Camp Point Central shuts out Lena-Winslow, claims IHSA Class 1A state championship

NORMAL – Camp Point Central capped an undefeated season with a 14-0 win over three-time defending state champion Lena-Winslow in the Class 1A state championship game Friday at Hancock Stadium.

After a 30-8 loss to Lena-Winslow (13-1) in last year’s state championship, CPC came in with some extra motivation.

“Experience [was the biggest difference]. Last year, all of our guys were green out there,” CPC coach Brad Dixon said. “We had mostly the same guys – four of the same guys out there – but I think the experience of playing last year, understanding that we were determined to get back here and put together a different showing.

“We were a little more dynamic on offense this year, too, with our passing game and some other things that we can do.”

The shutout loss was Lena-Winslow’s first since a 19-0 Week 3 loss to Forreston in 2007.

CPC defense dominates

The CPC defense was in top form from the beginning of the game, forcing three consecutive turnovers on downs before a quick three-and-out and punt near the end of the first half.

Lena-Winslow threatened to score on its opening drive, moving the ball 60 yards in 12 plays to the CPC 6, but it came away with zero points after a turnover on downs.

Facing a fourth-and-4 from the CPC 6 with 4:08 to play in the first quarter, Lena-Winslow had an opportunity to take the early lead.

CPC (14-0) had other plans.

Sophomore defensive lineman Reese Wilkey and senior defensive back Drew Paben raced to the line of scrimmage to meet senior running back Lucas Fye, bringing him down for no gain and forcing a turnover on downs. Lena-Winslow never reached the red zone again.

On Lena-Winslow’s second drive, junior Elijah Genenbacher stopped running back Cobryn Lynch well short on a fourth-and-15 run to the CPC 29. Later in the second quarter, Lynch was stopped a yard short by sophomore defensive lineman Kadin Niekamp on a fourth-and-3 carry to the CPC 39.

“If you’ve seen what they’ve done over the years, to hold them to zero is unreal,” Dixon said. “Offensively, we knew it was going to be tough just because they had us outsized in every position by probably 50 pounds, but we did enough. We gave the ball to this big guy here [Elijah Genenbacher] and let him rumble. We got enough first downs, did enough in the passing game that kept them off balance, and here we are.”

Genenbacher wears down Le-Win defense

Genenbacher rushed 15 times for 83 yards and a touchdown in the second half, wearing out the Lena-Winslow defense with his physical running style and scoring the game-clinching touchdown with just under three minutes left in the game.

Genenbacher put CPC up 7-0 with 5:10 remaining in the second quarter with a 23-yard touchdown run that capped a six-play, 71-yard drive.

“It lifted our spirits a lot, because that’s the first score we’ve had against No. 1′s in a state title game,” CPC senior Jack Thompson said. “Last year, we scored eight points, but it was on their 2′s. It really was a momentum change, because we were not moving the ball that well until then, and it just opened up the playbook.”

With 2:53 left in the fourth quarter, Genenbacher powered up the middle for a 11-yard touchdown, barreling over a defender at the goal line to make it 14-0 CPC and effectively end the game.

Starting the final drive at its own 20, Lena-Winslow ran the ball four straight times. Four straight times it was stopped short of the first-down marker.

On fourth-and-10 from the Lena-Winslow 23 with 59 seconds left, Genenbacher tackled senior running back Weston Lartz after a 3-yard gain, forcing a turnover on downs and sealing the win.

“They played an odd front all year long, which was nothing new for us, and today they jumped into an even front, and it worked well. They played it for the entire game,” Lena-Winslow coach Ric Arand said. “Nothing that we haven’t prepared for in the past. They just played really well. Those guys were flying around, they were extremely fast on defense, and they were getting to places before we were, that’s for sure. We couldn’t get anything going, we couldn’t covert on third down, and we ended up in second-and-long a lot of times, which is not good for us. They were just extremely fast to the ball.”

Lena-Winslow didn’t attempt a single pass in the game, and it was limited to 164 rushing yards on 50 carries (3.3 yards per carry).

Genenbacher finished with 24 carries for 141 yards and two touchdowns, as well as a team-high 12 tackles. Niekamp totaled 11 tackles, and senior defensive lineman Wes Crooks and Wilkey added seven tackles each for CPC. Senior quarterback Nick Moore completed 4-of-8 passes for 72 yards. His top target, the 6-foot-4 Thompson, caught three passes for 55 yards.

Senior fullback Gage Dunker rushed 28 times for 112 yards to lead Lena-Winslow’s offense. Junior defensive back Jaylen Rakowska totaled six tackles, a pass breakup and an interception, and senior defensive end O’Marion Pasley tallied nine tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss for the Panthers.

“Back-to-back years, we’ve faced a really good Camp Point Central team. This year, they were just better than us,” Arand said. “It doesn’t put a damper on what these guys accomplished this year. Just today, on this given day, on this field they were better than we were today. And they deserve a state championship.”