Lincoln-Way Central outslugs St. Charles East, 56-40

ST. CHARLES – Lincoln-Way Central and St. Charles East generated over 900 yards of offense and scored a combined 96 points in the teams’ season opener Friday night at Norris Stadium.

Led by quarterback Drew Woodburn and running back Tyler Tulk, the Knights beat the host Saints in the nonconference game, 56-40.

Woodburn completed nine of 15 attempts for 125 yards and Tulk rushed for 211 yards on 27 carries.

St. Charles East also posted impressive numbers. Junior QB Jesse Padron passed for 342 yards, completing 20-of-34 attempts with five resulting in touchdowns. Sheko Gjokaj caught nine of the attempts for 165 yards and scored on two of the receptions. Peter VanLue had three receptions for 83 yards and also scored twice. Padron made the Saints’ only rushing TD.

“Offensively, I loved how explosive we were,” said St. Charles East coach Nolan Possley.”And for them, I was impressed with how they continuously move the ball.”

Lincoln-Way Central and St. Charles East traded touchdowns to open the game. The Knights ended their opening drive with a 24-yard TD run by Lukas Mandt to take a 7-0 lead.

The Saints tied the game during their first possession. Padron connected with VanLue for a 37-yard scoring pass with 8:31 left on the clock.

Lincoln-Way Central retook the lead with 1:04 left in the first quarter, 14-7 when a leaping Lucas Andersen snared Woodburn’s 4-yard pass in the right corner of the end zone.

The two teams combined for 34 points in the second quarter. Crossing the goal line three times, the Knights held a 35-20 advantage at half time. Woodburn connected with Tulk for a 29-yard pass and made a one-yard plunge. Mandt notched his second TD of the night on a 5-yard run with 1:53 left until the intermission.

VanLue hauled in a 39-yard pass from Padron for one second quarter scored and Sheko Gjokaj snared a 64-yarder to keep the Saints within two scores at halftime.

St. Charles East narrowed Lincoln Way Central’s lead to 35-26 with a touchdown on its opening drive of the third quarter. The 10-play 90-yard drive ended with another Padron pass. Gavin Matejko caught the 20-yarder at the backline of the end zone at the 7:29 mark. The PAT was blocked.

The Knights mounted only one drive in the third quarter. It ended two seconds into the fourth quarter on a Woodburn one-yard plunge to give them a 42-26 advantage.

The Saints narrowed the gap to eight on its first possession of the fourth quarter on a 27-yard run by Padron with 9:24 left to play. A two-point conversion pulled the Saints within 42-34.

The Knights’ Blake Richards intercepted a Padron pass at the Saints’ 10-yard line and returned to end zone at the 6:45 mark of the fourth quarter to widen his team’s lead to 49-34..

The Saints responded on their next drive. Padron scampered for 27 yards. A two-point conversion failed, putting St. Charles East behind, 49-40.

With 54 seconds left in the contest, Lincoln-Way Central’s Tulk scored the final touchdown on an 8-yard run.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20240830/prep-football/st-charles-east-falls-short-in-high-scoring-opener/