Highland Park dominates second half to beat Lake Forest Academy

Highland Park 32, Lake Forest Academy 20

THE SKINNY: Trailing 14-13 at halftime, Highland Park (1-0) outscored Lake Forest Academy (0-1) 19-6 in the second half. It was the first season-opening victory for Hal Chiodo in his five seasons as Giants coach.

TURNING POINT: After Josh Pollack’s 35-yard field goal early in the third quarter gave Highland Park the lead at 16-14, senior quarterback Tommy Sutker took over the game. He ran for touchdowns on consecutive possessions in the quarter. The first was from 11 yards out. The second was a game-changer — a 29-yard scamper off the right side with under a minute remaining in the third quarter, giving the Giants an insurmountable 30-14 lead.

THE STAR: Bigger and stronger (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) than he was as a junior, Sutker showed he can be the dual-threat trigger man the Giants need to compete for a playoff spot this fall. He had a combined 256 yards of total offense (206 passing, 50 rushing) and three touchdowns (two rushing, one passing).

BY THE NUMBERS: Senior kicker Josh Pollack kicked three field goals for Highland Park, including a 44-yard strike late in the first half that would have been good from 50.

QUOTABLE: “I had a bad first half. I knew if we were going to win I would have to have a good second half. I came out, had some fun and we did what we had to do,” Sutker said.