Minutes before the start of Highland Park High School’s home football game against Maine East on Oct. 14, the PA announcer blared, “Ladies and gentlemen, what do you think of the pink?”
Not exactly Michael Buffer’s arena-shaking, pre-boxing bout outburst, “Let’s get ready to rummmmmmble!”
But it was “Breast Cancer Awareness Night”, and HP’s Giants wore striking pink jerseys, HP coach Joe Horeni’s idea.
“They looked sharp,” Horeni said of the threads.
His Giants?
They played a sharp brand of football on Senior Night, scoring 42 unanswered points en route to a 55-12 rout of the visitors from Park Ridge. The win clinched a playoff berth. The win left Highland Park (6-2, 3-1 in the Central Suburban League North) in a three-tie for first place in the division, with one week remaining in the regular season.
Vernon Hills High School edged Glenbrook North 26-25 on Oct. 14. Those schools are also 3-1 in the CSL North.
HP hosts Vernon Hills (6-2), while Glenbrook North (7-1) visits Maine West (4-4, 2-2) on Oct. 21.
“We’ll get to play for something,” Horeni said, alluding to a division title and a likely home playoff opener.
Maine East opened the game against HP with an onside kick and recovered it on the 50-yard line. The Blue Demons (1-7, 0-4) scored on a 10-yard run but did not score again until they were trailing 42-6 near the end of the third quarter.
HP, which led 35-6 at the half, tallied its first six touchdowns in a variety ways: recovery of its own fumble on a run; two touchdown passes; a TD return following a Maine East fumble; and two TD runs.
Giants sophomore running back/linebacker Giancarlo Volpentesta, busy and productive, caught one of the TD passes (a 17-yarder) from junior quarterback John Sakos, raced 43 yards for another score (fumble return) and secured a Highland Park onside kick that set up a 17-yard TD run from junior Jeremy Allen.
Sakos (4-of-11, 86 yards, two TDs) and senior tight end Ben Fishman connected for a 30-yard score at 6:55 of the second quarter. Giants senior running back D.J. Penick (11 rushes, 98 yards, two TDs) scooped up teammate David Adelstein’s fumble in the first quarter and sprinted 35 yards to complete a scoring sequence that had begun right at midfield. Penick added a one-year TD burst, capping the hosts’ 42-0 spree.
HP also received a 27-yard TD run from junior D.J. Westbrook and an eight-yard rushing TD from senior Aaron Jaffe, each of the scores coming in the final 1:30 of the third quarter.