Nazareth rolls past Rochelle, sets up semifinal rematch with St. Francis

ROCHELLE – Nazareth’s quest for three straight state championships continued Nov. 16, when the Roadrunners scored five offensive touchdowns and forced three turnovers, including a pick-six, during their quarterfinal game at Rochelle.

Senior quarterback Logan Malachuk completed 15 of 24 passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns and junior running back Lesroy Tittle ran for two scores as the Roadrunners rolled to a 42-8 win over Rochelle.

Nazareth (10-2), which has won the 5A state title in each of the past two seasons, will host St. Francis (10-2) at 1 p.m. Saturday in the semifinals.

It’s a rematch of last year’s 5A semifinal won by Nazareth and a Week 9 game this season won by St. Francis.

“We started to get the run game going early,” Malachuk said. “We wanted to assert dominance, especially in a playoff game, and we were able to open up our passing game. What we do best is that we complement each other. Our passing game opens up our run game and we feel that we can do whatever we want. If the defense tries to take one away, we just go to the other.”

Rochelle (10-2) saw its seven-game winning streak, including three straight wins over Chicago Catholic League teams, snapped with the season-ending loss. The Hubs, who won 10 games for the first time since 2003, fumbled the ball on their first series of the game with senior defensive lineman Sam Stec recovering for the Roadrunners. Nazareth moved the ball inside Rochelle’s red zone, but a pair of penalties and an incomplete pass led to a turnover on downs.

The Hubs, who entered the quarterfinal matchup averaging 372.3 rushing yards a game, struggled to move the ball against the stout Nazareth defense led by senior linebacker and Stanford commit Gabe Kaminski.

“Rochelle’s a phenomenal team and they had one of the best seasons in their history,” said Kaminski, who recorded five tackles Saturday. “It comes down to our brotherhood on defense and we all play as a unit. … We stopped the run pretty well. We had some tackles for loss to keep them behind the sticks and I thought we forced them out of their traditional offense.”

The Roadrunners broke the scoreless tie early in the second quarter when Tittle took a carry through the middle for a 3-yard touchdown run.

Tittle’s touchdown was the first of four that Nazareth scored in the second quarter. The Roadrunners intercepted Rochelle quarterback Carson Lewis twice, the first coming midway through the second quarter when sophomore linebacker Dylan Wellner snagged a deflected pass near the Nazareth sideline.

A 9-yard touchdown run by Tittle and a 33-yard touchdown pass from Malachuk to junior wide receiver Jake Cestone put Nazareth up 21-0.

“Our coaching staff and our scout team do a tremendous job in practice,” Malachuk said. “They learn what the other teams do on offense and defense and they help our starting offense and defense out. We have experience and we have a lot of juniors and seniors who were a part of those two state championship runs. We know what to do and how to handle ourselves.”

Rochelle had a promising drive late in the second quarter, but an errant pass into the wind was deflected and intercepted by Roadrunners sophomore defensive back Henry Sakalas, who returned the ball for a 61-yard touchdown that capped Nazareth’s explosive second quarter.

The Roadrunners received the second-half kickoff and scored on their opening series, taking a 35-0 lead after a 20-yard touchdown pass from Malachuk to junior wide receiver Trenton Walker.

A 9-yard touchdown run from sophomore running back Charles Calhoun early in the fourth quarter put the game into a running clock for the Roadrunners, who amassed 346 total yards and averaged 6.3 yards per play.

Defensively, Nazareth held Rochelle to 145 total yards. Senior defensive lineman Nolan Daly totaled a team-high six tackles for the Roadrunners defense.

“I always go back to our brotherhood,” Kaminski said. “This team is so special. We have so much talent and it’s special to be a part of this team. I believe we can make it all the way.”

Cestone hauled in five receptions for 113 yards for the Roadrunners, who will be looking for revenge against St. Francis in the state semifinals. Nazareth suffered one of its two losses to the Spartans, who held off the Roadrunners for a 39-36 win on Oct. 25.