LDN - Sports

Railers, Rockets Biding Time Til next Week

[September 16, 2016] By Benjamin Yount

LINCOLN – No one is looking past Friday's game between Lincoln and Rochester, But both teams have games on their schedule next week that may overshadow what's expected to be a Rocket scoring exhibition Friday night.

“It's going to be tough this week. We know that,” Lincoln Head Coach Matt Silkowski said Thursday after his teams final practice. “(Rochester) is one of the best programs in the entire state.”

Rochester is 3-0, they've scored 154 points in their first three games.

Lincoln is 0-3, they've allowed 164 points in three games.

But Silkowski said his team is improving. And focusing on success.

“We accomplished two of our three goals last week,” Silkowski says he squad registered about a half dozen tackles for loss and didn't allow any points off the kicking game. He looking to best that Friday night.

The Raisplitter defense will be given that task.
Senior safety Alex Linares said each Lincoln defender knows what to expect from Rochester.
“Rochester has really good receivers. We know that,” Linares explained. “We're focusing on pass coverage and making our tackles.”

Sophomore Austin Sparrow has started all three games for the Railer defense this season. He understands what a varsity game against the Central State Eight's other perennial state championship threat means.

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“Obviously we know we're not going to go out and do everything perfectly,” Sparrow said. “We're focused on the little things.”

Coach Silkowski does admit some of the focus for his team is creeping ahead to next week.
Lincoln will host Decatur MacArthur for homecoming next Friday.

MacArthur is also winless this season, and Silkowski and his team think MacArthur is ripe to be beaten.

“When we looked at the schedule back in February, we knew the first four games would be tough,” Silkowski said. “We've been prepping for MacArthur (since) Sunday night.”

Senior quarterback Andrew Yount said the task, starting immediately after Friday's game in Rochester, is to balance homecoming week (the dance, the parade, and the fun) with the expectation that Lincoln may get its first win.
“I think we can pull one out,” Yount said. “It's going to be a fight.”

But before Lincoln can get to MacArthur the Railers have to travel to Rochester.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Rochester High School.

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