Naperville Central’s football team fell in the IHSA State Series semifinal to the York Dukes in a 15-20 loss on Saturday, Nov. 23.
Marking their first semifinal appearance since the team’s State Championship win in 2013, the seventh seeded Redhawks entered the game after an upset win against Lyons Township on Nov. 22.
York made the first move of the game with a touchdown and extra point 10 minutes into the first quarter.
Central responded quickly with a 30-yard run from senior Aiden Clark off a pass from senior quarterback Sebastian Hayes, resulting in a touchdown. Kicker Gavin Ellison made his first kick of the night on the extra point, tying the game towards the end of the first quarter.
Eight minutes into the second quarter, senior and Brown University commit Garrett Nichols made a 38 yard catch for the Redhawks, setting the stage for Ellison to drill a field goal through the uprights. It was Central’s first and only lead of the night, which would hold through the first half.
“I’m really proud of us coming together as a team and really becoming a family,” Hayes said. “We just played great football together and everyone did their job.”
Early in the second half, senior Nathan Czachor broke through the Dukes’ defensive line and brought down York quarterback Bruno Massel for a sack. It was one of only a handful of highlights for the Redhawks in what would ultimately prove to be a challenging second half.
The Dukes then proceeded to score a touchdown, and when paired with an extra point, brought the score to 10-14 in favor of York.
Within the first minute of the fourth quarter, Ellison came through, nailing a field goal that cut Central’s deficit to a single point and offered a glimpse of hope for the Redhawks.
York quickly followed up the field goal when a pass from Hayes was intercepted with only a few minutes remaining. After scoring a touchdown, Central’s defense was able to step up and stop the Dukes on an attempted two-point conversion.
A final drive from the Redhawks proved unsuccessful, with an incomplete pass from Hayes to senior DeShaun Williams ending their drive.
In the last play of the game, Massel sprinted towards Central’s endzone on fourth down, running out the remaining 10 seconds on the clock before being brought down for a safety to bring the score to 15-20.
“We made a lot of mental mistakes, and we just didn’t execute the way we needed to in a semifinal game,” head coach Mike Ulreich said. “But give [York] credit, they played unbelievable.”
This year’s postseason run has been Ulreich’s furthest in his four years leading the program.
“I’m proud of the commitment and the dedication, and more importantly, how much it matters to the group of seniors,” Ulreich said. “It just shows the way they play and the way they fight for each other.”
