A second consecutive Class 8A state championship will send the Hawks and all their fans into the streets Sunday afternoon for a championship parade. Last year, there was a school assembly and a visit to City Hall. Never mind that temperatures won‘t climb out of the 30s Sunday. They‘ll never feel the cold.
Following Saturday‘s 41-17 win over Chicago Marist in the 8A title game at the University of Illinois’ Memorial Stadium, Maine South senior running back Matt Perez talked of a football "dynasty" forming at a school that has lost no more than three games in any season since 1986 and has won four state championships in that time. The title-game win extended their win streak to 28, the longest active streak in Illinois.
"We showed that we are a dynasty," Perez said.
The Hawks would get few arguments on that point, not even from Class 7A champ Wheaton Warrenville South 26 miles down the road, which finished off a 13-1 season with a 31-24 double-overtime victory over previously unbeaten Glenbard West in the championship game. WW South’s only loss? A 27-9 setback to Maine South in the second week of the season.
Maine South has spun out two major recruits to college football the last two seasons, quarterback Charlie Goro to Vanderbilt last year and verbal commit Perez to Indiana this year. Saturday, Perez, battling ankle and thigh injuries, rushed for a title game-record 316 yards and five touchdowns. A year ago, in a 41-21 championship win over Hinsdale Central, Perez rushed for three touchdowns.
"Matt Perez was everything that we saw on film," Marist coach Pat Dunne said. "He is fast to the corner, breaks a lot of tackles and when he gets into the open field, he is gone."
Senior quarterback Tyler Benz, Goro’s replacement, completed 9-of-16 passes for 89 yards without an interception, and rushed for 45 yards and a touchdown.
Maine South coach David Inserra was just as quick to credit his defense. "To hold an explosive offense like Marist to 17 points reflects on our defensive gameplan on execution."
And if you want to talk dynasty, none of the current Hawks have ever lost a game at the varsity, junior varsity or freshmen levels. Perez says he hasn‘t lost since seventh grade. Maine South‘s only loss in the last three seasons was by a touchdown to Chicago Catholic Blue power Mount Carmel in the 8A quarterfinals in 2007.
In Park Ridge, all that success is worth a parade.
Maine South‘s title win was preceded by WW South‘s thrilling 7A win in overtime, earning the Tigers their second state championship in four years. Matthew Rogers scored from 1 yard out in the second OT, and the Tigers won it when Glenbard West quarterback Tyler Warden‘s pass on fourth down from the WW South 10-yard line fell incomplete.
"This was a very rewarding championship and season," said WW South coach Ron Muhitch, whose team won the DuPage Valley championship with an unbeaten record in league play one year after losing it to Naperville North by one point in the final game of the season. "We have a great group of young men. They have worked so hard since the beginning of the season."
For Glenbard West, it was the Hilltoppers‘ first loss of the season following a championship run in the West Suburban Silver which included a win over 2008 Class 8A runner-up Hinsdale Central. Adam Bruere, one of eight seniors who start offensively, rushed for two touchdowns against WW South.
"We have terrific seniors and I am more sad that I won‘t get to coach them again than I am over the loss," said Hilltoppers coach Chad Hetlet.
Here’s a look at the rest of the state championship games:
Class 1A: Tuscola 14, Lexington 7
Game breaker: Phillip Meyer ran 10 yards for a touchdown with 4:41 left, breaking a 7-7 tie, and sending Lexington down to its first loss.
Stat maker: Lexington’s T.J. Stinde rushed for a game-high 128 yards and a touchdown in 30 carries, and also had a 14-yard pass reception. Stine’s TD run, his 46th of the season, broke a state record.
Quoting Tuscola coach Randy Reinhart: "This championship is for our community and our school."
Class 2A: Morrison 36, Maroa-Forsyth 14
Game breaker: Josh Vos rushed for three touchdowns, including two in a 20-0 second quarter that sent Morrison (14-0) to a championship in its first title-game appearance.
Stat maker: Vos rushed for 172 yards on 27 carries, five more yards than all of Maroa-Forsyth’s running backs combined.
Quoting Morrison coach Cory Bielema: "I thought we played really physical and were able to dictate the tempo of the game."
Class 3A: Stillman Valley 52, Tolono Unity 22
Game breaker: Adam Cox ran for two first-half touchdowns, leading a rushing attack that totaled 251 yards in the first half alone and three of Cardinals’ four TDs. He also scored a TD in the second half. Stillman Valley scored the game’s final three touchdowns to break it open for the 14-0 Cardinals.
Stat maker: Tolono Unity quarterback Dylan Sturgeon rushed for a game-high 120 yards and two touchdowns, and completed 10-of-13 passes for 57 yards.
Quoting Stillman Valley coach Mike Lalor: "They gave us all we could handle."
