Tyre Lee helps St. Rita beat Plainfield East

Playing in an unfamiliar environment and unwelcome conditions, St. Rita kept its focus on what it could control.

“We talked all week about going on the road in the playoffs in a hostile environment, with the weather, expect the unexpected,” Mustangs coach Todd Kuska said. “We wanted to play our brand of football.”

That they did. Tyre Lee ran for 177 punishing yards and two touchdowns, and No. 25 St. Rita shut out host Plainfield East for much of the second half of its 35-21 win in Friday’s first round of the Class 7A playoffs.

St. Rita (7-3) capitalized on prime field position, starting four of its five scoring drives past midfield. Twice a blustery wind played a factor.

A Plainfield East punt of minus 2 yards set up St. Rita at the Bengals’ 36 for the Mustangs’ first possession, and it took four plays to cash in with Mateo Zunica’s 7-yard touchdown run. In the third quarter, another short punt led to an eight-yard scoring drive capped by Scott Procter’s 1-yard quarterback sneak to make it 28-14.

“The kicking game was big,” Kuska said. “You always want to shorten the field when you can. We were fortunate to do that.”

As far as playoff traditions, these two couldn’t have been at more opposite ends of the spectrum.

Catholic League Blue blueblood St. Rita was making its 28th playoff appearance. Plainfield East (7-3), a school that only opened its doors in 2008, was seeking its first playoff win after first reaching the postseason last year.

Jake Mayon ran for 133 yards on 23 carries for the Bengals, his 55-yarder setting up a 1-yard plunge to tie it 7-7.

But the Bengals twice were their worst enemy in aiding St. Rita scoring drives. An illegal substitution penalty on a Mustangs punt breathed life into a St. Rita drive, Lee taking advantage with a 54-yard TD burst. The Bengals lost a fumble the first play of a subsequent possession, Eric Walker recovered for St. Rita, and Procter made it pay with a 26-yard option keeper and 21-7 lead.

“When you shoot yourself in the foot that’s crippling as a team,” Plainfield East coach Mike Romeli said. “That penalty on the punt was just a lack of focus.”

Lee later added a 19-yard TD in the fourth quarter.

“That’s not just me there,” Lee said of his two TDs. “That’s my offensive line getting it done.”

Lee and the Mustangs could draw a much more familiar opponent next, with the winner of Saturday’s Providence-Quincy game. The Celtics beat St. Rita 41-27 in Week 5.

“We want redemption,” Lee said.

Cole Kotopka was 15-of-33 for 168 yards and TD passes to Brandon Rivera and Feras Hleihel for Plainfield East.

Kotopka was part of a senior class that led the Bengals to their first two playoff appearances and winning seasons.

“This senior class is the one that paved the way,” Romeli said. “They’re going to be remembered for a while.”