On Friday, Sept. 6, the Kaneland varsity football team defeated Geneva 42-14, winning at the home of the Vikings for the first time in 30 years. 

With Kaneland players knowing that they had not won at Geneva since 1989, they came into the game ready to change history.

     “We knew it was an old story rivalry between us and Geneva, and we knew it was going to be a hard fought game. It was good that we opened it up at the end,” head coach Patrick Ryan said. 

     Kaneland had a slow start but ended the first quarter with a 7-0 lead. In the beginning of the second quarter, senior Brett David caught two consecutive passes from senior Joe Smith, which helped Kaneland score the game’s first touchdown.

     “I would say I’ve improved from my first varsity game through just working hard in practice and building chemistry with Smith,” David said.

     Geneva battled and had an interception that led to a touchdown, cutting the score to 14-7, however that did not stop Kaneland senior Ian Diehl from scoring again. 

     “I was just focused on doing my job, staying loose and having fun,” Diehl said.

     Geneva scored another touchdown, and the first half ended with Kaneland winning 28-14.

     “We had some things in the first half that put us on edge a little bit, but I think we rallied in the second half and came together as a team and played really well,” Ryan said. 

     Kaneland was not done fighting and kept putting pressure on Geneva in the second half of the game. Kaneland held Geneva to 14 points for the rest of the game, while they scored two more touchdowns, ending the game with a 42-14 victory.

     “I was happy with the outcome of the game, but I thought we kind of started slow. We came alive in the second half and got a win,” David said.

     Kaneland players and coaches hope to extend their two-game winning streak and use their momentum against Sycamore next Friday at home at 7 p.m.

      “I can only hope that we go 1-0 next week,” Ryan said.