Buncic seals Cats’ win
Lees leads 6 TD drives as Libertyville takes control of division
Quarterback Riley Lees isn’t the only Libertyville player with blinding speed.
On a night when Lees directed the Wildcats’ offense to six touchdowns, it was a 99- yard interception return by linebacker Riley Buncic that put the game away as host Libertyville rolled to a 48- 21 victory over Warren on Friday.
With the win, Libertyville ( 7- 0, 5- 0) captured sole possession of first place in the North Suburban Lake division. Warren dropped to 5- 3 overall and 4- 1 in the division.
Lees, a Northwestern commit, was fantastic, as usual. He finished with 140 rushing yards on 16 carries. He also completed 14 of 16 passes for 214 yards.
The Wildcats led 28- 14 early in the third quarter when a 35- yard punt return by Jalen Powe set up Warren at the Libertyville 21- yard line. On the next play, though, Buncic intercepted a pass in the end zone and ran it back for a touchdown to seal the game.
Libertyville’s offense breezed down the field in the first quarter, needing just 11 plays to finish three touchdown drives. While Warren managed just one first down on its first three possessions, the Wildcats took full advantage of Lees’ feet and arm.
Actually, the first touchdown was a 23- yard run by receiver Henry Schmidt on a jet sweep.
Lees followed with a pair of touchdown passes, hitting Schmidt for 15 yards and Tim Calamari for three yards. Libertyville led 21- 0 with 2: 53 left in the opening quarter.
Warren finally figured out howto move the ball in the second quarter. The Blue Devils got on the board after quarterback Kyle Debevec connected with Jonathan Lauer on a 7- yard pass. Warren’s defense started blitzing Lees and forced the first punt of the night. Then Debevec scored on a 5- yard quarterback draw to bring the Devils within 2114 with 5: 40 left in the half.
Libertyville responded with another quick drive, scoring two minutes later on a 19- yard pass from Lees to Cam Shaffer to make it 28- 14 at halftime.
Both teams had eight penalties during a slow- moving first half.
The win puts Libertyville on the verge of wrapping up the North Suburban Lake championship and snaps a four- game winning streak for Warren.