WHEATON, Ill. -- North Park closed their season with a tough matchup against No. 23 Wheaton College on the road Saturday afternoon, falling in its final game of the season 66-14.
The Vikings started with the football and their first drive was cut short after getting one first down as the Thunder defense forced a punt on the Viking opening drive. The punt traveled zero yards through the air, giving the ball to Wheaton on the North Park 35-yard line. The Thunder scored the opening points of the game in just four plays taking an early 7-0 lead.
A three-and-out ensued shortly after the Vikings got the ball back and Wheaton was up 14-0 just six plays later. Junior receiver Jereme Ombogo provided a quick spark for the Vikings as he took a Matt Eck pass 74 yards for the touchdown. After senior kicker Michael Messersmith's extra-point the Vikings were back in the game 14-7.
From there it was all Thunder, finishing the first quarter with a 21-7 lead and not allowing another Viking score for the remainder of the half ultimately being up 49-7. Halfway through the fourth, Eck and Ombogo connected once more for another 74-yard touchdown, but it was to little avail as Wheaton dominated the whole game with a winning score of 66-14.
The Viking Football season ends in similar fashion to last season's with a 5-5 overall record, going 4-5 in CCIW play. Senior quarterback Matt Eck finished as the CCIW season leader in passing with 2,732 yards and second in passing touchdowns with 26. These numbers should get Eck all conference nods. All conference nods will most likely go to Eck's main weapons, junior receivers Jereme Ombogo and Wesley McCloud. Ombogo was second in the CCIW in receiving yards with 1,016 and second in receiving touchdowns with 13. McCloud was third in the CCIW in receiving yards with 861 and fourth in receiving touchdowns.
Defensively, junior safety Ben Butler and senior linebacker Egan Bender were first and second in the CCIW in solo tackles with 52 and 49 respectively. Butler was also the CCIW leader in interceptions with four, further solidifying his chances to be named an all-conference player. Senior back Jaydin Miller didn't have the all-conference year he had last year but he was just as impactful and important for the North Park defense, tallying 31 solo tackles and a CCIW leading 3 forced fumbles and was top 20 in pass breakups as a middle linebacker which is quite impressive. Sophomore cornerback Chandler Hodge made some noise as well, being tied for fifth in pass breakups.
A special thanks to all our seniors who have given their blood, sweat, and tears to the Vikings Football program as we appreciate all that you have done. Head Coach Kyle Rooker and the returning players will go into the offseason looking to learn from the number of close battles they had over the season and work to turn those close games into wins so that the Vikings can reach that winning-season goal that they are striving for.
