As the Lake Forest Varsity Football Team wraps up their regular season, they played their last home game against their infamous rivals, the Libertyville Wildcats. The “most anticipated” game of the season ended in a 42-35 win for the Scouts.
“Libertyville was undefeated going into this game so we were definitely the underdogs. We knew they wouldn’t be easy to beat,” said senior captain Charlie Markee. “This was the game we were preparing for all season.”
This game was jam packed with events. On top of the tremendous win, LFHS honored football, dance, and cheer seniors as a part of senior night, as well as the Men’s Lacrosse State Championship with a ring ceremony at halftime. LFHS also showcased the new scoreboard which had been granted earlier this year. With new speaker systems and a larger screen to present videos, the scoreboard was admired by many fans.
“The new scoreboard was super cool. It definitely boosted our energy and made the game more entertaining. Overall, it will be such a great addition to future LFHS games,” said senior Lexi Bentley.
What most predicted to be an offensive shootout was just that as the first half was loaded with scores from both teams. Lake Forest started the game on defense, but were unable to stop the Wildcats from scoring on the first possession, finding themselves down 7-0. Unable to answer on offense, the Scouts were forced to punt, resulting in another Libertyville touchdown. Down 14-0 early, the Scouts’ second offensive possession felt like a must-score drive despite three and half quarters still left to play. On the seventh play of the series, QB Danny Van Camp found the end zone with a 10-yard touchdown rush to cut Libertyville’s lead to seven. However, Libertyville continued to march the field and QB Quinn Schambow completed his third touchdown pass of the night to give the Wildcats a 21-7 lead. This 14 point advantage did not last long as Marty Hippel returned the kickoff for a touchdown; his second in three weeks. What could’ve been the entirety of the game’s scoring all happened in the first quarter. Although the defense struggled to stop Libertyville’s pass attack, the offense kept the game close and gave the defense opportunities to make the much-needed stop.
“We all came together on the sideline and knew we weren’t playing to our true potential. We knew in order to slow their offense down we had to play our best every snap and be more disciplined,” said senior LB Nick Angelos. “We also changed our defensive scheme a bit to defend the pass better. After that, it came down to who wanted it more.”
The meeting between the defensive players flipped a switch within the unit. After each team exchanged punts, the Scouts were unable to tie the game, but a 35-yard field goal from Tim Dan put Lake Forest down 21-17. Another stop from the defense gave the Scouts an opportunity to take the lead before the half. Doing just that, Van Camp lobbed a 38-yard touchdown to Markee to give Lake Forest a three point lead. Libertyville tried to put up points before the break, but a fourth down stop in the red zone maintained the 24-21 lead for the Scouts.
“There was really good energy at half. We rallied back on 17 unanswered points to go into the break with the lead. Our goal going out there was to keep the lead and keep our foot on the gas until the end,” Van Camp said.
Both sides of the ball for the Scouts picked up where they left off to begin the second half. A seven play drive for the Scouts ended in a chip-shot field goal for Dan to increase the lead to six. What was shaping up to be a Libertyville score on their first drive of the third quarter abruptly stopped as Angelos forced a fumble on the QB that was recovered by LB Jimmy Scheidler. With great field position near mid-field, Van Camp found WR Jack Burger for a 28-yard touchdown to make the score 33-21. Instead of kicking the extra point, Lake Forest decided to try a two-point conversion and succeeded, putting them them ahead by 14. Things continued to go in the Scouts’ favor as Scheidler intercepted Schambow for another turnover. Van Camp threw his fourth touchdown of the night on the next drive as Burger hauled in another 20-yard pass.
It appeared as if the Scouts were running away with the game as they were on a 35-0 scoring run. But the momentum quickly shifted and things started to go downhill. A one play touchdown drive from the Wildcats, a Scout fumble, and another two play touchdown drive for the Wildcats had the Scouts only ahead by seven with five minutes left. Although Lake Forest chewed a couple minutes off the clock, Libertyville forced a punt and got the ball back with a chance to tie the game. Needing almost 80 yards for a touchdown, the Cats slowly marched down the field.
“The last drive was definitely nerve wracking, but the support from teammates and the people in the stands got everyone fired up,” junior DB Ethan Farrell said. “We were all counting on each other, and playing as a unit was something we stressed all year. This was by far the biggest game of the season so everyone was extremely focused with the game on line.”
On the 13th play of the drive, Libertyville needed to convert the 4th & 2 to keep the game alive. With an incomplete pass that would’ve been the game-tying touchdown, the Scouts turned Libertyville over on downs to seal the victory.
Every good football game comes with an even better theme. This week, the Boosters sponsored the notorious pink out theme by giving out “Pink Scout” t-shirts. This is an annual theme that LFHS started to support breast cancer awareness.
“The student section did a great job at maintaining a positive atmosphere. Given that we are big rivals, I was really impressed with how respectful all of the students were from both schools,” said Scout Nation President Sara Drowne. “I could not have asked for a better last home game of the regular season.”
The Scouts will finish their regular season this Friday with an away game against Mundelein High School before entering the first round of playoffs next week.
