Panthers bury Blackhawks early

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AURORA -- The West Aurora Blackhawks disappointing season came to a disappointing end at Ken Zimmerman Field Friday night.

A pair of lightning strikes delayed the start of the DuPage Valley Conference showdown with Glenbard North for more than an hour, but the Panthers wasted no time finding the end zone.

Scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions, the Panthers forged a 19-0 advantage before whitewashing the Blackhawks 26-0 on a chilly and rainy night.

Panthers tailback Tyler Doll was hot, though. He handled the ball 17 times for 82 yards in the opening quarter and notched Glenbard North's first two touchdowns. Doll was brought down by the slippery turf on the last play of the first quarter and did not return, apparently aggravating a previous ankle injury.

West Aurora handed the ball over to Panthers, who improved to 6-3 overall and 5-2 in the DVC, on its first four possessions. Glenbard North capitalized on the short field, scoring on drives of 34, 30 and 25 yards.

Fumbles ended the Blackhawks first three series while the fourth resulted in an interception.

"We got worse instead of better," West Aurora coach Buck Drach summarized. "We're going to evaluate everything we do, everything we believe in or what we think we believe in. We've got to start all over completely from scratch."

A pass interference penalty in the end zone kept the Panthers first drive alive and Doll made it hurt. He gained the left corner and scored from five yards out for a 6-0 lead with 5:19 to play in the first stanza, and two plays later he was on the move again.

Nick Marks knocked away a late pitch by John Nunnally after he dropped the snap and Marks recovered the loose ball at the Blackhawks' 34.

Doll took the ball seven carries in a row before hitting paydirt on a 1-yard plunge. Julian Pena batted down the 2-point conversion attempt and the Panthers lead was 12-0 with 1:06 remaining in the first quarter.

On the Blackhawks ensuing possession, Nunnally was hit from behind while rolling out and the Panthers recovered again. Panthers' quarterback Evan Watkins, who is heading to Northwestern next fall, culminated a 30-yard drive with an 8-yard run. Watkins scrambled in the backfield then raced to the left pylon for a 19-0 margin with 8:58 left before halftime.

Ben Hester converted an interception by Brandon Salemi into a touchdown. After Salemi picked off Malcohm Wood at the Blackhawks' 25, Hester ran three times. His third carry covered 18 yards.

Andrew Shine added the PAT and Glenbard North held a comfortable 26-0 cushion with 2:54 showing on the second quarter clock.

The Panthers amassed 308 yards of offense, including 293 on the ground, while the Blackhawks managed a paltry 35 yards of total offense.

When asked if he had any ideas where it went wrong for the Blackhawks this season, Drach replied, "Yeah, I've got a lot of ideas." Glenbard North 26, West Aurora 0