, forcing 2 turnovers while holding the Storm to 75 yards. Kai Paz's 29-yard field goal with 5:20 left in the first half accounted for the only scoring.

The Storm struck quickly after the break, scoring on their opening drive capped by Jordan Jones's 3-yard run. Jalen Jones then broke the game open with his long return, weaving through traffic and staying on his feet when he appeared to be stopped near the sideline.

"I've been practicing it all week in practice, and when we executed, it worked as planned," he said.

Another big special teams play led to the Storm's final touchdown. A bad snap on a punt attempt gave South Elgin the ball at the Elgin 15-yard line. One play later, Jordan Jones took it in for his second touchdown.

South Elgin, which improved to 7-0, 6-0, tacked on a safety and another field goal in the fourth quarter. Smith wrapped up the Elgin quarterback in the end zone; he got rid of the ball just before hitting the ground, but was called for intentional grounding. A 32-yard field goal by John Skwirblies completed the scoring.

Clem McCullough led Elgin, carrying 20 times for exactly 100 yards, passing for 20 more, and picking off a pass on defense.

Jordan Jones finished with 76 yards rushing and 56 passing for South Elgin. All 3 of his completions went to Joey Viverito.