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Lincoln-Way East jumps out early, rolls
Updated: October 7, 2011 11:22PM
The Lincoln-Way East Griffins wasted little time Friday night in showing why they are the top-ranked football team in the Herald-News area with a 42-7 victory over SouthWest Suburban Conference rival Lincoln-Way Central in New Lenox.
The Griffins (7-0, 5-0) scored two touchdowns so fast that not only did many late-arriving fans miss some of the fireworks, but so did East coach Rob Zvonar.
“I didn’t expect us to score that fast,” Zvonar said. “But it is really a credit to the kids on our offense for the great execution. We busted a quick off-tackle play on the first score (an 80-yard run) on a nice run by Nick Colangelo.
“I was talking with the defense during the second one (a 75-yard pass), but from what I heard, J.J. Robertson showed why he is a Division I talent with a great catch and run.”
Those two scores came on East’s first two plays from scrimmage, sandwiched around a five-play Central (1-6, 0-5) possession. With 10:18 left in the opening quarter, the game was essentially over.
“We played very well offensively,” Zvonar said, “but I was a little disappointed with the lethargic effort on defense in the first half. You have to give Central some credit, though, because their kids played hard. That (Brett) Ditchman runs as hard as any back we have played against this year.”
“Our kids play hard every week,” Central coach Brett Hefner said. “We’ve had this kind of thing happen to us before where we dig ourselves a big early hole. And it is really tough to get out of that hole against a very good team like Lincoln-Way East.”
East quarterback Blake Winkler hit on 14-of-20 passes for 303 yards and four touchdowns, all in the first half. Robertson led the receiving corps with five grabs for 185 yards and three scores.
Ditchman lugged the ball 22 times for 75 hard-earned yards and scored Central’s only touchdown on a 19-yard run in the third quarter.
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