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DeKALB – Waubonsie Valley scored on their first four possessions and the Warriors beat DeKalb on its homecoming on Friday night, 42-27.
DeKalb scored one touchdown in each quarter but that wasn’t enough to keep up with a Warriors offense that delivered the football to the end zone six times, starting 55 seconds into the game.
“We just came out flat, which was really frustrating to see. I felt like they came ready to play and we didn’t,” DeKalb coach Derek Schneeman said.
The offenses for both teams started out with a flurry of explosive plays while the defenses struggled to get off the field. The first punt of the game wasn’t kicked until just over 3 minutes left in the first when DeKalb punted down 14-7. However that was when Waubonsie Valley began to run away with the football game, scoring on the next possession and eventually going up 28-7 early in the second quarter.
DeKalb running back Mariyan Dudley scored a rushing touchdown in the first quarter, and fellow Barbs running back Talen Tate ran in two touchdowns – one for nine yards in the second quarter and another for 15 yards in the third quarter.
“We’ll get there, this is a tough one though because I feel like coming in it was one we had to have, and to come out and play the way we did was really frustrating,” Schneeman said. “The only thing we can do is watch film, continue to improve and get better and get ready for Naperville Central next week.
The win gives the Waubonsie Valley Warriors a 4-2 overall record and a 2-1 DuPage Valley Conference record. The DeKalb Barbs fall to 2-4 overall, and in 1-2 conference play.
For the Warriors, junior running back Chisjan Simmons, senior quarterback Luke Elsea, senior wide receiver Tyler Threat and senior wide receiver Brady Teeple made big plays all night.
Threat caught a 62-yard touchdown on the second play of the game, and Simmons scored twice in the first quarter, but the Teeple-Elsea connection was likely the difference maker in the DuPage Valley Conference match-up – together they put up three touchdowns (five yards, 37 yards, and 30 yards) in the second and fourth quarters.
Waubonsie Valley head coach Tom Baumgartner said Teeple’s mid-game performance was a major reason the Warriors left DeKalb with a win, but added the 21 points the Warriors put on the board in the first quarter backed the Barbs against the wall for the rest of the game.
DeKalb Quarterback Cole Latimer did what he could to give the Barbs a win in front of the homecoming crowd, but he was picked off while in the red zone with five minutes left in the fourth quarter down 42-21. With one minute left he connected with junior Billy Miller for a touchdown to shave the deficit to 15, but a subsequent onside kick was unsuccessful and the Warriors let the clock run out.
The Warriors scored on their first four drives.
“It’s a big deal when you go on the road, after a long bus ride against, again, a good team with a lot of talent. They were a little banged up and we needed to get the jump on them early because we know they’d keep coming, and see how close it got there, they’re relentless, but I’m proud of our kids though.”
After the game, Teeple said he was thrilled by the game’s results.
“Honestly, it feels really good, because there’s a reason they scheduled us for their homecoming. They thought they were going to beat us, and we came into their house and beat them pretty bad, so it feels really good,” Teeple said.