Breaking It Down: (7-2, 6-1) survived a late comeback by Bradley-Bourbonnais (5-4, 4-3), earning a 28-20 victory and wrapping up the SouthWest Suburban Red title Friday night in New Lenox. The visiting Boilermakers had three chances late in the fourth quarter to get the ball into the end zone from the Lincoln-Way West 33-yard line and set up a potential game-tying two-point conversion but failed on all three attempts.
The playoff-bound Warriors never trailed in the contest, taking a 14-7 lead at halftime and extending it to 28-13 early in the fourth quarter after a 75-yard touchdown run by Nick Dangles in the third quarter and a 12-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Millner to Adam Slattery with 10:02 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Patch's MVP: Lincoln-Way West running back Nick Dangles was a beast in the backfield, rushing for 148 yards on 19 carries, despite leaving the game early in the fourth quarter after getting banged up. Dangles rushed for two touchdowns.
Bradley-Bourbannais Stat Pack: The Boilermakers certainly mixed things up on offense. Myles Clark rushed for 68 yards on 10 carries, caught four passes for 69 yards and was 4-of-14 passing for 55 yards. Devail Bryant had 57 rushing yards on 10 carries, and Myron Harris caught five passes for 94 yards.
Lincoln-Way West Stat Pack: In addition to what Dangles was able to do in the backfield, the Warriors displayed a strong passing game thanks to quarterback Kyle Millner, who was 12-of-19 passing for 150 yards. Millner connected with Jake O'Leary and Adam Slattery for touchdowns. Slattery led the Warriors with six catches for 61 yards, while Brian Skowronski had three catches for 42 yards and Nick Andrade snagged two passes for 31 yards.
Quotable I: Lincoln-Way West coach Mark Vander Kooi on winning a conference title: "It's a great group of kids and seniors who have worked really hard this season."
Quotable II: Lincoln-Way West offensive lineman Jake Benson on teammate Nick Dangles: "He's been our workhorse all season and once again he carried us a lot tonight."
What's Next: The Warriors await the announcement about who they'll play in the first round of the state playoffs. The Boilermakers saw their season come to an end despite finishing above .500.
Check back later for photos from this game.
