The Downers Grove North football team used all three facets of the game Friday night to knock off York 21-10 in a West Suburban Silver game in Elmhurst.

Joe Tokarski had a kickoff return for a touchdown and a touchdown run and Stephen Banda added an interception return for a score as the Trojans (2-2 overall, 1-1 WSS) scored 21 unanswered points in the second half to knock off the three-time defending conference champion Dukes.

“This is the true testament of a team,” said Tokarski, who finished with 76 yards rushing on 12 carries. “We were down 10-0 at halftime and our backs were against the wall. This is the kind of stuff that builds character.
“We were all pumped up and this is definitely a confidence boost. The kickoff return really helped and I had great blocking up front.”

York (3-1, 1-1) dominated the game at the start. Tom Judge (15-of-24 passing, 133 yards) hit Andrew Johnson for a 14-yard score to cap an eight-play drive on the first possession of the game. Following a Trojan fumble, the Dukes went 56 yards on nine plays and Dan Johnston’s 35-yard field goal made it 10-0 with 33 seconds left in the opening quarter.

However, the Dukes were unable to manage much more offensively. They had 81 total yards over the final three quarters.

“We got outplayed in every facet of the game — offensively, defensively and special teams,” York coach Bill Lech said. “We didn’t do anything after those first two drives.
“We knew they were going to be well-coached and well-prepared and come right at us, which they did.”

Tokarski provided the spark for the Trojans with a 96-yard kickoff return to start the second half. With 4:01 left in the quarter, the senior running back took an option pitch on the left side and went untouched 15 yards for the go-ahead score.

After the two teams traded punts, the Dukes faced a third-and-two from their own 28. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Banda stepped in front of a York receiver, picked off the pass and returned it 35 yards.

“This was huge,” Downers North coach John Wander said. “We thought we played better (than the 21-0 loss indicated) last week (against Downers South). But this will give us a boost of confidence to play in a tough West Suburban Conference.”

For Downers North, Jermal Jones finished with 85 yards rushing on 12 carries and quarterback Dan Sheppard added 41 yards on 10.

York’s ground game was led by Judge (34 yards) and Lazerick Williams (28 yards). Zach Preuss led the receiving core with five catches for 58 yards.