Nazareth senior Justin Taylor scored two touchdowns to help the Roadrunners advance to the IHSA Class 5A semifinals with a 29-0 win over Morgan Park. Photo by Steve Metsch

Nazareth senior Justin Taylor scored two touchdowns to help the Roadrunners advance to the IHSA Class 5A semifinals with a 29-0 win over Morgan Park. Photo by Steve Metsch

Nazareth blanks Morgan Park, advances to Class 5A semifinals

Spread the love

By Steve Metsch
Correspondent

Justin Taylor has not forgotten the sting he felt watching Fenwick celebrate its IHSA Class 5A quarterfinal victory on Nazareth’s home field roughly one year ago.

Taylor repeatedly reminded his teammates of that scene during practice last week as the Roadrunners prepared for this season’s quarterfinal matchup against Morgan Park.

“That was the juice to get us going in this game,” Taylor said after Nazareth defeated the Mustangs, 29-0, on Nov. 12 to advance to the Class 5A semifinals.

Taylor and sophomore running back Alexander Angulo each scored a pair of rushing touchdowns and the Roadrunners offense outgained that of the Mustangs, 213 yards to 115, as Nazareth (8-4) won for the seventh time in eight games. The Roadrunners will play at Sycamore this week with a trip to the state title game on the line.

This marks their sixth semifinal appearance since 2014, all under coach Tim Racki. They won the previous five.

Morgan Park entered the game 10-1, while Nazareth squeaked into the postseason by finishing 5-4. But the Roadrunners have continually improved as the season progressed, and they have been rolling since a 1-3 start to the season.

“We really don’t look at the record,” Taylor said. “Our mindset is to play the best football that we’ve been playing.”

Freshman defensive lineman Lesroy Tittle hammered Mustangs quarterback Marcus Thaxton to force a fumble on the fourth play of the game, and it was all Nazareth thereafter. It did, however taker them a while to get going.

Late in the first quarter, a botched snap on a Morgan Park punt resulted in safety and a 2-0 Roadrunners’ lead lead with 1:23 left in the first quarter

Naz 5A Quarters DefenseFewer than 90 seconds later, Taylor bulled into the end zone for his first touchdown and a 9-0 Nazareth lead.

“Once we got comfortable, we started building on that and kept going,” said Taylor, who gained 54 yards on 11 carries.

Angulo scored on a 6-yard run for a 15-0 halftime lead.

Nazareth all but put the game on ice with a 10-play drive to start the second half. This time, Taylor finished it by scoring from six yards out.

Angulo’s second touchdown, from 7 yards, made it 29-0 with 7:04 remaining in the game. Angulo gained 88 yards on 21 carries.

Sophomore wide receiver James Penley had two catches for 32 yards.

Racki said a tough schedule improved his young team each week.

“It was about Week 7 when you saw the maturity,” he said. “It was like raising a kid. You see them grow up into men. I took the training wheels off, so I’m a proud dad.”

Nazareth’s defense held the Mustangs to 96 yards passing and 19 rushing.

“Our defensive coordinator, Keith Lukes, came up with a tremendous game plan,” Racki said. “I did not think we’d shut them out, so a tip of the cap to Keith.”

Like Taylor, sophomore defensive lineman Gabe Kaminski wanted no encore of last year’s heartbreaker.

“I was on the field here, seeing all the seniors cry,” said Kaminski, who had one sack. “We didn’t want that happening again.”

The game against Sycamore will be fun, Racki said.

“They’ve been coming here for 7-on-7s every summer for years,” he added. (Sycamore coach) Joe Ryan and I are friends. It will be nice seeing him again.

“We were joking in June. I said, ‘I hope you come back here.’ He said, ‘No, it’s your turn to come to my place.'”

Naz 5A Quarters celebrate scaled

Nazareth sophomore running back Alexander Angulo gets a lift from senior offensive lineman Aaron Bustamante after scoring a touchdown in a Class 5A quarterfinal win over Morgan Park. Photo by Steve Metsch

Local News

Sorry, we couldn't find any posts. Please try a different search.

Neighbors

DCFS hires on-the-spot at hiring events

DCFS hires on-the-spot at hiring events

By BETH HUNDSDORFER  Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com Cyrenthia Threat spent Wednesday morning at a hiring event in Fairview Heights waiting for word on whether she was hired by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.  Threat wants to move to Illinois from Georgia where she works as a social worker. She has 20 years…

Capitol Briefs: Advocates push for guaranteed income, child care assistance

Capitol Briefs: Advocates push for guaranteed income, child care assistance

By HANNAH MEISEL & DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear the case of actor Jussie Smollett, who was convicted for staging a hate crime against him in 2019 in a case that drew criticism for Cook County’s top prosecutor. Smollett made what turned out to be…

Illinois teacher shortage persists, survey finds

Illinois teacher shortage persists, survey finds

By PETER HANCOCK  Capitol News Illinois  phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com  SPRINGFIELD – Illinois continues to suffer from a shortage of teachers and other education professionals, although recent efforts by the state to ease the strain have made an impact.  That’s according to the latest annual survey of school officials from the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools,…

Bills in state Senate would further regulate battery storage and disposal

Bills in state Senate would further regulate battery storage and disposal

COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD — Two bills that would regulate battery disposal and storage are awaiting action from the full Illinois Senate after unanimous committee approval.   Senate Bill 3481, sponsored by Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chicago, would require facilities that store electric vehicle batteries to register with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency…

Prisoner Review Board chair, member resign in wake of boy’s fatal stabbing by released inmate

Prisoner Review Board chair, member resign in wake of boy’s fatal stabbing by released inmate

By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com The longtime chair and a relatively new member of the Illinois Prisoner Review Board have resigned, Gov. JB Pritzker’s office announced Monday. The governor’s office announced the pair’s resignations within hours of each other nearly two weeks after Crosetti Brand was released from Stateville Correctional Center. Brand is…

Highest-ranking woman in state police history reflects on experience as force looks to diversify

Highest-ranking woman in state police history reflects on experience as force looks to diversify

By ALEX ABBEDUTO   Capitol News Illinois  abbeduto@capitolnewsillinois.com  The night before Rebecca Hooks started at the Illinois State Police Academy in 2002, she spoke on the phone with her father and her brother – both of whom worked in law enforcement.  Her father encouraged her, telling her she was strong and could get through the…

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

 By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO — State regulators are once again considering massive electric utility spending plans that would affect the state’s climate goals – and 5.4 million electric customers’ monthly bills – after rejecting previous versions late last year. The Illinois Commerce Commission forced the state’s two major electric utilities, Commonwealth…

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

 By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO — State regulators are once again considering massive electric utility spending plans that would affect the state’s climate goals – and 5.4 million electric customers’ monthly bills – after rejecting previous versions late last year. The Illinois Commerce Commission forced the state’s two major electric utilities, Commonwealth…

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

 By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO — State regulators are once again considering massive electric utility spending plans that would affect the state’s climate goals – and 5.4 million electric customers’ monthly bills – after rejecting previous versions late last year. The Illinois Commerce Commission forced the state’s two major electric utilities, Commonwealth…

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

After being rebuffed by regulators, utilities file slimmed-down spending plans

 By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO — State regulators are once again considering massive electric utility spending plans that would affect the state’s climate goals – and 5.4 million electric customers’ monthly bills – after rejecting previous versions late last year. The Illinois Commerce Commission forced the state’s two major electric utilities, Commonwealth…