The Forester football team is making its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division III Playoffs and will play at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois, in Saturday's opening round.
Lake Forest enters the postseason with a 9-1 overall record and is listed among the others receiving votes in this week's American Football Coaches Association and D3football.com Polls. North Central is the top-ranked team in both polls after finishing the regular season at 10-0.
The Foresters outscored the other nine teams in the Midwest Conference by a combined score of 327-71 and clinched the first back-to-back league titles in program history, as well as an automatic berth to the NCAA Playoffs with a 13-7 triumph at the University of Chicago in last Saturday's regular season finale. North Central also earned a conference championship and automatic bid to the tournament by going undefeated in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin in convincing fashion, outscoring league opponents 527-39.
Leading the Forester offense in 2022 are graduate student Damon Bonds and senior Armani Brown, who have combined for 1,590 yards and 21 touchdowns on the ground. Senior quarterback Tre Stewart has thrown 13 touchdown passes against just two interceptions and five different receivers have scored at least twice. The offense has committed just seven turnovers, which is tied for the fourth-lowest total in the country.
The Lake Forest defense finished the regular season leading the nation in passing yards allowed with just 102.8 per game. The unit is also ranked among the top 20 in the country in rushing yards, total yards, first downs, and points allowed. Senior defensive lineman Alex Bendler and freshman safety Thomas DeChesaro lead the Foresters with 46 tackles apiece and Bendler is among the nation leaders with 20.5 tackles for loss and 11.0 sacks on the year. Senior linebackers Dyland Pedersen and Javan Ah-Quin are next on the team in tackles with 42 and 40, respectively, while junior defensive tackle Jaylen Johnson has recorded 12.0 tackles for loss.
The Foresters' special teams units have also experience success this season. Lake Forest leads the nation with 10 blocked kicks and is 12th in the country with 24.25 yards per kickoff return. Senior Logan Persson is averaging 36.6 yards per punt while freshman Beckham Sonnabend is 7-for-9 on field goals.
This week the Forester defense will go up against a Cardinal offense that leads the nation with 574.5 total yards and 58.3 points per game. Quarterback Luke Lehnen is fourth in NCAA Division III in passing efficiency, wide receiver Deangelo Hardy is tied-for-ninth with 12 touchdown receptions, and tailback Ethan Greenfield ranks first with 8.25 yards per carry.
North Central's success is not limited to the offensive side of the ball. The Cardinals have surrendered the fewest points per game (5.1) of any team in the nation and rank 12th in the country with just 221.3 yards allowed per contest. LInebacker BJ Adamchik leads the team with with 64 tackles while defensive lineman Dan Lester has racked up 18.0 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks.
Cardinal kicker/punter Tanner Rains is averaging 40.43 yards per punt while going 7-for-10 on field goals and 75-for-79 on extra points this fall.
The 2022 MWC title was the third for Lake Forest Head Coach Jim Catanzaro. He is now 82-52 overall and 62-34 in the league in his 14th season at the helm of the program. Brad Spencer took over head coaching duties at North Central, his alma mater, in January.
Saturday's game will be played at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium on the North Central campus with kickoff scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
