McHenry defeats Larkin soundly

ELGIN – McHenry senior running back Alec Glauser called Saturday’s opening performance against Larkin “something we’ve never really done before as a team.”

On a personal note, Glauser ran for a career-high four touchdowns – from 2, 15, 6 and 2 yards out – and the Warriors bull rushed the Royals for 373 yards on 47 carries, or a 7.9 average, en route to a 61-12 nonconference win.

As a team, McHenry might not have set any school records, but Glauser’s postgame message was clear: the Warriors had their way with Larkin.

And it all started up front, behind the offensive line of Jeremy Lambrecht, Andrew Fugatt, Joshua Little, Zachary Sielck and Brandon Paszternak.

“It feels good to score four times, but it’s all about the guys on the offensive line,” Glauser said. “We had a really good summer camp and the hard work showed. We came together as a unit today.”

The starting five pushed around the young Larkin defensive line on nearly every possession, which allowed the Warriors to run at will – including a 42-yard sprint from running back Brandon Ahne on the team’s second possession to make it 14-0 with 8:42 remaining in the first quarter.

Nine different running backs touched the ball for the Warriors, and 42 first half points allowed McHenry to rest a few starters beginning in the third quarter.

“I don’t think [quarterback] Mike Briscoe got touched once when we passed the ball,” McHenry coach Dave D’Angelo said. “A lot of the credit goes to the guys up front. One of our goals was to eliminate the mistakes and establish the run. Any time a McHenry team can do that, then we can have success in the air once in awhile.”

When McHenry did opt to throw, Briscoe usually found his man, connecting on four of five passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns. The third-year starter made connections on two deep balls that resulted in scores – once to Giovanni Purpura (1 catch, 56 yards) late in the first half and once to Corey Lursch (1 catch, 58 yards).

When it came to McHenry’s strategy up front, Lambrecht put it in simple terms.

“Get low and create holes,” Lambrecht said.

And that’s exactly how simple it was for McHenry’s offensive line on Saturday.

Game ball

Alec Glauser, McHenry, senior

Ran for a career-high four touchdowns and team-high 85 yards on 10 carries in Saturday's 61-12 nonconference win over Larkin.

The number 373: The number of rushing yards for McHenry on 47 attempts (7.9 average).

The Big Play

After a four-play, opening touchdown drive, RB Brandon Ahne broke to the outside and scored from 42 yards out on the second play of McHenry's second possession to make it 14-0. It was one of seven rushing touchdowns on the day for the Warriors.

McHenry 61, Larkin 12

McHenry    22    20    12    7    –    61

Larkin        6    0    6    0    –    12

First quarter

M–Glauser 2 run (Johnson kick), 10:32

M–Ahne 42 run (Guajardo pass from Borst), 8:42

L–Hernandez 7 run (kick failed), 6:00

M–Glauser 15 run (Johnson kick), 3:51

Second quarter

M–Glauser 6 run (Johnson kick), 9:31

M–Purpura 58 pass from Briscoe (Johnson kick), 7:39

M–Glauser 2 run (kick failed), 3:54

Third quarter

L–Steward 35 fumble recovery (kick failed), 11:34

M–Lursh 56 pass from Briscoe (kick failed), 10:28

M–Lemus 16 run (kick failed), 5:16

Fourth quarter

M–Lemus 11 run (Johnson kick), 1:10

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING–McHenry: Briscoe 7-52, Glauser 10-85, Purpura 3-25, Ahne 1-42, Faith 10-40, Guajardo 4-44, Machometa 3-30, Lemus 7-42, Csech 2-13. Totals: 47-373. Larkin: Clements 14-91, Hernandez 12-6, 10 1-0. Totals: 27-101.

PASSING–McHenry: Briscoe 4-5-0-158. Larkin: 6-17-0-84.

RECEIVING–McHenry: Borst 1-38, Glauser 1-6, Purpura 1-58, Lersch 1-56. Larkin: Hunter 5-78, Clements 1-6.  TOTAL TEAM YARDS: McHenry 531, Larkin 185.  Sophomore score: Kaneland 7, McHenry 0