Sports
Football: Geiter, Okeke Help Eisenhower Steamroll Evergreen Park
Eisenhower 28, Evergreen Park 9: The Cardinals' running game wears down Mustangs en route to easy victory.
Breaking It Down: It was evident from the start that the Eisenhower Cardinals were going to make Evergreen Park QB Jesse McLain beat them. Eisenhower routinely put eight defenders in the box and focused on stopping dynamic RB Victor Baker. While Baker broke off a couple of spectacular, bulldozing runs, Evergreen Park's drives often stalled when forced into passing situations. Meanwhile, Eisenhower's Justin Geiter had his way, both running and passing. The dual-threat QB combined with RB Leo Okeke for a potent ground game, and Geiter completed big passes when needed.
Patch’s MVP: Justin Geiter, Eisenhower. Geiter was solid in all facets Friday night. He made good decisions in the passing game and was tough to bring down in the open field. He threw an early interception, but settled down and gave Eisenhower a 14-3 lead in the second quarter when he connected with Lavantis Lewis for an 11-yard score.
Evergreen Park Stat Pack: Jesse McLain was 6-of-18 for 120 yards passing—all in the second half—with one touchdown and one interception. Victor Baker finished with 113 yards on 16 carries, but did most of his damage in the first half. Backfield mate Jared Jackson had five yards on five carries, and also had an interception while playing defensive back in the first quarter.
Find out what's happening in Evergreen Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Eisenhower Stat Pack: Justin Geiter was 6-of-9 for 71 yards passing with an interception and a touchdown, and rushed 15 times for 118 yards. Leo Okeke had 122 yards rushing on 19 carries and two touchdowns.
Quotable I: “You can’t win ‘em all. Good teams rebound and win the next game, and they keep rolling with it,” Evergreen Park quarterback Jesse McLain said. “We just have to go out next (game) and show what we can do.”
Find out what's happening in Evergreen Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Quotable II: "We were trying to adjust to it the whole night really," Evergreen Park coach Dan Hartman said of Eisenhower’s running attack. “They came out and played physical, tough football. They were wearing on us by the end of the night.”
Team Records: Evergreen Park is 2-1. Eisenhower is 2-1.
What’s Next: Evergreen Park travels to Tinley Park on Sept. 16. Eisenhower goes on the road to face Oak Lawn on Sept. 16
Scores of Interest: Oak Lawn 14, Reavis 7. For more scores, visit the IHSA score zone.
