There were homecoming fireworks before and at halftime during Friday’s DuPage Valley Conference game between West Aurora and West Chicago in Aurora.
There were also turnovers provided by the Wildcats, and the Blackhawks made the visitors pay dearly, breaking a six-game losing streak with a 35-9 victory.
Senior Spencer Thomas had a 45-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first half and added a nine-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown in the third quarter. Fellow senior Matt Williams added a 22-yard interception return for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
“We were opportunistic tonight when we had chances to make plays,” West Aurora coach Nate Eimer said. “It’s been lacking the past six weeks, but it was good to see for this group of seniors. I couldn’t be happier for Matt and Spencer, who both came up big for us.”
West Aurora (2-6, 1-5) fell behind 3-0 on a 24-yard field goal by Danny Amaro but answered with a beautiful 66-yard touchdown pass from Quintez Jones (12 of 22, 189 yards) to Cole Childs (7 catches, 143 yards).
“That was planned between me and Quintez,” Childs said. “We gave each other this look to let each other know that I’m man-to-man and that throw was a very good ball.”
West Chicago (0-8, 0-6) appeared to have West Aurora settled on attempting a field goal prior to their second offensive touchdown, but a penalty pushed the Blackhawks closer to a first down and Jones took the next play into the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown.
The Wildcats moved the ball, getting most of their yardage from Miguel Flores (25 carries, 237 yards), but they committed six turnovers while the Blackhawks had none.
“Turnovers have been a problem for us,” West Chicago coach Bill Bicker said. “They’ve killed us all year.”
