8
Import'
November 25. 1992
Football finishes best season by Tim Thein Going into the State Quarterfinal game with Loyola, the Hawks had advanced as far as it ever has under head coach Phil Hopkins. In thefirsttwo rounds of the state playoffs, Maine South was victorious over Lane Tech and Gordon Tech. The quarterfinal game pitted the Hawks against the Ramblers of Loyola, both "top ten" teams. In the Class 6A quarterfinal, the visiting Hawks fell prey to the Ramblers 21-13. The win for Loyola advanced its team (11-1) into a semifinal bout with Homewood-Flossmoor. The Hawks closed out the season 10-2. On the offensive side, the first half was a nightmare for the Hawks. The team's first three possessions lasted only three plays each, and theirfirstfour possessions ended in punts. In their fifth possession, which consisted of two plays, the half ran out. Defensively, the Hawks were not able to stop the Ramblersfrommoving the ball, but Maine South did manage to keep the Ramblers out of the end zone in the first quarter. In the second quarter, off an Alex Barton punt, the Ramblers took the ball 43 yards to score first. The eight-play drive was capped off when quarterback Zic Lalich pitched the ball out to Adrian Autry, who ran infromtwo yards out. Loyola took the 7-0 lead into the half. Taking advantage of poor tackling, back Ryan Gallager scored again for the Ramblers off a 61 -yard touchdown run, giving Loyola a 14-0 lead in the third quarter.
The 1992 Maine South Hawks take the field in the Class 6A State Quarterfinal game against the Loyola Ramblers. Photo by Tom Carlson.
As the momentum seemed to be in Loyola's hand's, Mike Kostrzewa (12 of 25, 164 yards) threw a sideline pass to Dan Wasiolek, who turned the pass into a 76-yard touchdown play. The play was made possible by a missed interception attempt by the Loyola defensive back. The miss left the field wide open for
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Wasiolek, who gave South their first points, bringing the game to a 14-7 Rambler advantage. With ten minutes left in the fourth quarter, Autry broke through the Hawk line for a 49yard touchdown run. This made the score 217, posing a real test for the Hawks' offense. As the Hawks tried to play catch-up, Mike Kostrzewa engineered a 96-yard drive which resulted in a 3-yard touchdown pass to Mark Kufner. Along the way, seniors RJ. De La Cruz and John Giannini hauled in key catches which turned intofirstdowns. The extra point was missed and left the score at 21-13. The missed extra point seemed to dampen the team's confidence, but the Hawks did have another opportunity. With three minutes remaining, Maine South got the ball back and had a fourth-andtwo from the 50. Hopes of a State Championship came to an end with an incomplete pass. Although the Hawks' season came to an end before they would have liked, the team acheieved a milestone which will always be remembered. The Hawks' success came from dedication and hard work, but most importantly, proving that "Believers are Achievers."