Fenwick files lawsuit against IHSA over Plainfield North loss

The controversy surrounding the ending of the Class 7A state semifinal Saturday between Fenwick and Plainfield North has

been raging on social media.

That appeared to be all it would amount to until Fenwick released the following statement Monday:

‘‘Pursuant to the outcome of the game, IHSA invited Fenwick to submit an appeal to the IHSA Board. Early Monday morning, the IHSA Board determined that it would not hear the appeal. As a result, in an effort to protect the rights and rightfully earned oppor-

tunities of its students, Fenwick High School has filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois seeking declaratory, injunctive and other relief against IHSA.’’

Officials made a crucial error at the end of the game. Fenwick should have won 10-7 in regulation, but officials mistakenly awarded Plainfield North an untimed down after calling an intentional-grounding penalty on Fenwick. Plainfield North tied the score with a field goal to force overtime and went on to win 18-17.

The IHSA released a statement after the game that said: ‘‘IHSA

by-law 6.033 clearly states that ‘the decisions of game officials shall be final; protests against the decision of a game official shall not be

reviewed by the Board of Directors.’ Given that rule, the contest result shall remain final with Plainfield North advancing to the

Class 7A State Championship.’’

The IHSA also apologized to Fenwick in the statement.

Plainfield North football coach Tim Kane declined to comment about the matter in a conference call with media Monday.