Danny Carroll, Lyons start strong, power past Prospect

LA GRANGE – The Lyons Township football team entered Friday’s rematch against visiting Prospect looking to atone for a two-touchdown loss in last year’s season opener.

Consider it mission accomplished as Danny Carroll rushed for 133 yards and three touchdowns in the Lions’ 38-21 victory over the Knights at Bennett Field in Western Springs.

“Our kids worked so hard from January to August,” LT coach Jon Beutjer said. “We’re got something to prove and I thought our kids played with a chip on their shoulder and an edge "

Lyons began the night strong, getting a three-and-out defensively on Prospect’s opening drive, then marching 60 yards on six plays for a score. Carroll had runs of 29 and 16 yards respectively to set up his own 6-yard TD run.

”I give it all to my o-line,” Carroll said. “They’re the ones who are pushing me in. I just take the ball and run behind them.”

After another defensive stop, the Lions went work again offensively, going 92 yards on nine plays for another touchdown, this one a 21-yard run by Pat Cheney.

On the first play of Prospect’s next drive, LT senior DB Mack Long intercepted Knights’ senior QB Jack Skoog, and his 20-yard return put the Lions back in business at the Prospect 15. Three plays later, Cheney scored from 4 yards out to give LT a commanding 21-0 lead.

“That’s one of the things we stressed all week, getting off to a fast start,” Beutjer said. “Last year, we went (to Prospect) and got pushed around, so we stressed all summer that we’re going to play football and be physical.”

But Prospect’s offense, which struggled in the first quarter, got rolling in the second. Skoog’s 29-yard TD keeper followed by a 41-yard TD run by sophomore QB Jackson Cacini pulled the Knights within 7 at halftime.

“I was proud of our fight to get it back within a score,” Prospect coach Dan DeBoeuf. “We were feeling like we were in a good spot, but we made too many mistakes against a good football team.”

LT started the second half with an 8-play, 80-yard march capped by Carroll’s 3-yard touchdown. But the Lions then gifted Prospect excellent field position on their next drive when punter AJ Vavrik mishandled the snap and threw incomplete from his 34. The Knights cashed in four plays later on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Skoog (6-of-19, 68 yards) to Nathan Cichy at the 4:32 mark of the third quarter.

Prospect then attempted a surprise onside kick, but LT recovered at its own 47.

“We’re always going to play aggressive on special teams,” DeBoeuf said. “Our special teams coach thought we had it, but sometimes it doesn’t bounce your way, and you need that against a really good team.”

Nine plays later, Carroll found the end zone for his third score of the night from six yards out, giving the Lions a 35-21 lead after three.

“What I was most impressed with was how we responded to the adversity,” Beutjer said.. “We made plays when we had to.”

Then on the first play of the final quarter, Cacini was dropped for an eight-yard loss on 4th and 1 from the Prospect 29. Vavrik then completed the night’s scoring with a 32-yard field goal with 9:13 left.

A bright spot for Prospect was senior RB Noah Easter, who rushed for 95 yards on 13 carries.

“He’s a really good back,” DeBoeuf said. “I wish we could’ve got into our game plan a little bit more. We just kept getting into negative down situations and couldn’t get into any rhythm for some reason.”

Senior Dom Pisciotti made his debut as the LT starting quarterback and finished 7-of-19 passing for 152 yards.

“Dom played great. He stayed calm and collected pretty much the whole game and knew what he was doing,” Carroll said.

Things don’t get easier for either team in Week 2. LT visits Wheaton-Warrenville South while Prospect hosts Palatine.

“I don’t think we showcased how good we can be tonight, but as I told the guys, the sun’s going to come up tomorrow and we’re going to get back to work,” DeBoeuf said.

“We’ve got to keep coming to practice with the right mindset,” Beutjer said. “It’s natural to take your foot off the gas pedal when you’re doing well, but we’re just going to keep working.”