Breaking It Down: Oak Forest dominated in every aspect possible during a 42-0 football victory over Tinley Park on Friday night. In the first half, the Bengals rushed for more than 150 yards and allowed less than 30 yards total to Tinley Park's offense. The Bengal special teams unit got in on the act, as well, when Corey Brent returned a punt more than 60 yards for an Oak Forest touchdown. Even after the Bengals pulled their starters midway through the third quarter, Tinley Park was unable to muster more than two first downs the rest of the game with its starting offense.
Patch’s MVP: Ben Santigo, Oak Forest. He set the tone early, scoring on a 20-yard touchdown run on the Bengals first possesion. His 89 rushing yards helped Oak Forest pull away. Santigo did not rush for less than 5 yards on any of his nine carries.
Oak Forest Stat Pack: Nick Ciufia rushed for 47 yards on five carries and scored a touchdown. Tom Zale and Ciufia combined to complete 6-of-10 passes for 167 yards. Alex McEvoy recovered a fumble. Blake Waller intercepted a pass and kicked a 23-yard field goal.
Tinley Park Stat Pack: Alec Mikes completed 3-of-7 passes for 7 yards and threw 2 interceptions. Deangilo Williams ran for 8 yards on 11 carries. Edward Brown intercepted a pass. Nicholas Roser rushed 6 times for 6 yards. Derek Schultz recovered a fumble. Preston Thompson ran for 11 yards on seven carries.
Quotable I: “We have a great defense and offense, so hopefully we'll go out there and click like we did today," said Santigo of the Bengals' final game of the regular season vs. conference rival Thorton Fractional South.
Quotable II: “They're a great group of kids, and they really stuck together tonight," Oak Forest offensive line coach Jim McDonough said of his players. "They really wanted to get it done”
Team Records: Oak Forest is 7-1 and 4-1 in the South Suburban Blue. Tinley Park is 4-4 and 2-3 in the South Suburban Blue.
What’s Next: Oak Forest plays Thorton Fractional South on Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. Tinley Parks moves on to host Hillcrest on Oct. 19 at 7 p.m.
Scores of Interest: Lemont 47, Bremen 7. Sandburg 34, Lockport 14. Lincoln-Way North 37, Andrew 20. For more scores, go to IHSAScoreZone.
