BREESE, Ill. — Two steps forward. One step back.
Not quite what the Effingham football team was expecting following a Week 3 loss at Breese (Mater Dei) that dropped the Flaming Hearts to 0-3 on the young season.
Effingham lost to the Knights, 45-7. The Hearts have been outscored 121-55 this season.
“We went a little backward tonight. Week 1, we did some good things and I thought last week we battled,” head coach Brett Hefner said. “Tonight, I felt we went backward.”
Opening the game at the Effingham 16-yard line, the Hearts started with back-to-back run plays — a common theme throughout the contest.
Senior quarterback Jack Hartman began the series with a nine-yard rush. Junior Lexton Roberts then pushed the ball to the 33-yard line.
Before Roberts was brought down, though, he lost the ball.
Mater Dei took advantage of that, scooping up the fumble and starting its first offensive series with excellent field position.
Junior quarterback Hunter Hochbaum threw a 31-yard pass to junior wide receiver Bentley Nicklin on the first play of the drive for the Knights. Sophomore wide receiver Cameron Von Bokel then scored one play later on a run with 10:52 left in the quarter.
The Hearts continued to prioritize the run, gaining three yards on back-to-back plays to set up third-and-manageable at the Effingham 27.
Sophomore running back Bryden Kade was brought down in the backfield on the team’s next play, though, for a two-yard loss, forcing the team to punt.
Both defenses held firm in each of their next two possessions.
The Hearts then forced a turnover on downs, but nothing came of the stand, as Effingham punted once again.
Senior punter Brady Patnaude booted his kick to the Mater Dei 15-yard line.
The Knights continued to struggle to put a successful series together, gaining no yardage on a run and then throwing back-to-back incomplete passes.
Just as junior punter Jacob Robert was about to punt the ball away, the Hearts special teams unit denied that, blocking the punt and scooping it up inside the Mater Dei 20.
Officials ruled roughing the punter on the play, though it seemed that the block was made well before the ball was kicked. That call pushed the ball up 15 yards and gave the Knights a second chance.
It was one the hosts didn’t squander, as Hochbaum and Nicklin connected for a 76-yard score to put Mater Dei ahead, 14-0, with 18 seconds left in the first quarter.
“We never fully recovered from the blocked punt fiasco,” Hefner said.
Evan Kreke, a senior defensive back for the Knights, intercepted a Hartman pass on Effingham’s next drive, returning it to the guests’ 27-yard line.
Hochbaum then found Von Bokel for a 26-yard touchdown one play later to extend the lead to 21 points early in the second.
Roberts then ended a 12-play and 11-run drive with a three-yard touchdown with 4:38 left.
The Knights answered with another big play. Hochbaum found Kreke for 79 yards to make it 28-7 with 3:29 to go.
Mater Dei continued its scoring barrage in the second half, scoring 17 more points, securing the victory.
The Hearts struggled to contain the pass the entire game.
“We tried to put in zone coverage, but at some point, it all turns into man coverage,” Hefner said. “You either have to be able to cover it, or you have to be able to get home and we didn’t do either one of those things tonight.”
Very few positives came from the game, but one that did stand out was the running attack.
Hefner believes it should have been more consistent.
“We weren’t consistent enough with [the run]. We could live in second-and-6 and be alright,” he said. “When you’re in second-and-8, second-and-9, that’s not good for us.”
Injuries hurt Effingham, as well. Senior wide receiver Maxx Kistler and junior lineman Hank Nelson were both sidelined during the game. Neither finished it.
“We don’t have a ton of depth to begin with,” Hefner said. “When it starts dropping off, it drops off pretty quickly, but it does give other people a chance to play.”
The Hearts will look to earn their first victory when they host Charleston at Klosterman Field at Washington Savings Bank Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m.