O’Brien: Maine South survives wild one, knocks off unbeaten West Aurora

Fotis Kokosioulis doesn’t have a lengthy list of big-time college scholarship offers. He isn’t very large or lightning fast. But there might not be a running back in the state quite as difficult to tackle. The 5-8, 165-pound junior has great field vision and terrific lateral movement.

He’s been a major thorn in the side to defenses for the past two seasons and Friday in Aurora things were no different. Kokosioulis rushed for 162 yards on 22 carries as the Hawks held on to win a shootout, knocking off West Aurora 42-40 in the first round of the Class 8A state playoffs.

For a short while, it seemed the undefeated Blackhawks might continue their magical season. West Aurora had the ball on the Maine South 1, trailing by two points with 2:21 to play. It was first down and the Blackhawks’ capacity crowd was roaring with anticipation.

The play call looked like a quarterback sneak for West Aurora’s Jacob Jankovsky. He dropped the ball and Maine South recovered the fumble, dashing the Blackhawks’ hopes.

Hawks quarterback Nick Leongas, who played a tremendous all-around game, managed to find Matt Holbrook for a key 19-yard reception two plays later, helping Maine South out of the danger zone.

Leongas did everything will for the Hawks (7-3). He was 13-for-16 for 200 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. He was a force on the ground as well, rushing for 108 yards on 19 carries.

Holbrook was his favorite target. The senior had seven receptions for 115 yards and touchdown catches of 17, 46 and 11 yards.

Playoff games at West Aurora are a fairly rare event. The Blackhawks ended a 21-year playoff drought last season. This is the first back-to-back playoff appearance by West Aurora since 1983-84.

The Cross brothers have been one of the key components to the Blackhawks’ success the past two years. DaQuan and DaVion are forces on both sides of the ball, playing running back and linebacker. They gave the Hawks everything they could handle.

DaQuan Cross had 18 carries for 148 yards and two rushing touchdowns. He ripped off an electrifying 90-yard kick off return for a touchdown in the second quarter.

DaVion Cross had 16 carries for 204 yards and two sensational touchdown runs, one for 48 yards and one for 50. He entered the game with just more than 1,000 yards and was averaging 16 yards per carry.

The Blackhawks (9-1) fought until the final second, indicative of the spirit that it took to notch the school’s first undefeated regular season since 1948. They also won their first conference title since 1983.

West Aurora’s lack of a passing game proved its undoing. Jankovsky was 2-for-5 for 30 yards. The Hawks were able to contain the Cross brothers just enough in the second half to eke out the victory.

Maine South moves on to face the Barrington-Leyden winner in the second round. The Hawks are a major threat in the Class 8A bracket. They lost to top-ranked Loyola 44-43, proving they can handle the best in the area.