Rochelle shuts down Johnsburg

Skyhawks drop to 0-4

Johnsburg running back Kyle Rasper (left) takes the carry from quarterback Luke Conroy

ROCHELLE — A tough start to the season continued for the winless Johnsburg Skyhawks, who were largely shut down on offense during their 35-10 loss against Rochelle on Friday.

The Hubs (2-2) took immediate control of the Kishwaukee River/Interstate 8 Blue matchup, with Trey Taft recovering an onside kick before taking a carry 30 yards for a touchdown on Rochelle’s first play from scrimmage. The Skyhawks (0-4) looked to respond on their next drive, taking the ball deep into Rochelle territory, but Hubs cornerback Aidan Rodriguez intercepted a pass from Johnsburg quarterback Luke Conroy and returned the ball 69 yards inside the Skyhawk red zone.

“Rochelle was extremely physical up front and I thought they controlled the line of scrimmage,” Johnsburg coach Sam Lesniak said. “We have to figure out how to be stouter on the line of scrimmage. We had opportunities on offense, but we didn’t capitalize on those opportunities. I thought we made some solid plays, but we weren’t able to finish drives like we needed to.”

The Skyhawk turnover led to a 20-yard touchdown run from Rochelle’s Cody-Stover Cullum that put the Hubs ahead 14-0 late in the first quarter. Johnsburg’s Cade Piggott kicked the Skyhawks onto the scoreboard during the second quarter, connecting on a 21-yard field goal to score the team’s first points. Trailing 14-3, Johnsburg’s defense looked for a stop, but the Skyhawks conceded a 15-play, 75-yard scoring drive that melted nearly eight minutes off the game clock.

“We need to play lower on defense and we have to tackle better,” Lesniak said. “We have to come out and play better. I don’t know how else to say it. We have to play better.”

Needing a spark, Johnsburg attempted an onside kick to open the third quarter, but recovered the ball just short of the 10-yard minimum to put Rochelle’s offense in prime field position. The Hubs capitalized on their short field, going 49 yards on 13 plays and capping off another seven-plus minute scoring drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Josh Lloyd to Garrett Gensler.

The Skyhawks took advantage of Rochelle’s lone turnover of the night, recovering a fumble early in the fourth quarter and eventually scoring on a 3-yard touchdown run by Conroy. As they did all evening, however, the Hubs chewed up clock and marched down the field, with Lloyd hitting Gensler for a 9-yard touchdown pass to wrap up an 11-play, 52-yard drive. Conroy totaled 110 passing yards, while Jake Metze caught seven passes for 48 yards in the loss.

Johnsburg will look for its first win when the Skyhawks face Plano on the road next Friday.