Lake Forest College Sports Information
November 3rd, 2001
Contact:  Mike Wajerski, SID

Foresters Play "Complete Game" in 30-6 Victory Over Knox
Offense, defense and special teams all contribute to win
  

A.J. Rodino
Head Coach Chad Eisele led the Foresters to their first win over his alma mater in 18 years.
LAKE FOREST, IL -  After falling behind early by two field goals, the Lake Forest College football team rallied to soundly defeat Knox College 30-6 on Saturday (November 3rd). The win raises the team's Midwest Conference record to 3-4 and its overall mark to 3-5.

The victory was especially rewarding to head coach Chad Eisele, who is a 1990 graduate of Knox and whose Foresters had not defeated his alma mater since 1983. "That was the most complete game we played this season," stated Eisele. "Personally, it was also nice to finally beat them after all these years."

Offensively, Lake Forest displayed a balanced attack. Sophomore quarterback Don Lackey (Lindenhurst, IL/Antioch) posted respectable numbers by completing 23 of 38 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns. Junior Jason Arendsee (Baraboo, WI/Baraboo) and sophomore Nick Rossie (Deerfield, IL/Deerfield) were on the receiving end of the two scoring strikes. While nine different Foresters caught at least one pass in the game, the leader in yards was senior Marty Folan (Arlington Heights, IL/Rolling Meadows) with just 47.

The team's other two touchdowns were scored by running back Adam Niles (Lake Villa, IL/ Antioch), who tallied 59 yards on the ground, 44 of which came on the four touchdown drives.

On defense, middle linebackers Casey Urlacher (Lake Bluff, IL/Lovington-NM) and Gary Wojdyla (Villa Park, IL/Willowbrook) were in on almost every tackle while linemen David Bleitner (St. Louis, MO/ Vianney) and Vince Srejma (Wadsworth, IL/Council Rock-PA) combined for 4.5 sacks. Urlacher, a junior, recorded a season-high 20 tackles (7 solo) and picked off a pass and returned it 56 yards to set up the Foresters' second touchdown. Wojdyla, a sophomore, had 16 tackles (4 solo) and an eight-yard sack on third down that took the Prairie Fire out of field goal range when the Forester lead was just 7-6.

Lake Forest's 99 yards of punt and kick returns helped give them a significant edge in the field position category. The Foresters started 7 of their 14 drives in Knox territory while Knox started inside their own 35 on each of their final 10 possessions.

The win moves Lake Forest into a tie for fifth place in the Midwest Conference with just one league game to play. The Foresters will host Carroll College next Saturday (November 10th) at 1:00 pm before closing their season with a non-conference game at home against Monmouth College on November 17th.
 

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