Batavia goes 85 yards on final drive, advances to state with 25-21 win over Lincoln-Way Central

Sophomore QB Michael Vander Luitgaren finds Isaiah Brown for game-winning TD with 31 seconds left

Batavia's Michael Vander Luitgaren (8) throws a pass during the Class 7A semifinal playoff game against Lincoln-Way Central on Saturday, Nov 23, 2024 at New Lenox. (Dean Reid for Shaw Local News)

NEW LENOX – It was a case of déjà vu for sophomore Michael Vander Luitgaren.

After Lincoln-Way Central junior quarterback Drew Woodburn scored on a 1-yard sneak with 2:15 left in the game to give his team a three-point lead in the Class 7A state semifinal, Batavia needed an offensive drive led by the sophomore quarterback to keep its championship hopes alive.

Vander Luitgaren wasn’t worried. In fact, he felt quite the opposite.

“I looked at (junior quarterback) Bodi (Anderson) and said, ‘This is fun, man,’ " Vander Luitgaren said. “It’s always fun to be down and come back. You get the opportunity to do something great.”

Similar to his game-winning drive in the second-round playoff victory over Lincoln-Way West, Vander Luitgaren executed.

The sophomore led the offense 85 yards down the field in 90 seconds and found wide receiver Isaiah Brown for the go-ahead 15-yard touchdown with 31 seconds left to give Batavia a 25-21 victory over Lincoln-Way Central.

Batavia advanced to the Class 7A title game for the second time in three years.

“He looked at me, gave me that fade audible and he put it on the back shoulder right where it needed to be and I just went up and got the ball,” said Brown, who finished with 10 catches for 93 yards and three touchdowns. “I knew I was coming down with it as soon as I saw it in the air. To make that catch, it was amazing.”

Batavia's Isaiah Brown (2) celebrates with Michael Vander Luitgaren after scoring a touchdown during the Class 7A semifinal playoff game against Lincoln-Way Central on Saturday, Nov 23, 2024 at New Lenox. (Dean Reid for Shaw Local News)

Batavia (12-1) will take on Mount Carmel (10-3), a 43-24 semifinal winner over St. Rita, in the Class 7A state final at 4 p.m. Saturday. It will be the fourth consecutive year the two programs have met in the playoffs. Mount Carmel beat Batavia in the second round in 2021, the 7A championship in 2022 and the semifinals in 2023.

Lincoln-Way Central ended its season at 9-4.

The Bulldogs’ final offensive drive didn’t start the way they wanted with Vander Luitgaren (12-of-17, 212 yards, 3 TDs) taking a sack on second down that moved them into a third-and-long situation on their own 18-yard line. The sophomore kept his calm and found senior wideout Jake Mysliwiec (three catches, 81 yards) on an out route for 32 yards to put Batavia at midfield.

Vander Luitgaren kept the chains moving with first-down passes to Brown and junior Brett Berggren (four catches, 63 yards) before finding Brown for the game-winner.

“Our ability to do this thing where we don’t implode but hang in there and battle and stay together, that’s part of the specialness to our boys,” Batavia coach Dennis Piron said. “I just love it. It’s fantastic. We’re all lucky to be where we are at this time.”

Batavia took its first lead of the game since its opening drive when Anderson (5-of-7, 45 yards, TD) found Brown for a 19-yard score with 5:31 remaining in the game after Vander Luitgaren connected with Brown from eight yards out. Vander Luitgaren also had a 20-yard passing score to Luke Stevenson at the end of the first half.

“He did a wonderful job. That’s just his thing,” Piron said of Vander Luitgaren. “There’s some specialness to what he’s bringing to the game for us now. He doesn’t get nervous, doesn’t get flustered. It was just spectacular.”

Lincoln-Way Central's Lucas Andresen (81) tries break a tackle by Batavia's Keegan Harp (26) during the Class 7A semifinal playoff game on Saturday, Nov 23, 2024 at New Lenox. (Dean Reid for Shaw Local News)

Lincoln-Way Central took a 14-12 lead heading into halftime thanks to the efforts of junior wide receiver Luke Andresen, who finished with six catches for 151 yards and a touchdown. The junior caught a 38-yard pass from Woodburn to give the Knights a 7-6 lead and also caught a pass in the red zone on the ensuing drive that led to a 2-yard rushing score from Tyler Tulk to extend the lead to eight points.

“We had a shot to win the entire game,” Andresen said. “We put ourselves in a spot to win before halftime and I was really happy to help my team out.”

Despite the loss, Lincoln-Way Central coach Dave Woodburn said he was very happy with how the team played in its first semifinal since 2000.

“The amount of time and effort that they put in since January, we’re indebted to them as coaches,” Dave Woodburn said. “They set some goals for themselves, they got real close to those goals and we just didn’t finish. But man, what a group of young men that we have here.”