Glenbrook North explodes for 41 points in first half against Wheeling

NORTHBROOK — It was a great first half of football for host Glenbrook North when the Spartans met Wheeling in nonconference action Friday night.

With senior quarterback Murphy Mulvihill leading the way, Glenbrook North stormed to a 27-0 lead after one quarter before a miraculous 96-yard touchdown pass by Mulvihill with just four seconds left in the second quarter gave the Spartans a commanding 41-0 halftime lead.

From there, Glenbrook North (2-1) rolled to a 48-9 victory while the Wildcats’ record fell to 1-2 in the early stages of the 2021 season.

Mulvihill got the Spartans’ offense going right away with a 39-yard TD run just 2:05 into the contest before teammate Michael Cosentino’s extra point made the score 7-0.

[  Photos: Glenbrook North vs. Wheeling ]

On the next possession, Mulvihill had a 26-yard keeper followed by a 2-yard keeper for the touchdown on a short 28-yard scoring drive and a quick 14-0 advantage.

An 18-yard TD pass from Mulvihill to McCartney Kalmar going over the middle boosted the lead to 21-0 before Mulvihill (5 for 9, 155 yards passing) connected with senior teammate Ryan Henschel for a 10-yard TD pass and a 27-0 lead late in the first quarter.

Glenbrook North’s Reese Marquez scored on a 7-yard TD run to boost the lead to 34-0 before Wheeling started to move the ball on the ensuing possession.

But on fourth-and-goal from the Spartans’ 2, running back Simon Micula (129 yards on 19 carries) was stopped cold, giving the ball back to Glenbrook North.

Then on second down, Mulvihill (123 yards on 9 rushes) hit Henschel in stride bolting down the left sideline for a 41-0 lead against the shellshocked Wildcats.

“We stepped up. Wheeling gave us a challenge in the beginning and it was really an impressive win for us to come out early and score a lot of points,” Mulvihill said. “(Henschel) had a good mismatch there, we’ve been working on it all week, we wanted to take a shot, and that’s what happened.”

Glenbrook North’s John Stocking threw an 8-yard TD pass to Connor Durst for a 48-0 lead in the third quarter before Wheeling got a safety to break up the shutout late in the fourth quarter. Micula scored on a 2-yard TD run with 38 seconds left to account for the final score.

“Murphy threw a great ball and Ryan ran a great route,” said Glenbrook North coach Matt Purdy, who said Henschel is heading to Rhode Island to play college baseball.

“Murphy is just growing so rapidly as our quarterback. Last year he was a free safety, he just grabbed the knowledge of our offense, and he continues to climb each week. The game is starting to slow down for him, he’s seeing past the first read, and he’s on to his second and third read.”