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Football: Tyquan Cox, Glenbard West roll past Bartlett

Hilltoppers advance to face unbeaten Lincoln-Way East

Coupled with unbeaten Lincoln-Way East’s 49-0 shutout of St. Charles East, it sets up a second-round clash next Saturday at Duchon Field. “Oh, I’m through the roof,” Glenbard West senior right guard/defensive end Hank Knez said. “That’s who I wanted to play, and the fact that we get to play them this early is just awesome. And it’s going to be at Duchon, which is going to make it that much better.” Cox scored on runs of 5, 27, 5, 1, 1 and 25 yards before Nicholas Seifert triggered the running clock on a 38-yard touchdown run with 2:02 remaining in the third quarter. (Karen Naess)

By KEVIN DRULEY

Coupled with unbeaten Lincoln-Way East’s 49-0 shutout of St. Charles East, it sets up a second-round clash next Saturday at Duchon Field. “Oh, I’m through the roof,” Glenbard West senior right guard/defensive end Hank Knez said. “That’s who I wanted to play, and the fact that we get to play them this early is just awesome. And it’s going to be at Duchon, which is going to make it that much better.” Cox scored on runs of 5, 27, 5, 1, 1 and 25 yards before Nicholas Seifert triggered the running clock on a 38-yard touchdown run with 2:02 remaining in the third quarter. (Karen Naess)

Cox finished with 193 yards on 26 carries. As usual, he lauded the offensive line for the opportunity to earn every inch. “Man, it was all up front,” Cox said. “Those five or six guys up front, they just all got it done for me. I couldn’t thank them enough for what they’ve done this season, what we’ve accomplished as a team. We’ve got Lincoln-Way East next week, they don’t know what’s coming for them. The offensive line plays like that, we’re going to be able to roll any team in the state.” Seifert also eclipsed 100 yards as the front five of Connor Foley, Chase Pierce, Joe Peraino, Andrew Johnson and Knez consistently controlled the line of scrimmage. (Karen Naess)

Knez also shined on the Hilltoppers’ three-man defensive front, which helped neutralize what had been a balanced Bartlett attack during a strong regular season. Hawks quarterback Jonah O’Brien completed just eight of 18 passes until a late scoring drive that came largely against Hilltoppers reserves. A 71-yard touchdown run in a similar situation helped running back Nick Deckard get over the 100-yard mark for Bartlett (7-3). “We were ready for just about anything because we studied a ton of film,” Knez said. “So, we knew their run game and pass game inside and out.” (Karen Naess)

Bartlett defeated just two teams with winning records this season en route to the program’s first playoff berth since 2015. The Hawks beat Upstate Eight Conference foes Glenbard South and South Elgin by 10 and five points, respectively. While the revamped UEC featured two other playoff teams on Bartlett’s schedule in Glenbard East and West Aurora, the Hawks lost those games by an average of 19 points. (Karen Naess)

Of course, Glenbard West was a mere 1-2 against playoff teams in the regular season, but the Hawks couldn’t deny the differences between the sides after exchanging final handshakes. “Just a really talented team and a lot of guys that are really good players,” Bartlett linebacker Spencer Konstanzer said. (Karen Naess)

The Hilltoppers know defeating Lincoln-Way East won’t be easy, but they’re also certain they have the ingredients. “We challenge every team to see if they can be physical,”Cox said. “We never give up. We’re going to punch you in the mouth every play, and that’s Glenbard West football.” (Karen Naess)

Glenbard West's Sam Mcgee (3) and Jayden Rogers (5) breaks up the pass to Bartlett's Nick Mansk on Oct. 26th at the Class 8A First Round Playoff game in Bartlett. (Karen Naess)

Glenbard West fans cheer them on against Bartlett on Oct. 26th at the Class 8A First Round Playoff game in Bartlett. (Karen Naess)

Bartlett's Jonah O'Brien looks for a pass as Glenbard West's Will Skowronski goes for the tackle on Oct. 26th at the Class 8A First Round Playoff game in Bartlett. (Karen Naess)

Glenbard West's Tommy Blecker looks for running room against Bartlett's Tony DeRosa on Oct. 26th at the Class 8A First Round Playoff game in Bartlett. (Karen Naess)