Nov. 23--Week 8 was a loss, and to a Class 5A team.
Week 9 was another loss, to another 5A team.
Fortunately for Marist, weeks 1-7 included just enough wins to qualify for the playoffs. And those losses to Nazareth and Joliet Catholic appear to have served the RedHawks well.
Marist completed its turnaround from a 5-4 No. 23 seed to a Class 8A finalist with a decisive victory over another 5-4 regular-season team from a strong conference when it defeated Waubonsie Valley of the DuPage Valley Conference 31-16 in the semifinals on Saturday night.
When it comes to 2015 state finalists, the DVC -- and every other league -- has nothing on the East Suburban Catholic.
No other conference in Illinois can match the ESCC's two state-finals representatives, Nazareth and Marist, who finished third and sixth in the ESCC standings, respectively.
"We knew how good of a team we are," Marist quarterback Brendan Skalitzky said. "JCA and Nazareth are two of the best teams in the state. Our conference is unbelievable. It shows with the run we've made."
Marist's run started with a field goal in the closing seconds of its 17-14 victory over ESCC co-champion Notre Dame and included a last-minute comeback for a wild 59-56 victory over Barrington and another three-point win, 38-35 over Oswego.
Win or lose, it will end against No. 1 Loyola on Saturday night at DeKalb's Huskie Stadium. The Ramblers have displayed consistent excellence all season but were pushed to the limit in their 24-22 victory over Palatine on Saturday night.
Nazareth, last year's 6A champion, will take on Lincoln-Way West for the 5A title after it beat St. Laurence 34-0 in the semifinals for its third blowout victory in four playoff games. The Roadrunners also posted a 35-21 victory over Joliet Catholic in the quarterfinals.
"Our conference prepared us every single week," Marist coach Pat Dunne said. "Week in and week out you see the kind of competition that makes you better."
Quick path to state: Lincoln-Way West was the only area team to punch its first ticket to the state finals when it defeated Champaign Central 42-14 on the road, but that doesn't mean the Warriors lack an impressive history.
It's brief, is all. This is West's seventh season fielding a varsity team.
For its part, West has six straight winning seasons. The Warriors made the playoffs every year but their first. The program boasts a 53-16 record since going 2-7 in 2009.
Seventh heaven: Driscoll's Illinois-record seven consecutive state championships became safe for the foreseeable future once five-time defending Class 4A champion Rochester lost to Belleville Althoff in the quarterfinals, but the other record the former Addison school set during its incredible streak has been matched.
Montini will become the second team to appear in seven consecutive state championship games when it takes on Crete-Monee in the Class 6A final on Saturday.
The Broncos lost two of those championship games, the last two, to Springfield Sacred-Heart Griffin. Crete-Monee knocked off Sacred Heart-Griffin in the quarterfinals before outlasting Hinsdale South in a 40-37 shootout on Saturday night.
Brother act: The last time Crete-Monee played for a championship, its most celebrated player, Laquon Treadwell, changed the game with a one-handed interception that was as memorable a play as any in recent state-finals history.
Crete-Monee went on to beat Cary-Grove 33-26 for the 6A championship in 2012, and the University of Mississippi star's younger brother had a lot to do with getting the Warriors back to the title game.
Juawan Treadwell could have played it safe and knocked down the long fourth-down pass right in front of his own end zone on Saturday night, but instead he raced down the sideline for a 99-yard interception return that gave Crete-Monee a 20-17 halftime lead.
It was the junior's second interception of the season.
Top 5 make it through: While last week's quarterfinals produced numerous surprises and Saturday's wintry conditions in theory served as a great equalizer, the top five teams in the Tribune Top 20 prior to the start of the playoffs will be playing for a state championship this weekend.
No. 1 Loyola, No. 2 Glenbard West, No. 3 Libertyville, No. 4 Montini and No. 5 Phillips are all undefeated.
Glenbard West and Libertyville appeared to be on a collision course all season and will meet in the 7A title game. Phillips bid to become the Public League's first state champion can be realized with a victory over Belleville Althoff in the 4A final.
Mike Helfgot is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
