Win vs. Tigers gets Morris into playoffs

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PLAINFIELD -- For various reasons, this Morris football team took longer than usual to find its groove.

But when the defense and special teams shine, and when your offensive backfield features Tondini Squared, you probably are ready to make some noise in the playoffs.

The Redskins trudged through the mud Saturday, using big plays to beat Southwest Prairie Conference adversary Plainfield North 21-13 in the Joliet area version of “The Playoffs Open a Week Early Bowl”.

Both teams entered 4-4. The winner would have enough playoff points (opponent victories) to qualify. The loser was out.

And to make matters even more anxious, the game originally was scheduled Friday night but was postponed because of lightning.

“We were all fired up to play last night, and then we had to go back home and get fired up for today all over again,” said Morris linebacker/fullback Drew Tondini, whose 40-yard touchdown run with 8:58 left extended the Redskins’ 14-13 lead to 21-13.

“It’s our type of weather,” said safety Tim Sereno, who blocked an extra point early in the fourth quarter to prevent North from moving into a tie. “We like to play in stuff like this. We wanted to play last night.”

But Adam Tondini, whose is just rounding into form after suffering an ankle sprain that spoiled about half of his season, said he may have opted for something different despite his numbers — 29 rushes for 108 yards, including a 22-yard TD run that opened the scoring with 7:55 left in the second quarter.

“I’d like to be able to run and not slip all the time,” Tondini said. “That was a problem, and I’m plenty sore, too. They (Tigers) hit me hard. They’re tough hitters; they’re pretty good.”

The first four possessions for Morris (5-4, 5-2) began at the North 38-, 37-, 39- and 44-yard lines. The first three netted no first downs at all as North’s defense delivered. Finally on the fourth, Adam Tondini carried six straight times to paydirt, including the 22-yard score.

North (4-5, 4-3) responded with a 64-yard scoring drive of its own, keyed by running quarterback Andrew Starks’ 31-yard scramble and climaxed by passing quarterback Bryce Corrigan’s 13-yard strike to Alex Helriegel to draw the Tigers even 7-7 at halftime.

“There was a lot of bad stuff that happened to us in the first half,” North coach Tim Kane said. “Our defense played so well to even give us a chance to be even.”

One of the mishaps came on Devonta Davis’ early 90-yard punt return to the Morris 3. It was nullified on a block in the back, which returned the ball to the Tigers’ 5. “We lost 90-some yards of field position right there,” Kane noted.

But adversity from the North perspective had not yet run its full course as Morris junior Matt Gronek took the second-half kickoff, surged into the wedge and broke loose along the left sideline for a 97-yard touchdown return, putting the Redskins up 14-7.

“After the bad stuff that happened in the first half, to let them come out and return it all the way didn’t help,” Kane said.

Three North possessions later, the Tigers drove 56 yards to what would have been the tying touchdown, but for Sereno’s extra-point block. Starks’ 34-yard run set up the score, and Davis went over from the 3 on fourth-and-2.

Adam Tondini, who would intercept a pass later in the fourth quarter to help shatter North’s comeback hopes, carried the first four plays on Morris’ next possession, setting up a third-and-2 at the North 40. To that point, Morris had run 13 plays in the second half, and every one was an Adam Tondini rush.

“Just like John Dergo,” Morris coach George Dergo said with a laugh, a reference to the 2005 championship game where his all-state son carried on that many consecutive plays.

The time was right to tap into the other resource, 230-pound Drew Tondini, who on the defensive side of the ball had yet another double-digit tackle game. He got the call, the ball and went the distance to provide the Redskins their 21-13 cushion.

“(Quarterback Matt) Hussey gets the credit for that call,” Dergo said. “He came over and told us that play would be open. The biggest compliment I can give him is I can rely on him managing the game now.”

“It was supposed to be a short-run play, but I managed to break a couple tackles,” said Drew Tondini, who was caught by North defensive back Dominique Ware at the goal line. “I thought I was easily gone, but I guess I was a little tired and got caught there at the end.”

They walked away a little tired, yet ecstatic. The Redskins had won their last three and four of their last five to reach the Class 5A playoffs, thus extending their playoff run to 21 appearances in 22 years and 25 in the last 27.