Wildcat saves Vikings from upset
Fremd's Wright helps No. 1 seed move on to next round
Fremd defeatS Naperville North
PALATINE, Ill. -- Fremd had done so much to reach this position.
The Vikings had nine consecutive wins, including some nailbiters, for a perfect regular season. They earned the pole position in the Class 8A playoffs with a No. 1 seed.
But in the first 16 minutes of Friday's first-round game with Naperville North, Fremd appeared to be in jeopardy of giving it all up. After trailing by 14, the Vikings rallied to defeat Naperville North 22-14.
With 7:49 remaining in the first half, Fremd trailed by two touchdowns. The Vikings had to step up or get rolled by the Huskies, the No. 16 seed.
They chose the first option.
"We never panicked," Fremd defensive lineman Jack Konopka said. "Not at all. We knew we're a good team."
The offense began the comeback by turning to a Wildcat formation to spread out Naperville North's defense and unleashing running back Evan Wright. From there, Wright showed why he was one of the top offensive players in the state during the regular season. Being snapped the ball directly, he made the rest of the game a struggle for the Huskies' defense as he ran, passed and handed the ball off.
After Wright accounting for 12 yards on his first six carries, he began piling them up in the new formation. He rushed nine more times in the first half for 45 yards and a touchdown. In the second half, he rushed for 72 yards and threw at 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeffrey Diegel.
"It's awesome," said Wright, who got the ball on every snap. "There's no better feeling actually."
While the offense took care of its business, Fremd's defense also emerged. After Naperville North scored its second touchdown, the Vikings forced and recovered a fumble on the Huskies' next possession. It set up a 35-yard field goal by Kevin Schaeffer to make it a 14-10 game at halftime.
Fremd's defense kept at it in the second half. Naperville North moved the ball to Fremd's 28-yard line to open the third quarter, but the Vikings didn't budge and forced a turnover on downs. The Huskies punted on their next two possessions. And with Fremd leading 22-14 in the final minutes, Naperville North had one last shot to drive down the field, but Konopka came up with a 12-yard sack and defensive back Cameron Radis intercepted a pass to end that possibility.
"It was one of the top five moments in my life," said Konopka said of his late sack. "I wanted to come up big for my teammates."
Naperville North fullback Nick Lifka scored both of the Huskies' touchdowns. He scored on a 2-yard run and a 7-yard reception. He had a team-high 66 rushing yards.
Scott Powers covers high school and college sports for ESPNChicago.com and can be reached at preps@espnchicago.com.
