On September 27, the Chesterton Football team played in a physical match against conference rival Portage, and won by a score of 10-6. The Chesterton offense had trouble getting going, but the team was able to find a way to victory. The offense used a series of plays that included much more passing as opposed to previous weeks. The defense again played a stellar game from beginning to end, and ended up putting points of their own on the board.
Chesterton fans had lots to be excited for when arriving at the game. The town had been celebrating homecoming with the parade around the old middle school. Chesterton started the game slightly later than usual to accommodate for the parade, and the team wore black jerseys on a night that was darker than usual. Chesterton received the kickoff to start the game, and senior CJ Perez took the field to lead the Trojan offense.
Chesterton made some progress on the drive, but Portage eventually forced them to punt. The Portage offense drove down the field and ended up in a third down situation on the Chesterton 14 yard line. Junior linebackers Robert Stabolito and Benicio Rivera got pressure on the quarterback, forcing an incomplete pass. Portage attempted a field goal, but it sailed wide left, and the CHS offense took control and picked up where they left off. The Trojans proceeded to go three and out, giving the ball right back to the Indians, who again drove down the field with efficiency. This drive took Portage all the way to the CHS three yard line, where Chesterton upped the ante, found some grit and stood tall in an amazing goal line stand. The defense again stopped Portage for four straight plays, giving the ball back to Chesterton. During the goal line stand, on second down, Rivera had an outstanding tackle in the Portage backfield, resulting in a two yard loss. The rest of the first half was much the same, with both offenses producing very little progress. Perez was able to get some good yardage from scrambles, showing off elusive maneuvers. But the first half was dominated by defense as both teams went into halftime with 0 points.
“CJ Perez has stood out, He’s a specimen, filling Brady’s spot,” senior defensive linemen Adam Kurek said.
During halftime, the Homecoming festivities continued when the Homecoming court stood in front of the Chesterton crowd. The students had nominated several juniors and seniors, and then voted between the nominees during Homecoming week. CHS had picked Senior Ryan Gray, who was starting on the offensive line that night, and junior Cal Stuckert to be their homecoming royalty.
Chesterton kicked to Portage to start the third quarter, and the Trojan defense made quick work of the Portage offense, giving up zero first downs. After receiving the punt, junior Gus Wisch had a good return, bringing the ball to the CHS 40 yard line. The offense drove down the field with a mix of run and pass plays, but was stopped on fourth down after reaching the Indians’ red zone. Again the Chesterton defense shut Portage down, and got the ball back to their offense. Junior running back Andrew Goveia, a crucial part of the Chesterton offense every week, broke loose for a 51 yard carry to get to the Portage four yard line.
“Patrick [Mochen] and Andrew did extremely well in that game,” Perez said.
Unfortunately, Portage got the ball back after Chesterton fumbled the ball on the one yard line. Both teams would enter the last quarter scoreless.
To start the 4th quarter, Portage produced an effective drive, moving into Trojan territory, but the Trojan defense stood tall once again shutting Portage down at the 30 yard line. On fourth down, Portage passed the ball, but it got knocked down right at the line by senior defensive end Peyton Chlebowski. Sophomore running back Max Soffin was able to take reps to give Goveia rest, and still allowed Perez to run the offense effectively. Perez threw a 34 yard pass to junior receiver Patrick Mochen, moving Chesterton into Indian territory. They would fail to get another first down, but were close enough for junior Drew Pacilio to make a 41 yard field goal, getting the first points on the board. Pacilio made the first field goal for CHS since Jackson Syren made a field goal against Elkhart in 2020. On the next drive, Portage got a 23 yard passing play and moved to the CHS 37 yard line. However, the Chesterton “Bomb Squad”, as the defense is sometimes referred to, responded quickly. The next play Rivera got in on the tackle and helped knock the ball out, and senior defensive end Owen Edlen scooped the ball up and ran it 63 yards for the touchdown. Pacilio made the extra point, moving the score to 10-0. Chesterton would kick off to Portage and the portage offense would score very quickly with a 71 yard passing touchdown. Portage missed the extra point, so Chesterton maintained a four point lead. Chesterton ended up giving the ball back to Portage, and the Indians came down the field with little time left. In a last ditch effort, Portage passed the ball and missed on several opportunities, and they ended up turning the ball over on downs. Chesterton would win the game 10-6 on a night where the Chesterton defense outscored Portage by one point. The Chesterton defense came together very well and had a great night from everyone.
“I’m not very happy with the game. We scored no touchdowns on offense. We still got the win, which is great,” Perez commented.
