Rams Tame Panthers 47-6

The outcome of the football game between Grayslake Central and Round Lake was decided early Friday night as the Rams jumped to a 14-0 first quarter lead and then extended it to 34-0 by the half.

Senior running back Joey Valdivia had a monster night. He had two rushing touchdowns and two more on pass receptions. It became quite apparent last night that Valdivia has completely recovered from the nagging ankle injuries of last year as he rushed for nearly 50 yards and caught three short passes that he galloped with for 150 yards.

Senior quarterback Ray Beckman had a big night directing the offense going 8 of 11 for 230 yards and 4 TDs. Two of those touchdowns were to Valdivia and two went to junior wideout Vince Smith. Smith had 3 receptions (2 for touchdowns) for 61 yards.

Senior kicker Jon Gurchak was booming his kickoffs and kept the Panthers backed up with difficult field position to start their drives. He blasted one of his kicks into the end zone for an automatic touchback.

Defensively, the Rams intercepted Round Lake three times. Defensive tackle Charlie Risinger, Defensive end Jimmy Molitor and sophomore Matt Loeffl all had picks to shut down Panther drives. Senior linebacker Jake Paust was involved in many big plays including a tackle of the Panther QB on a fake punt play that led to the first of Valdivia’s touchdowns.

"Coach Goshe does a great job getting us ready to play every week," Paust said.

There was much that happened last night to please Head Coach Nick Goshe. "We got the effort we wanted – the effort we expected. We were able to do things offensively because we showed them some wrinkles that they hadn’t seen before. Of course, they did the same to us."

The Panthers played the second half as if they were up 34-0, which is a credit to Head Coach John Coursey and his coaching staff. "John has those guys playing hard right to the very end," said Goshe. "They kept coming and scored on us at the end. He should feel proud of his kids – attitude and effort."

With many subs getting playing time for the Rams in the fourth quarter, Round Lake snapped the shutout on a nifty 44-yard run by the Panther quarterback Anthony Burton. The ensuing 2-point conversion was stopped by the Rams defense.

Next Friday, the Rams host Grant who defeated Johnsburg 42-0. "They are a great opponent and we have work to do. We’ve got to work," said Goshe. "It’s going to be two good football teams going at it next week."