The last two weeks showed off Naperville Central’s emerging prowess through the air.
On Friday – with postseason eligibility on the line against crosstown rival Naperville North – it marked a return to its bread-and-butter.
Naperville Central scored touchdowns on six of its first seven possessions against Naperville North – with all six coming on the ground – on its way to a 41-10 DuPage Valley Conference victory at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium.
A week after Conor Joyce found Iowa-bound Emmanuel Rugamba for three TDs through the air, the Redhawks’ senior quarterback was one of two Redhawks to score two rushing TDs, along with Matt Lehmann.
Lehmann, who had six receptions for 96 yards, found paydirt with a 22-yard TD run that gave Naperville Central a 14-3 lead with 8:16 left in the first half.
Lehmann’s 22-yard run ended a 11-play, 63-yard scoring drive and came one play after Joyce hit Quinton Gabrielli for 20 yards on a third-and-long to keep the drive moving.
“After the big play by Quinton, everyone was pumped up on the offense and the line told me they were blocking well for me,” Lehmann said. “(Jack) Piper and (Ryan) Culhane had huge blocks. They shielded from the outside and I had the outside wide open for me to just go and run and make a move and get in the end zone.”
Following Kyle Bennington’s second interception of Naperville North quarterback Luke Cegles, Lehmann would add a 10-yard touchdown run to end a five-play, 50-yard drive and give the Redhawks a 34-10 lead in the third.
Both of Lehmann’s carries went for touchdowns while Jeremiah Wiggins and Luke Brady combined for 74 yards and two TDs on 20 carries for Naperville Central (6-1, 5-1).
“We’ve always been a run-first team,” Lehmann said. “That’s just the way the program is. We were able to bounce back on that train. We didn’t have to throw the ball that much because we were successful on the ground.”
Joyce finished 11-of-17 passing for 179 yards for the Redhawks, who beat the Huskies (0-7, 0-6) for the fourth time in five years.
Bennington was one of three Redhawk defenders to pick off Cegles as Jon Barker and Rick Hatton also came down with picks as Mike Ulreich’s defensive unit forced four turnovers.
Bennington’s two picks led to touchdown runs from Lehmann and Brady while Hatton’s interception preceded Joyce’s second TD run, which ended the game’s scoring.
“We were just trying to fly to the ball – to be honest,” Bennington said. “We were just reading the ball and playing it in the air and just caught it in our hands.”
Cegles scored the only touchdown for Naperville North with a one-yard touchdown run 45 seconds into the third following a recovery of an onside kick that cut the deficit to 21-10.
Cegles and the Huskies came out throwing against the Redhawks, with Cegles completing 17-of-30 passes for 159 yards and the four interceptions, while they ran for 124 yards collectively.
His 159 passing yards marked a season-high as he hit five receivers, led by Matt Montgomery’s eight receptions for 52 yards.
“Our receivers did really (well),” Cegles said. “They got off the ball well. They ran great routes. They just played a great game. They blocked well. They did everything good.”
After a 31-yard field goal from Matt Malan for Naperville North to open the scoring, with under five minutes to go in the first, Joyce and Naperville Central went to work.
Joyce led the Redhawks on scoring drives of 63, 63 and 80 yards as their offense scored touchdowns on all three first-half possessions.
Wiggins, Lehmann and Joyce each had rushing touchdowns in the first half as the Redhawks outgained the Huskies, 211-160, in the first half.
Malan misfiring on a field goal attempt from 22 yards out – which would have brought the Huskies within 14-6 after driving 75 yards – directly led to the third Naperville Central scoring drive and a 21-3 halftime lead.
