Friday night’s Southwest Valley Blue game between Lockport and Naperville North that seemed like there would be little scoring opened up in the fourth quarter.
The game came down to whether Huskies kicker Leo Taylor could make a 56-yard field goal with one second left and force overtime.
The kick fell short, and the Porters (2-3, 1-2) spoiled the Huskies’ homecoming game with a 20-17 win, Lockport’s first in conference play.
“We’re happy, we’re proud,” said Porters coach George Czart. “We got the monkey off our back, and now, we move onto the other Naperville school — Central (next week).
A 23-yard field goal by Taylor that opened the second quarter was the lone first-half score for the Huskies (2-3, 1-2). Earlier, the Huskies got near the end zone, but couldn’t punch it in as time ran out on the first quarter.
Lockport got back in business when Brendan Mecher (155 yards on 10-of-15 passing) needed just under four minutes to command a drive that culminated in a 7-yard touchdown run for Christopher Miller (98 yards on 21 carries).
The Porters marched down the field in the first couple minutes of the second half, but Will Wagner recovered a fumble for a much-needed Huskies break.
Josiah Nothacker (233 yards on 17-of-26 passing) hit Jack Zitko for a 39-yard reception. Soon after, William Eloe (99 yards on 26 carries) ran for a 2-yard touchdown for a 10-6 lead going to the fourth quarter.
The Porters then ended a drive that lasted over eight minutes when Miller scored from 3 yards out on fourth-and-1, his second touchdown of the night.
With the game hanging in the balance, Nothacker found Zitko again for a 38-yard touchdown, also on fourth down, to put the Huskies back on top.
But the Porters needed only 46 seconds to see Mercher throw a 60-yard touchdown pass to Colton Benaitis, his only catch of the game, that put Lockport up 20-17 and proved to be the difference.
“I’m super proud of our kids,” said Huskies coach Sean Drendel. “I think we did a lot of good things. We just didn’t do enough.”
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250926/prep-football/naperville-norths-4th-quarter-lead-slips-away-against-lockport/