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Eagles begin home stretch
The Eagle's Aaron Whigham advances the ball during the West Suburban Conference matchup between host Lyons Township and visiting Leyden Township Friday October 19, 2012 in Western Springs. | Scott Hardesty~for Sun-Times Media
Names in the Game
ROCCO DIMATTEO Noteworthy efforts:
The senior finished fifth overall on the three-mile course with a time of 16 minutes to earn all-regional honors and lead the boys cross country team to a third-place finish at the St. Ignatius regional Saturday. The Eagles finished behind Lane and Northside Prep.
ALEKS KIJOWSKA Noteworthy efforts:
The junior helped the girls cross country team earn a team berth at the Niles West sectional by placing 13th individually at the St. Ignatius regional Saturday with a time of 19:50, not far behind senior teammate Danyle Segura, who took 10th in 19:44.
Article Extras
Updated: November 26, 2012 6:30AM
WESTERN SPRINGS — Leyden had one streak stopped when it dropped a 49-6 West Suburban crossover decision to Lyons Friday night in Western Springs, but the loss did not have much of an effect on the bigger picture.
Before Friday’s contest, the Eagles had won six straight games and already knew they had qualified for the IHSA state playoffs.
With a 7-2 record, Leyden was rewarded with a No. 7 seed in Class 8A and will host 10th-seeded Bartlett at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the opening round. Bartlett finished 6-3 and was 4-2 in the Upstate Eight Valley.
“We know that they (Bartlett) are a power football team from a good conference,” said Leyden coach Tom Cerasini, who has led the Eagles since 2005. “It has been a great season for us, winning the conference championship and we are really excited to host a (playoff) game.
“Obviously now the sense of urgency is a lot greater. We have kind of been waiting to get to this game for the last three weeks. Now that we are here, I know that the kids will do a great job preparing.
“We are excited to host a home game. That was one of our goals this year, to host a home playoff game. We have accomplished everything we set out to do now.”
There were a few injured players watching Friday’s loss from the sidelines, but Cerasini does not think that will have an impact when the playoffs start.
“We are beat up just like everyone else, some bumps and bruises,” Cerasini said. “I think that adrenaline of playing in a playoff game will overcome a lot of that.”
Cerasini does not think that Friday’s loss, where the Eagles trailed 42-6 at halftime, will have any lingering effects.
“We talked a little about it last night, it is one of those things that happened and we put it behind us,” he said. “We are concentrating on the next game. I think it will be a wake-up call as far as how we prepare to play this (playoff) game. This (Leyden) is a good team and they know how to prepare and win and that is what we are going to do this week.”
For a team that won only three games last season and had not made a playoff appearance since 2009, the Eagles’ six straight victories was quite an accomplishment. The run allowed Leyden to capture the West Suburban Gold crown with a 6-0 record.
The Eagles had not run the table in the conference since 1979, when East Leyden won all seven games in the Des Plaines Valley.
“Absolutely, it (the winning streak) felt like nothing could stop us,” said Eagles offensive lineman John Dyer. “We were having some ups and downs, that is going to happen, but we had a good season obviously. Sticking together helped a lot, nobody knew that (winning six straight) was going to happen, but that was our goal from the beginning of the season.
“People knew what we were playing for, we were playing for a home game in the playoffs.”
Names in the Game
ROCCO DIMATTEO Noteworthy efforts:
The senior finished fifth overall on the three-mile course with a time of 16 minutes to earn all-regional honors and lead the boys cross country team to a third-place finish at the St. Ignatius regional Saturday. The Eagles finished behind Lane and Northside Prep.
ALEKS KIJOWSKA Noteworthy efforts:
The junior helped the girls cross country team earn a team berth at the Niles West sectional by placing 13th individually at the St. Ignatius regional Saturday with a time of 19:50, not far behind senior teammate Danyle Segura, who took 10th in 19:44.
Quick Hits
Big Numbers
12 | The average number of points the Leyden football team has allowed per game, which is the third lowest total among the 32 Class 8A playoff qualifiers, behind just Simeon (6.0) and Mount Carmel (7.1).
Sound Bites
“I thought the boys ran well and I was pleased. The team is young and developing varsity experience and I look for them to run a stronger team race for sectionals.”
— Boys cross country coach Rick Mason, on his team’s third-place finish at the St. Ignatius Regional Saturday.
Don’t Miss
Saturday Swimming: Leyden at West Suburban Gold meet, at Hinsdale South, 1 p.m.
Saturday Girls and boys cross country: at Niles West Sectional, 1:30 p.m. (girls); 2:30 p.m. (boys)