Class 4A: Metamora 41, Geneseo 7
Game breaker: Metamora quarterback Michael Fay ran for three touchdowns in less than nine minutes in the second quarter, leading the Redbirds (13-1) to their second state title in three years.
Stat maker: Metamora’s Aaron Peters rushed for a game-high 168 yards on 18 carries, and Fay ran for 165 yards on 21 carries, as the Redbirds totaled 447 rushing yards.
Quoting Metamora coach Pat Ryan: "The guys worked for this and it is a testament to their character."
Class 5A: Lombard Montini 29, Joliet Catholic 28
Game breaker: Christian Westerkamp caught a 12-yard scoring pass in the left corner of the end zone with 32 seconds left, then caught the two-point conversion pass for the Broncos (10-4) in an upset win over Joliet Catholic (11-3).
Stat maker: Montini quarterback Brandon Pechlof threw for 189 yards and two touchdowns, pushing his season total to 3,194 passing yards and 43 TDs.
Quoting Montini coach Chris Andriano: "I am still shaking after that final drive. This is the biggest football victory in the history of our school."
Class 6A: Cary-Grove 34, Providence Catholic 17
Game breaker: Three second-half interceptions and three consecutive touchdown runs by Alex Hembrey, including a 64-yarder, led the Trojans to their 14th consecutive victory and first state title.
Stat maker: Hembrey rushed for a game-high 187 yards on 18 carries, leading Cary-Grove to 366 rushing yards, more than 200 ahead of Providence.
Quoting Cary-Grove coach Bruce Kay: "Our game starts up front with great line today. Our quarterback (Tyler Krebs) has to make two decisions on every play and he made a lot of right ones today."
Recruiting: Fiedorowicz trades off for Iowa offer
Upon closer review, Johnsburg tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz says Iowa, and not Illinois, is a better fit. So last week, Fiedorowicz, a 6-foot-7 245-pounder who is rated the nation’s top prep tight end by some recruiting analysts, de-committed from Illinois and then verbally committed to the Hawkeyes.
"Iliinois doesn’t throw to the tight end, maybe 10 times all year," he told the Chicago Sun-Times. "But it is an important part of Iowa’s system.
"I wasn’t happy with what is going on at Illinois," Fiedorowicz said.
Fiedorowicz caught 44 passes for 921 yards and 15 touchdowns this season. He also played defensively at linebacker and safety. According to news reports, he has had interest from more than 30 colleges, and his offer list includes Notre Dame, Ohio State, Wisconsin, LSU and Arizona.
* Courtney Pope of Lockport, who broke six school swimming records in a sectional meet three weeks ago, signed a National Letter of Intent with Illinois. "The Big Ten is the second-fastest conference in the nation and is very competitive," Pope told Sun-Times Media.
* Oak Park softball star Marisa Belpedio, who batted .327 last season and had a 561 slugging percentage, signed a Letter of Intent with Western Michigan. She played on two AFA national championship teams, winning a U-14 title in 2006 and a U-10 title in 2002.
Basketball: 4A champ Young to play in Chicago Showcase
The annual Chicago Public Schools City-Suburban Basketball Showcase, one of the biggest boys tournaments all season long in Chicago, will feature 11 games this weekend at Chicago State University’s Jones Convocation Center.
The tournament field includes defending Class 4A champion Whitney Young, which will face Homewood Flossmoor in the final game Sunday night at 7:30, and Class 3A runner-up North Lawndale, which will face Seton Academy at 2:30 p.m. Saturday. Among the notable players will be Young senior guard Ahmad Starks, an Oregon State recruit; Tinley Park Hillcrest senior guard Eric Gaines, a Kent State recruit; Simeon senior guard Brandon Spearman, a Dayton recruit; Mount Carmel junior guard Tracy Abrams, a verbal commitment to Illinois, and the highly recruited Wayne Blackshear of Morgan Park, a junior guard who already has offers from Illinois, Louisville and Texas.
There will be five games Saturday, beginning at 11 a.m., and six games Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. Admission is $10, $5 for students with an ID card.
* Senior guard Alex Dragicevich, a Notre Dame recruit, scored a game-high 28 points, leading Glenbrook North to a 54-49 win over Rich South in the championship game of the Niles West Thanksgiving Tournament. Dragecevich was named tournament MVP after averaging 27 points per game. The Spartans have won their first four games.
* A career-high 41-point game by Tricia Liston helped Fenwick to a 68-58 win over Wheeling in the title game of the Niles North Thanksgiving girls’ basketball tournament. Liston, a Duke recruit, was named tournament MVP and topped 2,000 career points. Fenwick won its sixth consecutive game, and handed Wheeling, a Class 4A semifinalist last season, its first loss after five wins.
Paul Bowker, a sports journalist for 25 years who has worked at newspapers nationwide, covers the Chicago area for MaxPreps. He may be reached at
