The Woodstock defense had been on the field for most of the second half, but needed to make just one more stop, one more tackle, to win the game.

On fourth-and-1 from his own 26, Jaxson Hansen keyed in on the Plano backfield, hoping to come up big one more time for his team.

Plano quarterback Dylan Saunders took the shotgun snap and hit his running back, Ethan Taxis, on a swing pass towards the wide side of the field. Hansen had to make a play.

“As soon as I saw the swing, I yelled ‘Out, out, out!’ ” he said. “It was a gang tackle, and I’m happy we were all able to be there. It was awesome.”

Hansen and the rest of the Blue Streaks defense rallied before Taxis could turn the corner, tackling him at the line of scrimmage and securing the win for Woodstock.

“It’s a great play,” Hansen said. “This is the best feeling ever, especially coming out victorious.”

Hansen and the Woodstock defense held strong over Plano, defeating the Reapers 20-14 to spoil homecoming.

Hansen recorded 14 tackles on the night and was a part of the horde of Blue Streaks that helped ensure the win on Plano’s last offensive play.

“I was really proud of our kids and how they stood tall, especially on that final play,” Woodstock coach Mike Brasile said. “Plano’s an explosive team. We had to keep them in front of us, get them on the ground, force them to take another snap and good things are going to happen for us.”

Woodstock (4-2, 2-2 Kishwaukee River Conference) opened the scoring near the end of the first quarter, doing so on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Caden Thompson to Matthew Cress. The long score was set up two plays earlier by another 25-yard pass, that one to Logan Wisner.

“We were finding plays,” Thompson said. “We’ve worked so hard in the offseason that I know where they’re going to be at every opportunity, and they go and make plays for me.”

Plano (0-6, 0-4, KRC) responded a quarter later with a methodical 11-play, 69-yard touchdown drive that ate up 6:03 of the clock. The Reapers got into the end zone on a 23-yard touchdown pass by Saunders to Isaac Uhrich.

With just 57 seconds left in the half, Brasile and the Blue Streaks elected to give the one-minute offense a shot.

“My offensive coordinator looked at me and asked, ‘Can I go for this?’ ” Brasile said. “I looked at him and said, ‘Absolutely, let’s go.’ ”

Thompson proceeded to orchestrate a six-play, 64-yard drive, connecting with Cress on a 32-yard catch-and-run touchdown with eight seconds left in the half.

Thompson finished the night 14-of-20 for 204 yards and three touchdowns.

“It goes back to all the preparation we put in,” Thompson said of the drive. “Guys know that we can move the ball on anyone, and we score on anyone.

“They gave us too much time.”

Cress had an impressive night as well, collecting four passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns.

Woodstock struggled offensively for most of the second half, but did produce a 12-yard touchdown from Thompson to Cash White to extend the lead to 20-7.

The Reapers fought back, getting to within a score with just under three minutes left on a 1-yard Kolten Schimandle touchdown run, cutting the Blue Streaks’ lead to 6.

After a near recovery on a hybrid of a squib kick and an onside, Plano was able to force a punt on three plays to get the ball back with 2:30 left in the game and one timeout, positioned at the Woodstock 35.

“Our kids do an excellent job fighting and giving everything they’ve got,” Plano coach Kyle Tutt said. “Some things didn’t go our way, and we have to learn to fight back from that.”

Woodstock hasn’t had a four-win season in four years and hasn’t had a playoff team in 16. The Blue Streaks got one step closer tonight.

“I don’t think half of our team was even born yet the last time we were in the playoffs,” Brasile said. “It would be great for our program, and great for us to get back in there and start something back at Woodstock.”