Sports
8A Football: Bolingbrook Ready to Take Aim at 'Real' Goal in Playoffs
Bolingbrook coach John Ivlow guided the Raiders through an undefeated regular season, and now he's anxious to see if his team can mount a deep run in postseason play.
Over the final three weeks of regular-season play, the Bolingbrook High School football team defeated Homewood-Flossmoor (31-24), Lincoln-Way East (12-3) and Sandburg (35-6), significant because all three are playoff teams just like the Raiders.
And now it’s time for the playoffs to begin for real.
Bolingbrook (9-0) plays host to Chicago Heights Bloom (5-4) at 6 p.m. Saturday (Nov. 2) in a first-round Class 8A matchup. Tickets are $5 and are available in the Bolingbrook High School Athletics & Activities Office (E120) from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Friday.
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The Raiders—who outscored their opponents 281-55 en route to capturing their first sole-possession Southwest Suburban Blue Conference title since 2008—will be looking to make a deep playoff run behind a battle-tested defense that stacks up with the best of the best in Illinois.
Bolingbrook has pitched two shutouts and allowed seven or less points in eight of its nine games. Bloom blanked Rich East 21-0 on Oct. 19 to gain its fifth victory and secure its second straight trip to the postseason party. The Blazing Trojans are coached by Tony Palombi.
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The Raiders, coached by John Ivlow, last won the Class 8A state championship in 2011. The winner of Saturday’s game moves on to face Marist (6-3) or Plainfield South (6-3) in Round 2.
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