Stevenson blanks Lake Forest in odd scoring fashion

If you told anyone outside of North America the halftime score of Friday night's football game between Stevenson and Lake, they'd think you were talking about soccer.

It was 4-0.

Early on in the first quarter, Lake Forest got backed into its own end zone, and Stevenson recorded their first safety of the night. Key word: first.

A couple minutes later, it happened again. 4-0. It was a bit jarring to look at, but the score stuck for most of the game, and so did Stevenson, imprisoning Lake Forest in a 14-0 victory on homecoming weekend.

The Patriots students donned neon apparel for the game, and the massive Stevenson Stadium was alive. The people felt ready for a highflying, bright-as-the-Friday-night-lights, touchdown-riddled football game, as both teams scored 35 points against their opponents the week before. That could not have been further from what the people got.

"Sometimes you just have to find a way to win," said Stevenson head coach Brent Becker, "and our kids did that tonight, gutted it out."

Even after one more Stevenson score, it was still a one-score game.

With 10:47 left in the third quarter, senior Luca Morelli fell on a Lake Forest fumble on the Lake Forest 24-yard line, and not being able to gain a first down off the turnover, the Patriots settled for a field goal. Freshman Caden An put it through the uprights.

Finally, a football score: 7-0. But just looking at the scoreboard, you probably would have never guessed how they arrived at such a tally.

"That was huge for us," Becker said. "I've got all the confidence in the world in that kid, and I felt like we needed the points to make it seven because I didn't want to touchdown to beat us at any point."

And then Stevenson let it rip. No more safeties, and no more field goals. Nothing against those forms of scoring, they just result in fewer points. It was time for a touchdown.

At the 5:11 mark in the third quarter, senior Patriot quarterback Matt Projansky threw up a calculated prayer, and senior running back Michael Maloney answered it, taking it all the way for a 49-yard touchdown toss-and-catch.

The Patriot defense did the rest. For the remainder of the game, Lake Forest had nothing. The Patriots held constant pressure on the Scouts' offense, and even after Lake Forest was driving in the final two minutes, the Patriots intercepted an attempt in the end zone, preserving the homecoming shutout.

And so the game ended. Final score: 14-0 with only one touchdown.