Oct. 17--The points Batavia did not score will probably be the focus of Saturday's film session.
The damage Canaan Coffey and Kyle Niemiec did in the passing game rendered the lost opportunities meaningless.
Coffey caught 13 Niemiec passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns and Batavia clinched at least a share of its fifth straight conference championship with a 24-14 victory in its 97th meeting with Geneva on Friday night before a full house in Geneva.
The Bulldogs (7-1, 5-0 Upstate Eight River) have won 31 consecutive conference games and Dcan make it another clean sweep with a victory over Streamwood (3-5) next Friday.
"You dream of doing it against your rival, and it happened tonight," Coffey said. "It just happened to be me. It could have been any one of our receivers out there. Kyle found me at the right time and put it in the right place."
Despite being outgained by nearly 300 yards, Geneva (7-1, 4-1) found itself down 14-7 and just 6 yards from evening the score early in the fourth quarter.
But the Vikings went no farther, and when they got the ball back, Coffey hauled in a bomb around midfield and fought off a defender clinging to his jersey for an 89-yard touchdown and the Bulldogs' first two-score lead.
"A quarterback always has a special connection with certain receiver, and me and Canaan always had that," said Niemiec, who was 21-for-32 for 362 yards. "What opens him up is all of our receivers are threats. That's why you see him open all the time."
Neither team scored in the second or third quarters. Batavia was in scoring position on four consecutive drives, losing two fumbles, throwing an interception and getting stuffed on the Geneva 1.
"That's been a problem for us all year, but they're a fantastic team," Niemiec said. "That goal-line stop they had was fantastic."
Mike Helfgot is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
Player of the game: Canaan Coffey, Batavia, 13 receptions, 220 yards, 2 TDs.
Key performers: Batavia -- Kyle Niemiec, 21-for-32 passing, 362 yards, 2 TDs; TD run. Geneva -- Justin Taormina, 14 carries, 92 yards, TD.
