Lansu returns to lead Downers Grove North past rival Hinsdale Central

More than the Old Oaken Bucket was on the line on Friday night at Dickinson Field in Hinsdale as Hinsdale Central hosted Downers Grove North in a key West Suburban Silver contest.

The Red Devils needed a victory to clinch playoff eligibility. While the hosts put up a strong fight, the visiting Trojans regained the services of junior quarterback Owen Lansu — one of the area’s top players. The Minnesota commit made his presence felt and led Downers North to a 42-28 victory.

“The tradition we want to set is that the Bucket stays in Downers Grove,” said Lansu, who completed 17-of-23 passes for 278 yards and 3 touchdowns. “Tonight was a little bit tougher than we expected to be honest, but we persevered.”

It took three plays for Downers North (8-1, 5-1 WSC Silver) to hit paydirt as Lansu connected with Tavarez Edwards for a 38-yard touchdown just over 90 seconds in.

“It feels great to be back,” Lansu said. “I hated not being able to play, but the guys stepped up while I was out. We’re getting healthier and feel ready for the playoffs.”

Undaunted, Hinsdale Central (4-5) immediately responded on its first scrimmage play as Riley Contreras hit Dominic Tressiar for a 75-yard touchdown. On their next possession, the Red Devils took the lead when Contreras found Finn Cain for a 30-yard strike.

But Downers North countered on the ensuing drive as Jake Gregorio bulled his way in from 3 yards out to even things at 14-14. The Trojans regained the lead on Lansu’s QB sneak from a yard out with 5:07 left in the half.

However, Hinsdale Central refused to yield, and Patrick Connors’s 31-yard run set up his 1-yard score just before halftime that tied the game again at 21-21.

“It was wild, score after score,” Downers North coach Joe Horeni said. “I’ll tell you, (Hinsdale Central) is the best 4-5 team in the state of Illinois.”

The game’s turning point occurred at the start of the second half. Hinsdale Central went three-and-out on offense, and Downers North used just three plays to make the Red Devils pay as Alex Fiermuga broke loose for a 31-yard score with 9:27 left in the third quarter, giving the Trojans the lead for good.

“It’s a game of momentum,” Hinsdale Central coach Brian Griffin said. “Throughout the year, we’ve had one or two moments in games where the momentum switched, and it’s been tough for us to come back.”

Then early in the fourth quarter, Lansu hit Edwards for an 84-yard touchdown that seemed to take the air out of Hinsdale Central.

“Tavarez just started playing receiver a couple of weeks ago,” Horeni said. “He’s a phenomenal kid and we’ve been working hard to get him involved on both sides of the ball.”

But the Red Devils didn’t quit and pulled back within a touchdown on Contreras’s four-yard keeper with 6:08 left.

However, Lansu landed the knockout blow with two clutch completions: 45 yards to Tavarez Edwards on third and 4 from the Downers North 36, then 11 yards to Joe Edwards on fourth and 2 from the Hinsdale Central 11 — the latter making the score 42-28 with 2:38 left.

“There were a lot of third downs where they executed and we didn’t,” Griffin said.

Any flickering Hinsdale Central hopes were doused on the ensuing drive when the Trojans’ Caden Chiarelli intercepted Contreras at the Downers North 46 with 1:33 remaining.

“I’m proud of my kids for fighting through adversity that we haven’t seen a ton of,” Horeni said.

Griffin was also proud of his Red Devils for their effort.

“(Downers North) is a really good football team,.and I hope they go far,” he said. “We challenged our kids to give everything, and I think they did. I don’t think anyone would’ve thought it’d be tied at halftime, I couldn’t be more prouder.”

Owen Thulin had 8 catches for 108 yards for Downers North.

While the loss likely ended Hinsdale Central’s season, Downers North, last year’s Class 7A runner-up, prepares for another playoff run. And Lansu believes the Trojans are up for the challenge.

“We feel confident we’ve got a shot against anyone we play,” he said. “We’ve got to focus on staying healthy and executing on every play. We know how much this means, and the learning experiences from last year will hopefully help this year.”