As a four-year varsity quarterback, Hinsdale Central senior Riley Contreras has accomplished quite a bit with his feet and his arm on the football field, but in recent years his Red Devils have struggled against Naperville Central.

That all changed Friday night as Contreras had a big night both through the air and on the ground as the host Red Devils knocked off Naperville Central 28-14 to take a 2-0 record and plenty of momentum into next week’s showdown with Downers Grove North.

Contreras ran for three touchdowns and added 235 yards passing as Hinsdale Central jumped ahead 21-0 at the half and was not threatened much from there even as the Redhawks played a solid second half.

“Our run game was strong and I have to praise the O-line for the way they played tonight,” said Contreras, who scored on runs of 1 and 4 yards as his team grabbed a 14-0 lead after one quarter. “Two-and-0 is exactly how we planned to start things off, but now all that matters is DGN next week.”

The Red Devils defense scored the game’s third touchdown after a strip sack in the end zone was recovered by linebacker Matthrew Tomfohrde to make the score 21-0 with 2:59 left in the half. Tomfohrde had multiple sacks in the game, and the Hinsdale Central defense limited the Redhawks to just 4 first downs in the first half.

“The defense came up strong tonight and even got the score up for us,” said Contreras, who ran for 70 yards and three scores on 16 carries.

The balanced Red Devil attack also saw Dominic Tresslar — who had two long touchdown runs erased by penalties — rush for 92 yards, while James Skokna caught 8 passes for 93 yards.

For the 0-2 Redhawks, it was the second straight week where a slow start cost them, but also the second time the team has played much better in the second half.

After struggling to move the ball consistently in the first two quarters, quarterback Jackson Loth had a strong second half and Landon Nelson gave the running game a boost. Nelson’s 13-yard touchdown run got Naperville on the board in the third quarter and Loth connected with Vincent Bern for a 15-yard scoring pass in the fourth quarter.

“This is two weeks in row where we played extremely well in the fourth quarter and even late in the third quarter,” Redhawks coach Mike Ulreich said. “We just can’t come out and play hat poorly in the first half and be a competitive football team.”

Ulreich credited Contreras’ ability to extend plays for making things hard on his defense. “Their quarterback is a good football player and he creates problems,” he said. “He’s a four-year-starter and that helps.”

A young Naperville Central squad will look for its first win next week against Sandburg.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20250905/prep-football/contreras-hinsdale-central-turn-tables-on-naperville-central/