Football: Lincoln-Way North Hangs On Against Central

Special teams can always swing a game, and it sure did in 's season-opening victory against on Friday night.

The Phoenix stormed out to a 19-0 lead in the first half before surrending 18 unanswered points and then holding on to win 26-18. After going up 13-0 in the second quarter, North recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff return and quickly scored to take the big lead.

Last year, the Knights might have folded (they finished 1-8 in 2010). But in this game they showed promise with sophomore quarterback Cale Hayes and senior running back Brett Ditchman leading the comeback. Following a blocked punt, Central scored just before the half and pounded in another couple touchdowns, but with a chance to tie the game at 19 missed a third consecutive extra point.

After a Phoenix touchdown made it 26-18, Central still had opportunities to tie, but junior cornerback Conor McDonald picked off Hayes twice in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

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Patch's MVP: McDonald's two interceptions in the fourth halted the Knights' comeback. The Knights attacked him during their final drive, but McDonald stopped them then, too.

Knights Stat Pack: Hayes threw for more than 150 yards in his varsity debut. The Knights were 0/3 on extra points.

Phoenix Stat Pack: Senior quarterback Jake Wittman was very efficient, completing 10 of 13 passes for about 112 yards. North employed a four-headed monster to run the ball, with four guys racking up about 170 yards on the ground combined.

Quotable I: "It's great to see our kids did not fold at the end, because I knew Central wouldn't." — North coach George Czart on his team hanging on after blowing the lead.

Quotable II: "I got greedy and tried to follow up (the momentum) with big plays instead of staying the course." — Central coach Brett Hefner on what caused the two fourth quarter interceptions.

Team Records: North is 1-0 and Central is 0-1.

What's Next: The Knights host Thornridge at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2. The Phoenix have another home game, this time against Hillcrest, alos at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 2. 

Notable Scores: Playing on Soldier Field, Providence Catholic beat Morgan Park 21-6. And down at Illinois State University, . Lincoln-Way West plays at Joliet Catholic at 1 p.m. today, Aug. 27. For more scores, go to the IHSA Score Zone.

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Check back to Patch throughout the weekend for more features, analysis and video highlights of the game.