PANA — Hillsboro High School’s football team got two 100-yard rushing performances and the Hiltoppers celebrated their 27-14 South Central Conference win over Pana on Friday night.
It was the first time since 2009 Hillsboro beat Pana at Brummett Field. The Hiltoppers (1-0 overall, 1-0 SCC) have a pair of wins over the Panthers — 2014 and 2023 — but both times came in the Montgomery County seat.
Hillsboro senior quarterback Elijah Patton ran nine times for 131 yards and two touchdowns while junior running back Noah Satterlee carried the ball eight times for 119 yards and one TD.
Patton also connected with 6-foot-5 tight end Eli Zaidi for a 19-yard TD.
Hillsboro, which made the Illinois High School Association Class 3A playoffs last year and finished 5-5, is looking for back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since 2016-17, with just one appearance between 2017 and last season: 2022. But ask the Hiltoppers, and they’re seeking much more than just another postseason berth.
But first is the Hiltoppers’ first home game on Friday, Aug. 28 against Vandalia. Last season, the Vandals went 11-1 and advanced to the Class 3A quarterfinals.
“Vandalia’s going to be a tough task: they’re always good; they’ve got something in their water,” Satterlee said. “Will we win? I don’t know that yet, but being at home, that gives us a much better chance than previously.
“I think we can take it to them, and, win or not, I think they’ll be surprised with the outcome. Even with this win, I think they’ll overlook us.”
Three unanswered
Pana (0-1, 0-1) took its first possession of the season and gave Hillsboro a heavy dose of Ace Henschen. On second-and-eight from the 28-yard line, junior Jax Czaikowski barreled through the Hillsboro defense and rumbled in for a touchdown with 7 minutes, 26 seconds left in the first period. On the point-after, Pana lost center Ethan Jostes to a knee injury. He was tended to by Pana athletic trainer Drew Casner and was eventually seen on crutches and his left knee was in an immobilizing brace.
Hillsboro needed just three plays to tie the game. Following a two-yard run by Gabe Wells and a three-yard carry by Tytin Wells, Satterlee got a big block on the left side of the offensive line and quickly turned on the jets for a 70-yard score.
“I can only attest to my line: my breakout run for a touchdown, the gap was immediately open,” Satterlee said. “I may have held my speed up there, but it was all because of the opening of the line; especially Carson Huber, he was really working his rear end off.”
Three penalties cost the Panthers’ offense on its next drive — a 10-yarder for holding, a five-yard flag for holding and a 15-yard personal foul. Patton took the very first snap of the Hiltoppers’ possession and nearly replayed Satterlee’s path for a 66-yard TD.
“We knew everything (Hillsboro) was going to run — we ran it over and over (in practice) — but we got in the game and didn’t play it right, for whatever reason,” Pana coach Mark Ramsey said.
Late in the second period, Patton found Zaidi for a 19-yard passing touchdown as the Hiltoppers took a 21-7 lead into halftime.
“Coming into this week, I know people doubted what we could do,” Patton said. “But as a team, we knew we could get what needed to be done, done. That’s what we did today.
“We always run the ball. We threw a little bit today, not much, (but) Zaidi caught that pass. That was mostly him: it was a bad pass, he had one hand snagged, so give the credit to him.”
Pana’s last gasp
Henschen brought the Panthers back within a touchdown with a two-yard carry with 8:06 left in the third quarter as Pana scored on its first possession of both halves.
Unfortunately for the Panthers, Hillsboro responded six plays later when Patton found raced to the Pana sideline, narrowly avoided a tackle and scored on a 40-yard run. Despite Pana blocking the extra-point try, Hillsboro’s two-score lead proved too much.
Pana’s final three drives all ended in turnover on downs.
“We showed some glimpses of what I thought we could be, but some stupid penalties and those kind of things slowed us down,” Ramsey said. “We’re running a whole new system and the kids have really picked it up and done well. Just in some crucial spots, didn’t make plays.”
Hillsboro ran the ball 36 times for 305 yards. Patton completed just one pass on four attempts for 19 yards. Hillsboro hasn’t won more than six games since Rich Stewart guided the Hiltoppers to a 7-3 mark in 2007. Stewart, 74, died in a single-vehicle crash on July 24.
The Panthers were led by Czaikowski’s 75 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries. Henschen had 13 carries and 51 yards, with a TD. Ryker Spracklen was 6-for-10 with 52 yards. Overall, Pana had 183 yards rushing on 40 carries by eight different players.
Hillsboro coach Joe Reed said the team’s elevated expectations are fine, but the team needs more than just to be expected to win.
“Expectations are great and we welcome them, but our mindset is just to keep winning each week and try to put ourselves in position to win the game,” Reed said. “I think our kids have really bought in to what we’re trying to do, both offensively and defensively. It feels good, but there are no slouches in the conference.”
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, ryan.mahan@sj-r.com, Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Hillsboro football earns first road win at Pana since 2009
Reporting by Ryan Mahan, Springfield State Journal-Register / State Journal-Register
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By Ryan Mahan, Springfield State Journal-Register | USA TODAY Network
