After barely mentioning the Tigers in my forecast for the postseason, I picked them to lose to Lincoln-Way East in the second round, East St. Louis in the third, and St. Rita in the fourth.
How could a team, I figured, that started out 1-3 get very far in the playoffs? (I forgot about Maine South last year.) Okay, so the Tigers beat Providence, 23-16, in the first round. But how could they hope to compete the following week with undefeated Lincoln-Way East, a team that defeated Bolingbrook on the road? South shut out the Griffins -- in Frankfort. On to speedy East St. Louis, with an offense that could only manage one score in the previous game and a running back, Dan Vitale, who rushed for only 22 yards and didn't "dazzle" me. The Wheaton squad bested the Flyers, 10-7, again on the road. But how could a team, with its two starting quarterbacks injured possibly defeat St. Rita on the South Side? Coach Ron Muhitch, I mused, would have to be a magician to pull this one off.
Well, get the man a top hat and a cape.
I left the Bolingbrook-Naperville Central game a little after three o'clock on Saturday and headed east on 75th Street. After a quick stop at a Denny's in Darien -- or Willowbrook, the waiter didn't know which -- for a darned respectable bacon cheeseburger, it was only a short hop on I-55 to 79th Street for the final leg to my final game of the season. (I think I topped twenty this year; I'll have a more exact count later.)
I found a great parking spot on a side street (stay out of that Rita lot; it takes forever to get out of there after a game) and made my way into Pat Cronin Field at Doyle Stadium. (What's next with these naming rights, Francis X. McGuire Bleachers? How about the Terence Aloysius Mahoney Men's Room?)
The first thing I noticed was that St. Rita had new uniforms for the game. Instead of the traditional red jerseys and white pants, the Mustangs sported red pants and blue jerseys. Or, as the public address announcer called them, blue "tops." Tops? What is this, a fashion show?
After the National Anthem and the St. Rita fight song, which ends with the crowd chanting, "HIT 'EM HIGH, HIT 'EM LOW; GO, RITA, GO!," it was time for the kickoff. Wheaton South had a strong wind at their backs and the opening boot went well into the Mustangs' end zone. Even though the temperature was mild and the rain held off until after the game, the wind was a factor. And it worked against St. Rita from the get-go.
On their first possession, the Mustangs punted into a stiff wind and Dan Vitale (whose first name seems to be "Northwestern bound") scored a few plays later. After another kick that sailed clear out of the end zone, St. Rita quarterback Scott Thomas threw into a gale -- and into the waiting arms -- of Tiger defensive back Zach Kyllonen. (I remember that guy from the Lincoln-Way East game; he gave quarterback Blake Winkler fits.) In the blink of an eye, Vitale scored again for South and, suddenly, the score was 14-0. (It didn't help matters that Charles Elmore, Rita's star defensive back, left the game early with an injured left arm.)
Did I drive all this way for a blow-out?
It seemed like it, especially after Vitale scored his third touchdown of the night in the second quarter and South looked like it was going to score a fourth. (By the way, if Vitale didn't "dazzle" me against Lincoln-Way East, he sure did against St. Rita. I'll be interested to see how he does next year -- wherever that is.)
If it's 28-0 at the half, do I really want to stick around?
But the Tigers' drive stalled out and -- miraculously -- the Mustangs mounted one. But it was painful to watch, and they almost didn't make it in before the half. But they did, and the guys around me and I all agreed, "Hey, it's only 21-7. It's a game!"
Yeah, right.
Which reminds me; I found my group of guys to sit with and talk to. The two in front of me, who wore St. Rita caps and were surely alums, had come from the Illinois game in Champaign. And the two to my right (who looked and sounded vaguely Eastern European) had been at the Glenbard North-Loyola game before fortifying themselves at one of the bars on Western Avenue.
I initiated the conversation with the two alums by pointing out that Rita's offensive tackle, Nick Dachota (of St. John Fisher), was huge -- 6'8" and 305 pounds!
"Yeah? Tell him to block somebody."
Fish on the line!
I then held forth on the Bolingbrook-Naperville Central contest and impressed them with my detailed knowledge of the game.
"Aaron Bailey is my Player of the Year!"
"Oh, yeah? Well you should have seen Loyola today!," one of the two Wild and Crazy Guys said.
It went on in that vein well into the third quarter, which seemed to go by fast. Jordan Davis, a sophomore, came in at quarterback for South, Vitale quieted down, and Mustang running back Mike Zunica had a big half. (Where was Tim Lombard, the star of the Mount Carmel game?) Rita scored one more time in the fourth quarter to make the final, 21-14, closer than it really was.
The rain, which had been forecast all week, finally began shortly after I got in my car for the ride home. As I drove up Western Avenue, right on Archer, a short jog on the Stevenson again, and north on the Kennedy, I reflected on what a great season it was. I won't be making the trek down to Champaign this year; I'll be watching the games on TV in my family room instead (with a fire in the fireplace).
Beginning tomorrow, I'll have my picks for the finals.
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