A host of Sycamore defenders take down Woodstock North's Kaden Combs in the backfield during their game Friday Oct. 7, 2022, at Sycamore High School. (Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com/Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.co)
SYCAMORE — The Sycamore Spartans keep marching toward perfection.
The class 5A second-ranked Spartans stifled the Woodstock North Thunder 48-15 in an Interstate 8/Kishwaukee River White conference clash on Friday.
The Spartans (7-0, 4-0) were led by their defense early. They stuffed the Thunder (1-6, 0-5) on fourth and one on the first possession, which led to a short field for the Spartans.
The Spartans allowed only two first downs the entire half and stopped the Thunder twice on fourth down.
“Getting fourth down stops is the best feeling,” Sycamore linebacker Ethan Bode said. “When you win the down, it sets the tone for the whole team.
Bode had six tackles in the first quarter and 10 in the game.
The Spartans then showed off their multi-threat offense in both the running game and the passing game.
“We’re at a point where we can be pretty multiple,” Spartans’ coach Joe Ryan said. “We can really get into the game where we need to be dependent on what they’re doing against us. If we’re getting a light run box, we can run the ball. If they’re getting people at the line of scrimmage, we can throw the ball. We have a full offensive package, so we just have to call it at the right times.”
Running back Tyler Curtis again had a multiple-touchdown game. He broke open the scoring on a 2-yard run to open up the scoring with 7:25 left in the first quarter thanks to the defensive stop that delivered the Spartans the short field.
Curtis got his second touchdown of the game on a 10-yard run through the heart of the Thunder defense after backfield mate Joey Puleo caught a 34-yard pass to set up first and goal.
Curtis finished with 58 yards on five carries with the two touchdowns.
Meier and Burke Gautcher continued their big play ways with two touchdown connections.
Meier hit Gautcher on a quick slant and Gautcher put a spin move on his defender and sprinted into the end zone to put the Spartans up 21-0 on their first possession of the second quarter.
“I caught it and I looked out of the corner of my eye and I saw him coming,” Gautcher said. “I put my shoulder down and he didn’t want no part of it.”
The second connection was the deep ball that they’ve often had this season. With less than a minute left in the first half and facing a third and 21, Meier found Gautcher racing down the sideline for a 56–yard bomb. That score put the Spartans up 35-0 going into the half and closed the door on the game.
Gautcher had three catches for 82 yards and two scores, all in the second quarter.
The Spartans’ special teams also got into the scoring action when Teague Hallahan blocked a Thunder punt and Diego Garcia snatched up the ball and ran 20 yards to the end zone with five minutes left in the first quarter.
The Thunder kept fighting in the second half, but their losing skid continued as they dropped their fifth straight game.
The Thunder finally broke through in the third quarter with a 4-yard run by Jay Zinnen. With a two-point conversion by Kaden Combs, the Thunder were on the board down 42-8.
“We had a tough time moving the ball in the first half,” Thunder coach Matthew Polnow said. “They took their starters out and we were able to do a little bit more.”
Kombs, the Thunders’ leading rusher, was held to only 21 yards rushing on 11 carries.
“We just came out hoping to make as many plays as we could,” Combs said. “Now we’re just looking toward the future. We’re not going to hang on it too long and keep fighting until the end.”
The Thunder pulled some trickery and converted the onside kick after the score, but that drive was shut down by an interception from Gautcher.
Copyright © 2022 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright © 2022 Shaw Local News Network