Week 3: Stockton vs Rockford Christian
The Stockton Blackhawks were able to give Coach Matt Leitzen his first win back in maroon and gold after a 44-20 win over the Rockford Christian Royal Lions. As dusk began to settle at John O’Boyle Field so too did the Blackhawks defense as they would shut out the Royal Lions in the second half, the first half though was a different ballgame.
The Blackhawks and Royal Lions could not wrestle momentum from each other throughout the opening quarter and as the teams went scoreless in the opening quarter, the teams brought their offensive might to the second quarter as the Royal Lions struck first with a deep pass from Norquist to Johnson to put the visitors up 7-0 in the opening minutes of the quarter. Stockton responded at the 6:33 mark after a lengthy drive ended with a Hermann 5-yard touchdown run, but a failed extra point attempt left the Royal Lions up 7-6.
On the Royal Lions next play, they dialed up yet another long pass from Norquist to Johnson to put the team up 13-6 after the Blackhawks blocked the extra point attempt with 6:16 left on the clock.
The offensive showdown continued as Broshous carried it around the left tackle for an 8-yard touchdown, but another missed extra point kept the Blackhawks down one, 13-12 with 3:09 left on the clock.
After a defensive stand by the Blackhawks, the maroon and gold were in position to take control of the game, but a missed pitch from Andrew Haas ended up in the hands of Rockford Christian’s Wiebe who took the ball 60-yards for a touchdown as the Royal Lions went up 20-12 with 1:34 left to play.
The next drive was crucial for the Blackhawks and Leitzen knew it as he dialed up a pass from Mammoser to Haas for a 49-yard touchdown, the two-point conversion by Hermann gave the Blackhawks the momentum that they needed to knot the game at 20-20 going into the halftime break.
The momentum carried through on both sides of the ball as the Blackhawks asserted their dominance over the visitors. The scoring began for the Blackhawks with a seven-yard run by Haas at the 7:56 mark of the third quarter to give Stockton its first lead of the game.
At the end of the third quarter, another lengthy drive for the Blackhawks was capped by a Hunter Hille 14-yard run that gave the Blackhawks a 36-20 lead.
Entering the fourth quarter, the Blackhawks continued their dominance on both ends of the field and capped the game with a Hermann five-yard touchdown to give Stockton a 44-20 win. A Keeffer interception on the last drive for the Royal Lions sealed the win.
The Blackhawks will next travel to Hazel Green, Wisconsin to face the Galena Pirates in a rivalry matchup. Stockton is on a four game winning streak against the Pirates. The longest win streak for Stockton in the series since 1991-94.