St. Francis beats Woodstock 42-14 to advance to 5A quarterfinals
Tivias Caldwell Jr. ran for three touchdowns, and a 51-yard trick play opened the scoring in Saturday's playoff win.
By Alina Campbell ·
St. Francis advanced to the Class 5A quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon, defeating Woodstock 42-14. The Spartans (7-5) built an insurmountable lead in the second half, holding the Blue Streaks (8-3) scoreless until the final seven minutes.
The game began with a high-flying strike on the first snap of the contest. Quarterback Jadon Wilson executed a Statue of Liberty play, handing the ball off to Tivias Caldwell Jr., who threw it back to Wilson. Wilson then launched a 51-yard pass to wide receiver Greg Bess-Henning for a touchdown, giving St. Francis a 7-0 lead.
Wilson added a second score early in the game with a six-yard pass to Noah Turner. The lead ballooned to 28-0 at halftime after Caldwell, the team's senior running back, scored on a one-yard rush and a 15-yard run. Caldwell credited his offensive line for creating the space needed for his scores.
"They did their job on all three of my touchdowns and I did my job, making reads from them," Caldwell said.
Coach Bob McMillen praised the ground game and the defensive effort in the first half. "Our line did a great job opening holes for Tivias and gave Jadon good protection," McMillen said. "Defense was flying around and doing some really good things."
St. Francis extended the lead to 35-0 with 8:02 left in the third quarter when Caldwell rushed in for six yards. Freshman Noah Wasielewski added a one-yard rushing touchdown midway through the third quarter, pushing the score to 42-0. The Spartans pulled their starters at that point.
Woodstock finally scored with 7:25 remaining in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Niko Chambers-Johnson threw a 56-yard touchdown pass to Nicholas Morrow after an interception by Connor Calvin Garcia put the Blue Streaks in position. Senior Trace Panek capped the Blue Streaks' scoring with a one-yard rush, making the final margin 42-14. St. Francis will host Cary Grove in the next round.
Woodstock head coach Michael Brasile highlighted the progress of his senior class, noting the team achieved its best record since 2009.
"Our seniors accomplished something really special this year," Brasile said. "They brought the younger kids along and showed them what Blue Streak football is all about."
