St. Rita senior linebacker Owen Lynch was understandably unhappy taking the field for the second half of a Class 7A state quarterfinal at Hersey.
The whole Mustangs defense was.
After all, St. Rita had given up 28 first-half points in a high-scoring, back-and-forth first two quarters.
There was no time to waste to turn things around.
The St. Rita defense delivered a crucial stand on a third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 in its own red zone to stall a Hersey drive, a key moment in a 56-42 victory on Nov. 15.
“It was definitely frustrating,” Lynch said. “I don’t think it was a skill issue with our guys. Hersey is a good offense. It was us being out of place, some miscommunication, stuff like that. Everyone got angry. We knew we had to stop them right there. We knew we could make so much more momentum through our defense as a whole.”
St. Rita (8-4) hosts Batavia (10-2) at 2 p.m. Nov. 22 in the semifinals. Downers Grove North (10-2) plays at Brother Rice (11-1) in the other semifinal.
The Mustangs led 42-28 late in the third quarter with Hersey driving before ultimately stalling at the 12-yard line.
On back-to-back run plays, the St. Rita defensive line held its ground as Hersey turned the ball over on downs.
On the next possession, senior quarterback Steven Armbruster hit senior Langston Smith for a 50-yard TD pass as the Mustangs went up 49-28 early in the fourth.
Lynch is a three-year varsity player and two-year starter.
St. Rita battled through a tough regular season, losing a stretch of four of five games to Mount Carmel (12-0), Brother Rice (11-1), St. Francis (9-3) and Nazareth (11-1). All of those teams have reached the semifinals.
“People doubted us when we had four losses,” Lynch said. “We picked it up and now we’re one game away from state.”
Lynch said he’s enjoyed stepping into a bigger leadership role as a senior, especially after playing last year with star linebackers James Kingsbury and Justin Buckner.
“They really brought the team together,” Lynch said. “I felt like it was my job as a defensive leader (this year). The defense works great together when we’re all on the same page.”
Armbruster finished an uber-efficient 9-for-10 passing for 272 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for two TD.
He connected with senior Walter Jones (four catches, 185 yards) for touchdown receptions of 62 and 79 yards, respectively.
“Our skill group, we hadn’t played to our potential until today,” Armbruster said. “Tonight, we really lit up the scoreboard and played to our highest potential. Hopefully, we can carry that over into next week.”
Senior James Franklin III chipped in with a key interception in the fourth to help seal the victory.
“It’s staying on the same page and being one unit,” Franklin said. “It’s being a team and picking each other up. We’ve got to finish (as a team). That’s what we said going into halftime. We can’t keep giving them third and fourth downs.”
Junior Brandon Johnson Jr. (20 carries, 112 yards, TD) and senior Damon Sutton (eight carries, 90 yards, TD) anchored the St. Rita rushing attack.