Teyion Oriental, resilient Glenbard West topple York, snap Dukes’ 17-game regular-season win streak

ELMHURST – A rash of injuries threatened to derail Glenbard West’s season weeks ago.

Which makes what happened Oct. 6 all the more special.

Behind two touchdowns from Teyion Oriental and a sterling defensive effort, the Hilltoppers defeated previously undefeated York 28-7 in Elmhurst.

In punching its ticket to the playoffs for the 16th straight year under coach Chad Hetlet while ending York’s regular-season win streak at 17 games, Glenbard West (5-2, 3-1) also put itself in position to win at least a share of the West Suburban Silver crown.

”In my 30 years of coaching, 17 at Glenbard West, I’m as happy for my kids as I’ve ever been,” said Hetlet, whose team won its fourth in a row despite being without star running back Julius Ellens after he was injured in the opener. “They’ve battled through so much adversity. To come out here and play the way they played and to be as physical as they were, I’m so proud of them. And it was against one of the best teams in the state at their place. York is so well-coached and they’ve got so many great players. It’s a huge win for our program.

”You can’t replace Julius. He’s one of the best running backs we’ve ever had. You’ve got to figure out other ways to do things. You have to keep grinding.”

Playing both quarterback and running back, Oriental set the tone on the opening drive with his arm and legs. He ran six times for 41 yards before connecting with Mason Ellens for a 28-yard score. Oriental added a 2-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter and finished with 100 yards on 21 carries while completing 3-of-3 passes for 38 yards.

”We started off strong,” Oriental said. “When we came out and scored on that first drive, that was big. We’ve lost to York the last two years so it’s great to get a win.

”It was just about being smart, seeing the holes and being patient. And our O-line was really firing off the ball.”

Jack Moellering’s 10-yard touchdown scamper gave the visitors the lead for good shortly before halftime. On Glenbard West’s first possession of the second half, Charlie Cline tossed a 59-yard touchdown pass to Brian Clohecy.

Glenbard West’s defense did the rest, holding down a Dukes offense that came in averaging almost 42 points a game. Eli Limouris and Joey Campanella each had interceptions and Ben Starmann and Peter Fanter registered sacks.

”It was just our mindset coming in,” Limouris said, “and that all has to do with our coaching staff and their mindset. York has been the top dog the last two years. I haven’t beaten them my entire high school career. This is the relentless team we have. This is the drive we all have inside us.

”We never give up. We give everything we have. We are jelling really well right now and we are not stopping. This was everything to us. This was our conference championship game. Our goal was to go all out in this one, try to get healthy the next couple of weeks and then hopefully go on a playoff run.”

York (6-1, 3-1) whose last regular-season loss came in Week 7 in 2021, was led by Jake Melion’s 97 rushing yards on 22 carries. The senior scored from four yards out early in the second quarter. Sean Winton passed for 81 yards and ran for 38 yards.

”They had a great game plan and they did a great job executing it,” York coach Mike Fitzgerald said. “Hetlet and his staff, they have a great program and we knew they would have a great game plan against us. And they did that. But ultimately it falls on me to get us better prepared.

”Sometimes a loss can bring a team together and propel you even further. We will learn from this and we will be back stronger because of this.”