Sandburg has answers

Updated: August 27, 2011 12:23AM

Andrew coach Jim Malec and Sandburg coach Dave Wierzal promised better days are ahead for their teams after Friday night’s season opener between the District 230 schools.

There better be if either squad expects to contend for their respective conference championships.

Sandburg squeaked out a 17-10 victory over Andrew before an overflow crowd at Tom Seliga Field in Orland Park.

The Eagles managed a paltry 148 yards of offense on the evening, while Andrew totaled just 180.

“I’m pleased we came up with the win but we have to do a better job and address some things,” Wierzal said. “We had too many penalties, made too many mistakes and had too many breakdowns.”

Andrew had a chance to win the game, but two costly miscues prevented it from registering the “W.”

The first came at the end of the opening half. Trailing 3-0 and with less than a minute, the Thunderbolts tried to make something happen. Instead, Sandburg’s Matt Zilinskas stepped in front of a Tyler Hook pass and returned it 65 yards for the score and a 10-0 lead with 23.6 seconds left before intermission.

To Andrew’s credit, the T-bolts made some key adjustments in the second half and cut the lead to 10-7 on a 3-yard TD run by Jarvis Franklin with 8:48 remaining in the third. Franklin led all rushers with 83 yards on 13 carries. Hook completed a clutch 18-yard pass to Nick Reyes that kept the drive alive. Mike Ehlers added the point-after kick.

Andrew was on the verge of taking the lead on the first play of the fourth quarter. But Hook (7-of-12, 59 yards) fumbled the snap on a fourth-and-1 at the Eagles 1 and Sandburg recovered.

“Both mistakes are correctable mistakes,” said Malec, referring to the interception and fumble. “With a ball game like this there is no room for error.”

Mike Rago sealed the deal for Sandburg, scampering 19 yards for the score, Ted Vergados’ PAT made it 17-7 with 2:46 to go.

Vergados converted a 30-yard field goal on the Eagles’ first possession of the game for a 3-0 lead.

Ehlers connected from 29 yards out with 1:21 left to cut the gap to 17-10. Rago recovered Andrew’s onside kick attempt to pretty much end any Thunderbolts comeback hopes.

“We have to eliminate the penalties, the turnovers and do a better job completing passes,” said Wierzal, whose team coughed the ball up twice, the same number of times as Andrew.

“We’re going to struggle down the road if we don’t correct those three.”

Sandburg’s first three possessions of the game started at the Andrew 24-, 43- and 26-yard line, respectively, but all the Eagles could show for it was a 3-0 lead.

The Eagles alternated quarterbacks, shifting between senior Anthony Adams and junior Nate Stramaglia with minimal success. Sandburg didn’t complete a pass until 6:56 remained in the game, with Adams hitting Trevor Dapkus on a 20-yard strike.

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