Cade Earl-Jordan Jones connection sends Joliet Catholic to playoffs

THE SKINNY

Joliet Catholic (6-1, 4-1) scored 42 seconds into the game on a 17-yard pass from Cade Earl to Jordan Jones. Less than four minutes later, Earl hooked up with Zach Rezin on a 67-yard pass, setting up a three-yard scoring run by Mike Ivlow for a 14-0 lead en route to a 30-14 East Suburban Catholic win.

TURNING POINT

Carmel (1-6, 1-4) was within a touchdown late in the second quarter, but a safety was followed by an Earl to Jones 21-yard deep fade in the end zone to push the Hilltoppers’ lead to 23-7 at halftime.

THE STAR

Earl was 6-of-9 for 194 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Ivlow had 24 carries for 140 yards and two touchdowns.

BY THE NUMBERS

Joliet Catholic’s Zach Rezin had 108 yards receiving and Jones had 86 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively for the Hilltoppers, linebacker Anthony McInerney had three tackles for a loss, including a sack. Carmel’s Joy Hoy carried the ball 14 times for 90 yards, including a 51-yard touchdown.

QUOTABLE

“All week we were working on throwing the ball to the flat. I don’t think they expected us to pass the ball at the beginning.” — Earl