Prep football: Plainfield North holds off Joliet West

PLAINFIELD – When you’ve gotten a save in a state title baseball game, what’s the big deal about making a game-winning field goal in your football team’s season opener?

That’s how Plainfield North kicker Eben Heine saw things after making a 42-yard field goal with 3:38 left that allowed his team to overcome a Joliet West comeback to claim a 19-17 Southwest Prairie Conference win Friday.

North (1-0, 1-0) also got a 42-yard field goal from Heine for its first points, and the kicker was effective in giving it great field position during the opening half to grab a 16-2 lead. But West (0-1, 0-1) rallied behind quarterback Alfonso Sanchez to go up, 17-16, with 7:44 left before seeing their hopes dashed when Sanchez was picked off for the third time inside the 10, this time by Heine, with 45 seconds left.

“The pressure doesn’t get to me,” Heine said. “We practice regularly on field goals in game situations, and it paid off. I was having fun since I’m with my brothers, and this is a great group, and I love these guys. We knew coming into this year that we have a great group of guys that are some of the hardest workers I’ve been around, so we’re just going to keep getting better.”

While disappointed to see his squad drop a tough loss in his debut, West coach Bill Lech was proud of how they battled and nearly pulled off the win.

“We talked to our kids about their intestinal fortitude and the importance of playing 48 minutes, and they did,” Lech said. “I told them at halftime that when we scored, we were going for two, but unfortunately, we just didn’t finish and made too many mistakes. We believe in Alfonso, and he led our team and played hard. I love these kids because they have a lot of guts.”

In the final half, West’s Jaylen Taylor (19-92 rushing) scored on an 18-yard run with 8:51 left in the third, and Sanchez (5 for 18, 83 yards) went 7 yards up the middle with 7:44 left in the game and then hit DJ Dobbs for the two-point conversion to give West, which had a 217-158 edge in total yards, a brief lead.

“We got our minds back in the game for the second half and went back to what we’re good at,” Sanchez said. “Our defense did great and was hitting hard. We all did our jobs in the third quarter, but unfortunately just made some mistakes, and they cost us.”

North also scored on a 15-yard sweep by Jaylon Tillman to go up, 10-0, in the first quarter and got a 1-yard run on a fourth-and-goal play in the second from Nate Simpson.

West’s Matthew Cronk recorded a safety while North’s Garret Cook had two interceptions before getting injured. Marcellus Moore (17-61) led North on the ground.

“Their kids really played hard and kept battling and both teams played extremely hard,” North coach Tim Kane said. “I was very proud of how our kids battled back and found a way to get that field goal and to get a stop at the end. We found a way to get the win. Credit to our kids for making a few adjustments and figuring things out.”

“What I love about this team is that we don’t give up,” North linebacker Nate Curtis said. “We have a lot of guys who will step up. I love these guys since it’s just a family.”