The Naperville North High School varsity football team pulled out a much-needed win against Metea Valley High School.
The Huskies (4-3) beat the Mustangs (0-7) with a score of 30-7.
Naperville North got off to a slow start against Metea Valley, with a handful of turnovers and clear miscommunication on the field. The Huskies started to get into a rhythm in the second quarter with two touchdowns by senior running back Cole Arl, which gained confidence in the team going into the second half being up 13-0. The defense locked down throughout the half as they only allowed the Mustangs to get inside of the 20 yard line twice. Defensive coordinator Chris Arthurs told the North Star how practices have paid off for the Huskies to get this win.
“Our guys are doing a great job of practicing hard and then putting that onto the field,” Arthurs said.
The Huskies had a dominating second half as Arl got another touchdown and junior quarterback Jacob Bell threw a 63 yard touchdown to junior wide receiver Brock Pettaway, putting the Huskies up 27-0 midway through the third quarter. Huskies’ kicker Tyler Duewel got a late field goal in the third quarter to put the Huskies up 30-0. Unfortunately, the shutout was unable to happen as the Huskies let up a late touchdown for Metea Valley to end the third quarter. Despite that, this was a very well needed win for the Huskies after the rough loss against Central. Pettaway states his thoughts on how the offense played.
“We played well. We’re gonna go back and get better and we’re always going to give our best,” Pettaway said.
With the Huskies starting to run away with this game after the first half, this gave younger players the opportunity to get some repetitions at the varsity level. Throughout the second half starters were subbed out so that they could rest and let the younger kids get some playing time under their belt. Senior defensive lineman Lawson Grier comments on why this is important.
“Getting our second, third strings in, to get some more work [in makes them] even more prepared for the games ahead,” Grier said.
The Huskies will play in another must-win game if they want to keep their playoff chances alive. Illinois teams need five wins in order to qualify for the state playoffs. The Huskies will play Waubonsie Valley High School (4-3), who are also fighting to play in the playoffs. Pettaway explains his thought process going into the next week.
“[I] want to go into the Waubonsie game with the same mindset I had going into the Metea game which was to give it my best,” Pettaway said.
The team will play their next game on Friday, Oct. 13 against Waubonsie Valley High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Naperville North High School.
