Sterling exploded with 21 unanswered points in the second half and got past Lakes 31-9 in a nonconference game in Lake Villa Friday night.

Sterling (1-0) opened the third quarter with a five-yard touchdown run by Antonio Tablante (17 carries, 103 yards) that made the score 17-9 with 8:47 left.

After a short punt, the Golden Warriors added another rushing touchdown on Tyree Kelly’s three-yard scamper with 4:15 left for a 24-9 advantage.

Sterling quarterback Drew Kested added a 75-yard run for a score in the fourth for the final score.

“We talked a few years back of playing good people,” Sterling coach Jon Schlemmer said. “Coach [Jordan] Eder reached out to us and we thought we fit pretty well, as they are 6A and we’re 5A. They played hard and our kids found a way to pull it out. Our drive 4, 5, 6 hours to get a win, I don’t care how that works for us.”

Lakes, in search of its first victory after going without one in the spring, was down 10-9 at the break.

“We were battling, and I thought we were right there with them,” Eder said. “One of the big turning points in the third [quarter], we took a sack and had a 15-yard loss. So, we punted and it pushed us back and gave [Sterling] a short field to punch it in. Other than that, we were right there with them.”

Lakes quarterback Max Bausch scored on a one-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter that made the score 10-9. Earlier in the opening quarter, Bausch kicked a 28-yard field goal.