Northwest Herald area preview capsules for Class 4A and 6A semifinals

Class 4A

No. 1 Joliet Catholic (12-0) at No. 2 Richmond-Burton (12-0)

When: 2 p.m. Saturday

About the Hilltoppers: Joliet Catholic was ranked No. 1 in The Associated Press Class 4A poll all season. The Hilltoppers defeated Genoa-Kingston, 42-7, in their quarterfinal game. … Joliet Catholic is a prolific running team, led by All-State RB Vinny Iannantone and Illinois-bound Jordan Anderson, who is 6-foot-3, 230 pounds. Iannantone has 1,597 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns; Anderson, who missed some time early in the season, has 1,105 yards and 24 touchdowns. … QB Aidan Voss has thrown for 1,075 yards and 13 touchdowns and also was named to the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 4A All-State Team. He was 5 for 5 for 142 yards and two touchdowns in the win over G-K. … WR Jake Fieldman leads the Hilltoppers with 27 receptions for 740 yards and 10 touchdowns. … Joliet Catholic has wins over Class 6A semifinalist Crete-Monee, 41-27, and Class 7A semifinalist Brother Rice, 56-49. … The Hilltoppers have more state championships than any other team at 13.

About the Rockets: R-B came back late against Chicago Phillips for a 27-26 victory in the quarterfinals. … The Rockets are in the semifinals for a third consecutive season, a first in school history. They have won 32 consecutive games, the longest current streak in the state. Their last loss came against IC Catholic, 28-9, in the 2018 Class 4A semifinals. … In his four seasons at R-B coach, Mike Noll has taken the Rockets to three semifinals. … FB-LB Brock Wood, an IHSFCA Class 4A All-Stater, leads the offense and defense for R-B. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound senior has 1,537 yards rushing and 26 touchdowns. RB Steven Siegel has rushed for 703 yards and 13 TDs. … The Rockets don’t throw often, but are proficient when they do. QB Joe Miller has completed 68.4% of his passes (52 of 76) for 913 yards with 15 touchdowns and two interceptions. … R-B’s defense has allowed only 123 points for the season, with 29 in three playoff games. … The 2019 Class 4A state champions have won all but two games in their streak – a 23-20 win over Johnsburg this season and the quarterfinal win over Phillips – by double digits.

Up next: The winner advances to meet the winner between No. 3 Sacred Heart-Griffin (11-1) at No. 1 Rochester (11-1) in the state championship game at 7 p.m. Nov. 26 at Northern Illinois University’s Huskie Stadium.

FND pick: Joliet Catholic

Class 6A

No. 6 Lake Forest (10-2) at No. 1 Cary-Grove (12-0)

When: 1 p.m. Saturday

About the Scouts: Lake Forest defeated Prairie Ridge, 22-21, in their quarterfinal game. This is the Scouts’ first semifinal appearance since 2012, when they lost to C-G, 42-21. … Lake Forest lost in the quarterfinals in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2019. … Lake Forest is led by QB Leo Scheidler, who was named to the IHSFCA Class 6A All-State team. He directed a 92-yard drive in the final 4:04 last week to beat Prairie Ridge. … Scouts coach Chuck Spagnoli was uncertain after last week’s game about the availability of RB Jahari Scott, who left the game with a knee injury. Spagnoli said after the game they would need further evaluation on Scott.

About the Trojans: C-G defeated Crystal Lake Central, 42-21, in the quarterfinals. The Trojans had a 42-0 lead, and the Tigers scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. … C-G has been ranked No. 1 or 2 in Class 6A for the entire season. The Trojans have a 16-game winning streak. … C-G’s closest game this season was a 36-22 win over Jacobs in Week 7. … QB Jameson Sheehan and OL-LB Zach Petko were named to the IHSFCA Class 6A All-State team on Tuesday. … Sheehan has completed 63.9% of his passes for 805 yards with 13 touchdowns and one interception. … FB Nick Hissong leads C-G with 1,374 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns. RB Drew Magel has 916 yards, Sheehan has 646 and RB Wade Abrams has 588, but has missed all the playoff games with an injury. Abrams could return this week. … C-G’s defense has allowed 177 points, but many of those have come in fourth quarters when the Trojans had big leads and the second-team defense was on the field. … This is C-G’s fifth semifinal game since 2012, the Trojans won three of those games and won the 2018 state championship.

Up next: The winner advances to meet the winner between No. 4 East St. Louis (10-2) at No. 7 Crete-Monee (9-3) in the state championship game at 1 p.m. Nov. 27 at Northern Illinois University’s Huskie Stadium.

FND pick: Cary-Grove