Hinsdale Central ousted St Charles from the state playoffs on Thursday night, winning 12-9 at St Charles North Stadium.
Give the Red Devils their due: Hinsdale Central answered a furious, four-score StC run in the second quarter with a four-goal run of their own. The teams then traded goals the rest of the way.
Down 5-2 at 8:35 of the second, StC began its rally with CJ Nemec's iso from the corner, his second score of the game. (Vince Frantz began the StC scoring in the first, with the game's first goal.) Three minutes later, Thomas Feicco scored his first, and a minute later scored again to tie the game at 5-5. Tyler Chamberlain then gave StC the lead with 1:47 to go, firing one in from top center.
It was a short-lived lead, as Hinsdale Central netted the equalizer at 0:33. The third quarter saw five Red Devil scores, including three straight to start the half; Cameron Caruso and Dylan Ward answered to make it 11-8 to start the fourth. CJ added his third of the night with 1:38 remaining in the game, and Hinsdale Central ran out the clock and the 12-9 win.
StC entered the playoffs ranked 9th by the IHSLA, while the Red Devils are ranked 8th. StC was 6-1 in DuPage 11 Conference play, earning a Co-Championship with Neuqua Valley, and 12-6 overall. Hinsdale Central was 3-3 in West Suburban Conference play, and 11-5 overall.
The teams are familiar foes, and the similar ranking reflects a competitive rivalry.
In 2006, the Red Devils beat StC 9-4, but you'd have to go back to 2003 to find a game decided by the same margin. Since that year, games have been decided by two, five, one, two, four and now five goals, with Hinsdale Central earning a 4-2 edge.
The two teams also are no strangers in Illinois State Lacrosse Playoffs, as they met last year in the first round. In that game, the Red Devils triumphed 10-6.
Brackets are posted online at IHSLA.