Woodstock plays complete game in win over rival Woodstock North

WOODSTOCK – On a night Woodstock welcomed back its 1997 state champions, the Blue Streaks delivered an old-school drive that set the tone for a 27-20 win over rival Woodstock North Friday.

On their first drive of the football game after the defense had stopped Woodstock North on fourth down, Woodstock had a methodical 16-play, 66-yard drive that took almost nine minutes off the clock. It ended with a five-yard touchdown run from Kaden Sandoval and gave Woodstock – a team that has struggled offensively at times this year – a huge boost of confidence.

“The past two weeks have been rough, said Sandoval, who finished with 86 yards and two touchdowns. “To be able to come out and make a statement like that, it really got our moment going as a team. And it really gave our defense a break, which I think they really needed for the past two weeks.”

It was the beginning to a great night for the Blue Streaks, now 2-3 overall and 1-2 in the Kishwaukee River/Interstate Eight White. They punted just once all night and didn’t turn the ball over once.

They also answered some of Woodstock North’s biggest moments with even bigger plays.

After that time-consuming drive, the Thunder (1-4, 0-3) had a solid scoring drive of their own, ending a 14-play, 80-yard drive with a five-yard scoring run from quarterback Jay Zinnen with 4:37 left in the half. However, on second-and-16 on the next drive, Woodstock North bit hard on a play fake, leaving Charlie Gilmore wide open on an eventual 73-yard touchdown pass from Jackson Lyons to make it 14-6 at halftime.

Lyons and Gilmore connected again on a six-yard score late in the third quarter to make it 20-6. Those were two of only three passes Lyons needed on the day.

“The rivalry game is one of the biggest games of the season, and beating North just feels amazing,” Gilmore said.

The Thunder made things a bit more interesting after Zinnen connected with J.D. Czischki for a 21-yard score with 8:28 to play. But once again, Woodstock answered emphatically, as on the very next play, Sandoval waited for his block and to form and then bolted 65 yards nearly untouched for his second touchdown of the night.

Woodstock North, which had a costly turnover on a promising drive early in the second half, scored once more on a one-yard run from Kaden Combs, but the Blue Streaks were able to run out the clock on their next drive.

Zinnen finished 10-of-15 passing for 122 yards for the Thunder.

Woodstock’s Jakob Remot recovered the key fumble for Woodstock.