Sports
Stevenson Pits 2-0 Record Against 1-1 Warren
Patriots undefeated after a stylish win against Glenbrook South
With 21 consecutive playoff appearances on the docket, good results are expected at Stevenson High School.
So the 42-20 victory over Glenbrook South Sept. 3 comes as no surprise.
Running back Joe Cassata rushed for 265 yards (on just 16 carries) and scored five touchdowns as the Patriots doubled up Glenbrook South. Cassata had 197 yards and four touchdowns in the first half, which the Patriots won 28-20. Stevenson scored twice in the second half and shut down Glenbrook South to secure the victory.
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"Defensively, we played good in the first half, but had a couple individual breakdowns,'' Stevenson coach Bill McNamara said. "We knew that if we made a couple small adjustments, we would make it difficult for Glenbrook South. Our defensive coordinator, Josh Hjorth, and the entire defensive staff did a great job preparing our players for the game."
Cassata's first-half touchdown runs were for 55, 60 and 69 yards as he provided all of the scoring in the first two quarters.
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"Joe Cassata is a very good athlete that worked extremely hard in the off-season,'' McNamara said. "He is very good running inside the tackles as well as on the edge. The offensive line, tight ends and running backs blocked very well for him, and he read the blocks very well. We had a nice push up front, and then had success with some play action passes."
The Patriots on Sept. 10 play host to Warren, which is 1-1 after a 21-20 win over Highland Park last week. The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m.
"Warren is always a very talented and very well-prepared football team,'' McNamara said. "If you are going to beat them, you need to limit your mistakes and play four quarters of good hard football. This is going to be a physical game, and we need to match and even exceed their intensity."
"Offensively, they have two very good running backs that we need to try to keep in check,'' he said. "Defensively, they will be very physical and aggressive. We will need to execute even with the variety of blitzes they will throw at us."
