On the first drive of the game Friday night, Oswego‘s football team drove down the field, picking up 42 yards on 11 plays before Kaleb Stumpenhorst kicked a 40-yard field goal for a quick lead over Southwest Prairie West rival Minooka.

That was all the points that the Panthers (5-2, 1-2) could manage, though, as the Minooka defense, spearheaded by linebacker Brady Kozlowski, shut them out the rest of the way en route to a 10-3 win.

Kozlowski made his presence felt all over the field, leading the team in tackles while adding two sacks, a forced fumble and a pass breakup. The Minooka defense limited Oswego, which entered the game averaging 34.3 points per game, to 174 total yards and three points.

“We were all flying to the ball tonight,” Kozlowski said. “We have faced some adversity this year, but we have grown from it. I have to hand it to our defensive line. They were able to take up blockers and that let me and the other linebackers get to the ball. The secondary also did a great job, not only in pass coverage, but coming up and helping stop the run.

“I am super proud of the way we came out and played tonight against a really good team.”

On the Panthers’ first drive, quarterback Drew Kleinhans ran for 13 yards on 3rd and 10, then hit Teddy Manikas for a seven-yard gain on 2nd and 5 for another first down. Manikas ran for an eight-yard gain on 3rd and 3 before the Minooka defense stiffened and forced the field goal by Stumpenhorst.

Late in the first quarter, Minooka’s Nathan Gonzalez intercepted a Kleinhans pass at midfield and returned it to the Oswego 23. On third and 4 on the first play of the second quarter, Chase Nurczyk (21 carries, 115 yards) ran for a 4-yard gain. A play later, he broke through for a 10-yard touchdown. Sean Sample’s extra point kick gave Minooka (5-2, 2-1) a 7-3 lead.

“I can’t thank our offensive line enough,” Nurczyk said. “Any time I get into the end zone, I tell them that it’s all them. Without them doing their job, I wouldn’t go anywhere.

“Having our defense play like they did tonight really helps our offense relax. We know we don’t have to score every possession because they aren’t going to give up many points. Then, when they give us a short field on a turnover, we are able to capitalize on it.”

After the Minooka defense forced another punt, Minooka got a 45-yard field goal from Sample to make it 10-3 with 3:41 to play in the first half. That proved to be the end of the scoring, but not the end of the excitement.

Oswego managed to reach the Minooka 20 late in the first half, thanks to a 32-yard completion from Kleinhans to Manikas. On second and 8 from the 20, Kozlowski sacked Kleinhans and knocked the ball loose. The Indians’ Joey Chiappini scooped it up and returned it to the 35 before being tripped up. A 43-yard field goal attempt by Sample came up short as the first half ended.

Minooka punted on its first possession of the second half, but Jackson Miranda recovered an Oswego fumble, giving the Indians the ball at the Panther 34. A 47-yard field goal attempt was no good. The teams traded punts the rest of the second half before Minooka stopped Oswego on downs with 2:03 remaining. On third and 9, Tyler Minda ran for a gain of 22 yards to seal the win.

“These kids just don’t stop,” Minooka coach Matt Harding said. “They faced a lot of adversity early in the season, but like in life, you have to go forward through adversity and that’s what they have done.

“We kept hitting them with jabs, then got a couple haymakers. Nathan Gonzalez’s pick was a haymaker, Chase Nurczyk’s touchdown was a haymaker. Brady Kozlowski was all over the field tonight. Drew Kooi, our defensive coordinator, had a great game plan tonight. Oswego was scoring almost 40 a game and we held them to three. Now we have to keep pushing the rest of the year.”