Marist defensive end Gavin McCabe said he and his fellow seniors are on a postseason mission.
“It’s do or die for us now,” McCabe said. “After what happened last year, losing in the first round, we’re so focused.
“We remember what it felt like to be crying at the end of that game last year, and we’ve worked our tails off to be ready for the playoffs.”
McCabe, an Indiana recruit, had a sack and four tackles for loss Friday night to lead a dominant defensive effort for host Marist, which rolled to a 44-0 win over Oak Park-River Forest in the first round of the Class 8A playoffs.
Marist (10-0) will take on Lyons or Curie in the second round.
It’s been a thrilling week all around for McCabe, who was delighted Monday when Marist tight end T.J. Ivy committed to join McCabe at Indiana.
“I’m so excited about that,” McCabe said. “Him and I have been talking every day about it, and to have it become a reality is great.
“Then we came out and made a statement in this game, beating a great team like this 44-0.”
Colin Bohanek and Elijah Teague recovered fumbles by the Huskies (5-5), Jadon Thompson had an interception and Michael Lawlor blocked a punt.
Gifted with short fields time and again, Marist’s offense took advantage, exploding for 31 points in the second quarter to go up 38-0.
Mike Markett completed 12 of 16 passes for 179 yards and threw three TD passes in the second quarter: a 51-yarder to Ivy, a 5-yarder to Billy Skalitzky and a 24-yarder to Delonte Harrell.
“We knew going into the game that our defense was going to have a strong performance, and they had our backs,” Markett said. “We were able to put up points early and then piggyback on their turnovers.
“We had great field position, and that gave us a lot of confidence when we took the field.”
Markett also ran for a 14-yard TD while Harrell scored on a pair of 1-yard TD runs.
Ivy finished with 66 yards on three catches, and Skalitzky added five catches for 56 yards.
Keith Robinson ran 17 times for 50 yards for Oak Park-River Forest, which was held to 146 yards of offense.
“The ‘D’ set the tone,” Marist coach Ron Dawczak said. “They played one of their best games of the year, forced a lot of three-and-outs and turnovers. I’m really proud of them.
“We made plays on special teams, too, and our offense was able to take advantage of the opportunities it got. We got great leadership from our seniors.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
