Lake Forest College Sports Information
November 3, 2007
Contact:  Mike Wajerski, SID

Lake Forest Wins at Carroll College in Dramatic Fashion
Jeff Ziemnik scores winning touchdown with 15 seconds remaining


Jeff Ziemnik
Chad Zimborski
Justin Ellerman
WAUKESHA, Wis. - The Forester football team closed out the 2007 season with a thrilling 26-25 victory at Carroll College Saturday (November 3) night. Both teams finished the season with a 5-5 overall record and a fourth-place 5-4 mark in the Midwest Conference.

The game started well for the visitors, who traveled 63 yards in seven plays on their opening possession and took a 6-0 lead on a 1-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Brock Stenberg (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven). Senior quarterback Jeff Ziemnik (Oswego, Ill./Oswego) helped set up the score by completing all three of his pass attempts for 45 yards and running twice for 14 yards.

After a Carroll punt and interception at the Forester 30-yard line, the Pioneers took the lead on a 13-yard touchdown pass and successful extra point.

The teams then traded turnovers, including a fumble recovery by Forester senior safety Ed Kidd (Round Lake, Ill./Buffalo Grove) after junior safety Matt Lawler (Chicago, Ill./St. Rita) jarred the ball loose. Both teams punted early in the second quarter, followed by a quick scoring drive by Lake Forest. Starting from the Forester 44, Ziemnik completed passes of 36 and 20 yards to sophomore wide receiver Dan Carter (Arlington Heights, Ill./St. Viator) to regain the lead.

The Pioneers missed a field goal on their next possession and the visitors’ next drive covered 79 yards but ended on a fumble inside the Carroll 5-yard line. The home team was then able to run out the first half clock and Lake Forest led 13-7 at intermission.

Carroll drove deep into Forester territory to start the second half but turned the ball over on downs at the 1-yard line. However, a sack on the next play cut Lake Forest’s lead to 13-9 and a 54-yard touchdown pass a minute later gave the home team a 15-13 advantage.

After a pair of punts and a Forester fumble at the Lake Forest 24-yard line, Carroll extended its lead to 18-13 on a 25-yard field goal.

Both teams punted on their next possession and the Pioneers recovered another Forester fumble in Lake Forest territory, setting up a 39-yard touchdown pass to make the score 25-13 with 12:45 to play.

The Foresters turned the ball over on downs near midfield with 9:42 remaining. The visitors forced a Carroll punt which was returned by senior wide receiver Tom Cirone (Chicago, Ill./Niles Notre Dame) 46 yards to the Pioneer 35-yard line. A pair of 9-yard completions to Cirone and a couple of rushes for a total of 12 yards set up a 5-yard touchdown pass from Ziemnik to sophomore wide receiver Hamid Khan (Chicago, Ill./Loyola) with 5:19 left. It was Khan’s first career touchdown.

The home team was able to take nearly three-and-a-half minutes off the clock before downing a punt at the Lake Forest 4-yard line with 1:51 remaining.

A 6-yard completion to Khan and a 38-yarder to Carter took the ball to the Forester 48. Ziemnik connected with sophomore Will Christensen (Park City, Utah/Park City) for four yards on third down and, after a Carroll timeout, for eight on fourth. Carter then caught a pass for 23 yards to the Carroll 17 and, after a pair of incompletions, Ziemnik completed a 7-yard pass to Cirone. Facing fourth-and-three, Ziemnik found Christensen again for nine yards to the Pioneer 1 and called a timeout with 26 seconds to play. After a rush for no gain and another timeout, Ziemnik ran in the game winner with 15 seconds on the clock.

Ziemnik, who leads the league in total offense per game, completed 22 of 33 passes for 243 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions on the evening. He added another 52 yards and a score on the ground, despite losing 16 on sacks. Ziemnik tied the school record with 187 completions on the year and his 20 touchdown passes bettered the previous mark by five. He also finished with the highest career efficiency rating and completion percentage in team history.

Carter caught five passes in the contest for 124 yards and a touchdown. He matched his 2006 scoring reception total of 11 and, after just two seasons, is the program’s career leader in that category. Christensen’s seven catches gave him a team-high 52 on the year and he is the league leader in receptions per game. Stenberg led Lake Forest with 65 yards in the game and 484 this year.

Playing in his hometown, sophomore Chad Zimborski (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha North) led the defense with 14 tackles in the contest, including nine solos, and finished with a team-high 98 stops on the year. Senior Tim Paulsen (Des Plaines, Ill./Maine West) added a career-high nine tackles, including a sack and two other stops behind the line of scrimmage.

Senior Justin Ellerman (Chicago, Ill./Loyola) averaged 45.3 yards on his three punts in the game, raising his average on the year to 42.2, the highest mark in the league.

In addition to Ziemnik, Kidd, Cirone, Paulsen, and Ellerman, other Forester seniors includes offensive lineman Kirk Becker (Princeton, Ill./Princeton), linebacker/defensive lineman Bob Chappuis (Ann Arbor, Mich./Culver Academy), offensive lineman Tyler Johnston (O'Fallon, Mo./Fort Zumwalt West), defensive back Reinhard Ruescher (Portola Valley, Calif./Gunn), and linebacker James Werner (Oak Lawn, Ill./Marist). They helped lead the team to an overall record of 22-18 and league mark of 20-16 over the last four seasons.

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