ROCHELLE — In a battle between undefeated conference rivals, the Rochelle Hub varsity football team saw its Interstate 8 opener against Sycamore come down to the final drive.

Trailing with under two minutes to play and no timeouts remaining, Rochelle moved the ball from its 15-yard line to around midfield, where a sack and a pair of incomplete passes resulted in a fourth-and-10 down for the Hubs with the game on the line. Senior quarterback Carson Lewis evaded pressure and found room to run near the Rochelle sideline, but the Spartan defense rallied to the ball and forced Lewis out of bounds just one yard short of the line to gain.

The stop led to a third turnover on downs for the Hubs, who fell just short in a 25-19 loss to the Spartans on Friday night. Lewis gave his best effort to spearhead the comeback surge, rushing for 40 yards in the fourth quarter and finishing with 106 passing yards and one touchdown in the game. Rochelle (3-1, 0-1 Interstate 8) will face LaSalle-Peru on the road next Friday night.

“I thought Carson had a coming out moment, especially since he was counted on late in the game during some tough moments in the fourth quarter,” head coach Kyle Kissack said. “With Sycamore running zone coverage over the top, Carson was able to find some seams and run for a few first downs with his legs. I think that provides him and our staff with the confidence to get into our spread look and be effective doing more. Carson played really well tonight.”

The Hubs had success on the ground early in the game, taking their opening drive 64 yards on 12 plays and reaching the end zone with a 16-yard touchdown run by senior tailback Grant Gensler, who led Rochelle with 111 rushing yards. Sycamore (4-0, 1-0 Interstate 8) fired right back, however, scoring on a 55-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Burke Gautcher to wide receiver Aidan Wyzard, who beat the Hub defense deep down the field with his elite speed. 

A three-and-out on the next Rochelle drive turned the ball right back to the Spartans, who again beat the Hubs deep with a 79-yard touchdown strike from Gautcher to Wyzard to take a 15-7 lead late in the first quarter. Needing an answer, Rochelle increased the tempo of its rushing attack, with sophomore wingback Dylan Manning breaking off a trio of solid runs to move the Hubs into the red zone. Manning finished with 81 rushing yards on 12 carries in the game.

“Outside of the two throws to Wyzard, I thought our defense played phenomenal,” Kissack said. “He runs a 10.4 in the 100-yard dash and he's extremely fast. The two throws over the top really hurt us and we gave them some short fields, but I thought our defense did really well.”

Rochelle brought Sycamore within two points near the end of the second quarter, where Lewis stood tall in the pocket on a third-and-11 down and fired a strike to senior wide receiver Jack Tilton, who beat the Spartan defense on a slant route for a 13-yard touchdown reception. Sycamore attempted to score in the final seconds of the first half, but an interception by Gensler on a deep pass from Gautcher sent the teams into the locker rooms with Rochelle down 15-13.

The Hubs took the opening kickoff of the second half, but Rochelle was unable to capitalize on its newfound momentum, punting the ball back to the Spartans after a three-and-out. Sycamore took advantage of the defensive stand, stringing together an eight-play, 59-yard touchdown drive that Gautcher capped off with a 3-yard plunge up the middle. Gautcher completed nine passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns while adding 21 rushing yards on the ground.

A critical turnover hurt the Hubs on their next series, as the Spartans forced a fumble by Lewis that linebacker Caden O’Donnell recovered to give Sycamore prime field position. The Spartans extended their lead on a 30-yard field goal from Thatcher Friedrichs to surge ahead 25-13 late in the third quarter. Down by two scores, Rochelle fought its way back late in the fourth quarter, where a trio of passes and first-down runs by Lewis led to a 6-yard rushing touchdown by junior fullback Roman Villalobos, who barrelled forward to make it a one-score game once again.

Rochelle then forced a three-and-out on Sycamore’s ensuing drive, retaking possession at its own 15-yard line with 1:45 remaining in the game. Lewis completed two passes for 29 yards on the last drive, but the fourth-down run to possibly extend the drive ended just one yard short. Senior cornerback Xavier Villalobos finished with five tackles to lead the Rochelle defense.

“I thought we played with great effort and I’m proud of the way our kids stuck together,” Kissack said. “We played against a program that has sustained success over a long period of time and our kids responded to that and battled through adverse moments. I’m proud of our kids and we have to move on to LaSalle-Peru now. There’s still a lot out there in front of us as a program.”