The Fenwick High School football team had a major challenge when Mount Carmel, the defending IHSA Class 7A champion and the Chicago Sun-Times #1 team in its weekly Top 25 poll, came to Triton College, Oct. 6.
After spotting the Caravan (7-0) three touchdowns, the Friars settled down and got back into the game before halftime. But they were unable to complete the comeback and fell 21-9.
“We came out in the first half not doing our jobs,” said Fenwick junior defensive end/tight end Nate Marshall on Fenwick’s YouTube post-game show, “but we got it together in the second half. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to pull off the victory.”
Trailing 21-0 midway through the second quarter, Fenwick (4-3) got on the board with a 42-yard field goal by Noah Sur. Then with :53 to go in the half, senior quarterback Marek Hill connected with Marshall for a 10-yard touchdown. However, Marshall was stopped short of the goal line on a two-point attempt, leaving the score 21-9 at halftime.
Fenwick drove into Mount Carmel territory several times in the second half, but the Caravan defense cranked up the pressure on each possession, sacking Hill multiple times and forcing him to throw an interception late in the fourth quarter that sealed the Friars’ fate.
Hill finished with 201 passing yards. Defensively, Marshall recorded a pair of tackles for loss.
Fenwick will attempt to end a two-game losing streak and become eligible for the IHSA state playoffs when it visits DePaul Prep in Chicago on Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
“We’ve got to lock in during practice next week and get it right,” Marshall said.
Willowbrook 35, OPRF 14
Oak Park and River Forest High School (1-6) lost its fourth consecutive game on Oct. 6, falling 35-14 at Willowbrook in a West Suburban Conference crossover game.
Khalil Nichols and Johnny Nelson each scored from a yard out for the Huskies in the first quarter — which ended tied at 14. In the second quarter, Emmett Kennedy forced a Willowbrook fumble that was recovered by Nichols, who returned it to the Warriors’ 26 to set up a golden opportunity for OPRF to take the lead.
The Huskies got to the 11-yard line, but things stalled, and Eric Guerrier’s 35-yard field goal sailed wide left. Consequently, Willowbrook (5-2) would take the lead before halftime, then added two more scores in the second half to clinch IHSA playoff eligibility.
Jeremiah Jenkins had a 40-yard kickoff return for OPRF, which travels to Hinsdale Central for a WSC Silver contest on Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
