Palatine hits playoff jackpot

Palatine's powerball numbers were 60, 66, 75, 76, 77 and 79 on a cool and cloudy Saturday afternoon.

And the plowhorses in those uniforms -- Conor Hanley, Drew Peterson, Kevin Dann, Casey McCabe, Taylor Aiello and Kevin Mitchell -- led the Pirates to a football jackpot they hadn't hit in 10 years.

For the second week in a row, Palatine exceeded 400 yards of total offense as it clinched its first playoff berth since 1997 in a 49-20 Mid-Suburban West victory at Schaumburg's Gary Scholz Stadium.

"Dominating," Palatine senior linebacker Ryan Hourigan said of a group that averages 255 pounds.

"It's just kind of fun running through the holes," said Palatine senior running back Dan Sutton with a smile. "I just have to grab the ball and run through the hole."

Sutton found his share of them as he rushed for 143 yards on 14 carries and scored the Pirates' first touchdown from 6 yards.

And Sutton capped the Pirates' (5-3, 3-1) return to the postseason by taking a kickoff 96 yards to set the final score.

"It's clicking," said McCabe of the Pirates scoring on their first six possessions and rushing for 295 of their 424 yards. "Everyone is going out there and having a good time and getting down to business."

Losing Hanley, a three-year starter, to a left knee injury as Tom Eanes scored from 8 yards for a 14-0 lead didn't deter the Pirates. They kept pounding away as McCabe moved from tackle to center and Dann came in at tackle.

Matt Rossi was 7-for-11 for 127 yards and Mookie Williams' catches of 10, 9 and 79 yards went for scores. Chris Norman rushed for 75 yards and James Silviera's 4-yard run capped a 16-play, 98-yard drive that took 8:01.

"That's two games in a row offensively we've played pretty well," said Palatine coach Tyler Donnelly.

The defense also delivered. Hourigan, Ryan Cortez, Conor Deal and Monroe Brooks were in on 6 sacks and set up short fields of 32 and 44 yards for the first two scores.

Schaumburg (4-4, 2-2) got within 14-7 and 28-14 on rushing touchdowns by quarterback Cody Logsdon (18-for-26, 239 yards). Coach Mark Stilling said he thought Logsdon was OK after coming out with a fourth-quarter Achilles injury.

"They handed it to us in all facets from the get-go," said Stilling, whose team hosts Barrington for a playoff berth Friday.