Flat Railers Fall To Crafty Woodstock North

[October 06, 2018]  By Benjamin Yount

LINCOLN – The tough part about defending the triple option is the crowd.

The quarterback, fullback, and the running backs all crowd the line, and defenders have to either know who has the ball or guess well.

Lincoln didn't do either Friday night.

Woodstock North High School ground Lincoln down with the triple option Friday night.

“You have to play assignment football when you play triple option,” Lincoln head coach Matt Silkowski said after Friday's game. “And when guys don't play their assignment, you see what happens.”

Lincoln and Woodstock North were tied 0-0 at the end of the first quarter Friday night.

Both teams had just one drive each.

Lincoln forced Woodstock to a 4th and two in their first drive of the second quarter. But Woodstock converted.

The next play, Woodstock's quarterback burst-out for a nearly 60 yard touchdown run.

Every Lincoln player wore a KF sticker on their helmet, in honor of Kennedy Freese who passed away last weekend in a car accident. 

Woodstock went up 6-0.

Lincoln's offense struggled throughout the night.

Junior Quarterback Dreyden Pozsgei threw the ball well Friday, but in the first half couldn't find the end zone.

Three plays after Woodstock scored, Lincoln had to punt.

Alex Bogdanic snags a pass Friday night. But Lincoln fell short against Woodstock North 41-6

Four minutes later, Woodstock punched the ball in for another touchdown. A two point conversion made it 14-0.

Then a Pozsgei interception gave Woodstock a 20-0 lead.

Woodstock took another Lincoln punt down the field with less than 2:00 to go in the first half, and this time passed for a touchdown.

Woodstock failed to get the two-point conversion, but they lead 26-0 at the half.

Lincoln took its second drive of the second half down the field.

A Pozsgei pass found Alex Bogdanic to put the ball inside the 25 yard line with about 6:30 in the third quarter.

One play later Pozsgei found Jayden Pollice for a touchdown to put Lincoln on the board for the first time.

But that triple option continued to haunt Lincoln.

Woodstock added two more scores in the third and fourth quarters to push the lead to 41-6.

“We gotta try and find positives,” Coach Silkowski said after the game. “We need to win, we need to try and win out.”

Lincoln is at home next Friday, against Mahomet Seymour, then will close out the season against Freeburg.

Friday's loss drops Lincoln to 2-5 on the season.

[by Benjamin Yount; photos by Sherri Sparrow]