Grayslake Central tops Woodstock North

Grayslake Central 28, Woodstock North 12

Game summary: One-game winner Woodstock North played right with home-standing Grayslake Central for one half on Friday night. In fact, the Thunder held on to a 12-7 lead with seconds to play before halftime. That was extent of the good news for the visitors. Central (4-4) remained playoff-eligible with this victory at home.

North (1-7) didn't touch the ball on offense until there was less than six minutes left to play in the first quarter. Yet, despite allowing the Rams to run 13 straight plays, the Thunder trailed just 7-0. North got back into the game on that first possession. Quarterback Jimmy Krenger engineered the 80-yard march, highlighted by his own 21-yard burst. Veteran Grant Wade got the call from 6 yards out and the Thunder was within a single point at 7-6. Woodstock surged ahead after Central mangled its own punting effort.

This time it was Jordan Plummer who punched in a 2-yard touchdown. Again, the extra point failed but the Thunder had its first lead at 12-7.

That lead held up until the 16-second mark before halftime. That's when Central quarterback Alex Lennartz scored to put the Rams up by a 14-12 halftime score. The Rams scored twice in the third quarter to pull away from the Thunder. It didn't help the Thunder's cause when North fumbled away its first possession of the second half. Central turned that miscue into seven points.

Key stat: Despite constant pressure from the Central defense, Krenger managed to run to daylight on occasion. He finished with 13 carries for 63 yards.

Top player: Krenger.

Quotes: Woodstock North coach Jeff Schroeder: “We have had a lot of injuries and a lot of youth. We will have 16 kids back next year and are trying to be patient. But after eight games, they are not juniors anymore.”