Dwight/GSW wears down Momence for Trojans’ first playoff win in 41 years

MOMENCE – More than four decades after their first IHSA playoff victory, the Dwight/Gardner-South Wilmington football team finally got No. 2.

The Trojans (7-3) emerged victorious in their Class 2A game at Momence (8-2) on Friday, riding their three-headed rushing attack to a 41-13 win. The 41 points on the scoreboard couldn’t be more fitting, as the win snapped a 41-year playoff win drought.

“Magical,” sophomore running back/linebacker Ayden Collom, who scored twice Friday, said to describe Friday’s win. “For something that hasn’t happened in 41 years and my group to be the ones to do it, it’s amazing.”

Trojans coach Luke Standiford – who tied Norm Eash with a program-high third career playoff appearance – also joined Eash as the only coaches in program history to earn a postseason win.

“I think it just goes back to how the season has gone,” Standiford said. “We picked up three straight wins to start the year, then had a tough stretch in the middle of the year where we lost three, and now we’ve come back and won four straight.

“It could have been really easy for our guys after that three-game losing streak to fold the cards and be done with the season, but they just kept coming to practice and preparing like they do every week,” he added. “They were able to turn things around, and that shows a lot about their character.”

The opening scenes of the game didn’t indicate the Trojans would run away with things, as Brogan Halpin blocked a Dwight/GSW punt on the first drive of the game and then caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Erick Castillo to give Momence an early 7-0 lead.

The Trojans quickly responded, marching 60 yards to find paydirt in five plays, with Collom’s 7-yard rushing touchdown pulling the visitors to within a point at 7-6 with 53 seconds on the first-quarter clock.

On the ensuing drive, Castillo was knocked out of the game with an injury when he attempted to convert a fourth-and-2 with his legs, but fumbled upon hard contact that took him out for the rest of the night.

The Trojans appeared as if they were going to take their first lead of the night by promptly marching into the red zone, highlighted by a 37-yard, one-handed catch by Joey Starks. But on a fourth-and-4 from the Momence 8-yard line, Halpin was able to snag his seventh interception of the season to half the Dwight/GSW momentum and give Momence a 7-6 lead at the half.

To open the second half, Halpin struck again. With freshman backup quarterback Greyson Cantwell under center, Halpin took a slant on 3rd-and-11 and zoomed 77 yards to the house to grow the Momence lead to 13-6 just over 90 seconds into the third quarter.

Much like they did after Halpin’s first touchdown, the Trojans quickly punched right back on Evan Cox’s 20-yard touchdown catch from Collin Bachand that was followed by a Cox 2-point conversion that made it a 14-13 affair a little less than five minutes into the half.

And the lead only grew from there.

After forcing a Momence three-and-out, Dwight/GSW marched 63 yards in 11 plays, the 11th play a 1-yard QB sneak by Bachand on the second play of the fourth quarter to make it 21-13.

The Trojans forced another 3-and-out and then quickly found paydirt again when Collom muscled in from 6 yards out to make it 28-13. After senior Dylan Crouch put the exclamation point on with a 16-yard rushing scamper, Bachand left little doubt when he tucked and ran in a 23-yard touchdown that made it 41-13 with 1:18 to play.

He may just be a sophomore — part of a talented group that includes other talents like Starks, Collom and several linemen, including Graham Meister and Will Anderson who both had sacks Friday — but the Trojans’ signal-caller understood what Friday meant for the Dwight/GSW football program and community.

“Everybody is excited on the team, the fans are excited,” Bachand said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve been here, and it feels great. It’s awesome.”

The Trojans’ physical style of play out of the wing-T allowed them to wear Momence down as the game went on, as evidenced by the 203 yards they ran for as a team, highlighted by 75 yards from Collom, 60 from Cox and 49 from Crouch.

“That’s what we hang our hat on, just to try and wear defenses down and stick with the three-back attack,” Standiford said. “We’re not a one-man show. We like to spread the ball around.”

The Trojans – the 12-seed in the northern bracket in Class 2A – will host No. 4 Elmwood-Brimfield (9-1) in the second round next weekend.