Elliot plays hero again for Lyons

Updated: October 7, 2011 11:29PM

Just when York looked to have pulled off an improbable win with a wild 90-yard drive, visiting Lyons had a crazy finish of its own on its mind.

For the second straight week, the Lions (4-3, 3-2) used a long, late field goal by Jake Elliot to pull out a win and to take another big step toward returning to the playoffs. After the Dukes had driven 90 yards capped by a leaping catch by David Byerley in the end zone to take a 27-26 lead, Elliot nailed a 47-yard field with no time left to left the Lions to a 29-27 triumph.

“I thought we had the game won before their drive, but they made some big plays,” Elliot said of York’s impressive drive that featured key third and fourth down conversions. “I still had some nerves, but after last week I was more confident.”

The Lions started the final drive on the 28-yard line with just 36 seconds left to pay. Connor Onion connected with Jamari Burks on passes of 17 and 18 yards, but back to back incomplete passes left Lyons with a fourth and 10 on the 30-yard line and just four seconds on the clock. Elliot came out for the second week in a row and nailed a clutch kick. When his 47-yard boot sailed through the uprights, the Lions players tossed helmets in the air and celebrated wildly while the stunned Dukes fell to 5-2 on the year and dropped their first West Suburban Silver contest this fall.

“This is incredible,” said Lions defensive back Will Konstant, who had two of his team’s four interceptions on Friday. “This is a big win for us.”

The game went back and forth most of the night with the Lions taking a 17-7 lead in the second quarter as Matthew Harris ran for a seven-yard score and also caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Onion. But York, which got on the board on an 80-yard run by quarterback Joe Lucca (225 yards passing, 75 yards rushing), closed to within 17-14 at the half on a 47-yard Lucca pass to Jordan Preuss late in the first half.

With Jaime Jones’ hard running (23 carries, 126 yards and 1 TD) and the defensive takeaways, Lyons Township appeared to be in good shape before the Dukes’ late rally gave them the 27-26 lead with :42 left on the clock. A two-point pass attempt fell incomplete and that set the stage for Elliot’s heroics to provide the winning points.

© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.