Stevenson overcomes early turnovers in hard-fought win

THE SKINNY

Stevenson survived four early turnovers as its defense pitched a first-half shutout and the Patriots (4-2, 3-0) beat Warren (4-2, 2-2) 21-7 in a North Suburban Lake matchup to all but wrap up a playoff berth for the 25th consecutive year.

TURNING POINT

Down 8-0 late in the third quarter, Warren’s 12-play drive ended on downs on the Stevenson 23 when a fourth-and-15 pass was incomplete. On the ensuing possession, Stevenson QB Willie Bourbon hooked up with Matt Morrissey for a 73-yard TD pass on third-and-17 to make it 15-0.

THE STAR

Morrissey caught four passes for 121 yards, and his long TD pass reception forced Warren to chase to race the rest of the night. He also played DB and had a first-half pick in the end zone to kill a Warren red-zone drive.

BY THE NUMBERS

Junior QB Willie Bourbon finished 9-of-18 passing for 174 yards, 2 TDs and 4 first-half picks for the Patriots. He had 47 yards rushing. Conor Okmin rushed 9 times for 47 yards and the game’s only first-half score. For Warren, QB Andrew Nickell was 26-for-40 passing for 256 yards, 1 TD and 1 pick. Maxwell Sorby ran 9 times for 27 yards. Daniel Rockingham caught 5 passes for 109 yards.

QUOTABLE

“The first half was a battle, back-and-forth, back-and-forth. But our defense came up big. We overcame a lot of adversity and we caught a little life, hit some big plays and were able to control the ball. It was a total team win.” — Stevenson coach Bill McNamara