By Jack Hart | ILSportsWire
ROCHESTER, Ill. — It was supposed to be a test for Rochester.
Instead, the Rockets delivered a statement.
Rochester welcomed No. 1 Batavia, a Class 7A powerhouse, to town Friday night and produced one of the biggest wins in program history, rolling past the Bulldogs 44-16 in a game that showcased just how dangerous this Rochester team can be.
The matchup already carried plenty of intrigue. Batavia entered the night as the No. 1 team in Class 7A, while Rochester competes in Class 4A. Batavia also made the trip to Rochester looking to prove why it sits atop the 7A rankings.
The Rockets had other plans.
From the opening kickoff, Rochester played with confidence and aggression, jumping out to a massive first-quarter lead and never allowing Batavia to find its footing.
Evrim Tabag got the scoring started with a 56-yard touchdown run with 10:39 left in the first quarter. After a Hussein extra point, Rochester led 7-0.
Just over three minutes later, JP Leonard connected with Reece Gade on a 41-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0.
Rochester wasn’t finished.
Leonard found Nate Swaney for a 14-yard touchdown, and then the Rockets’ defense delivered one of the game’s biggest plays. Khordell Gregory intercepted Batavia quarterback Vander-Luitgaren and raced 80 yards for a touchdown.
Just like that, Rochester had turned the game into a rout.
The Rockets took a 27-0 lead after one quarter, stunning the visiting Bulldogs.
Rochester added to its lead early in the second quarter when Hussein connected on a 32-yard field goal, making it 30-0.
Batavia finally answered when Vander-Luitgaren scored on a 7-yard touchdown run, with Rosengren completing the conversion pass to cut the deficit to 30-8.
But every time Batavia tried to make a push, Rochester answered.
Tabag found the end zone again before halftime, scoring on a 10-yard run. Leonard connected with Eli Cox on the conversion, sending the Rockets into the locker room with a commanding 38-8 advantage.
Batavia added another touchdown in the third quarter, again coming from Vander-Luitgaren, but the deficit was simply too much to overcome.
Tabag put the finishing touches on the historic night in the fourth quarter, scoring from three yards out for his third touchdown of the evening. The kick failed, but Rochester had already done more than enough.
The final whistle brought a 44-16 Rochester victory — a result that will reverberate well beyond Rochester.
Tabag was outstanding on the ground, carrying the ball 19 times for 148 yards and three touchdowns. Gregory added 83 yards on six carries, while Rochester finished with 240 rushing yards as a team.
Leonard also turned in an efficient performance, completing 10 of 15 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns.
Swaney led Rochester’s receivers with four catches for 82 yards and a touchdown. Gade added one catch for 41 yards and a touchdown, while Gregory caught three passes for 42 yards.
Perhaps most impressive was the performance of Rochester’s defense.
The Rockets intercepted Vander-Luitgaren three times, including Gregory’s 80-yard pick-six, while also recording five sacks that accounted for 60 yards in losses.
Vander-Luitgaren finished 21-of-35 passing for 234 yards, but Rochester repeatedly disrupted Batavia’s offense and kept the Bulldogs from generating any sustained momentum.
For Batavia, Rosengren led the rushing attack with 78 yards on 12 carries. The Bulldogs finished with 87 rushing yards as a team.
Rockets Believed They Could Win
Following the game, Leonard spoke with ILSportsWire’s Ryan Talbert about what it meant for Rochester to take on a program like Batavia.
“I mean, we got that debut against a great 7A school, so pretty well,” Leonard said. “Obviously I got to clean up some stuff, but as a team, as a coaching staff, they had a great game. We had a great team game as a team, and I can’t be more proud.”
The Rockets entered the night as a Class 4A program taking on the No. 1 team in Class 7A, but Leonard said there was never a lack of confidence inside the Rochester locker room.
“I mean, I get it. They’re a great 7A school, they’re a great program, they’re a winning program, so it’s hard not to pick a team like that,” Leonard said. “But we knew who we had here in our locker room and our coaching staff, and we had confidence in ourselves.”
“That’s all that matters,” Leonard continued. “We were ready to play, we knew we could win, and we thought we were going to win, and that’s exactly what we did.”
That confidence was evident from the opening snap.
Rochester scored four touchdowns in the first quarter, built a 27-0 advantage and never allowed Batavia to turn the game into the battle many expected.
Tabag, who accounted for three of Rochester’s touchdowns and nearly 150 rushing yards, said the Rockets came into the night determined to prove themselves.
“It went great,” Tabag told Talbert. “We really came out, proved people wrong, and we just overall played a great game.”
The running back also credited Rochester’s preparation for allowing the Rockets to play at such a high level for four quarters.
“We always practice hard,” Tabag said. “Practice should be harder than the games. And practice fast so we’re ready for the games, and we won’t burn out.”
Rochester now heads into a bye week before its next game, giving the Rockets an opportunity to recover while continuing to build on the momentum from Friday’s monumental victory.
Tabag said the team will use the time to rest, but there won’t be any drop in intensity.
“Next week we’re going to be able to get some rest for us, but we’re not going to let off the brake,” Tabag said.
More Than Just a Win
But the numbers only tell part of the story.
A Class 4A Rochester team hosted the No. 1 team in Class 7A, and instead of simply competing with Batavia, the Rockets controlled the game from start to finish.
Batavia made the trip to Rochester expecting to face a challenge.
They left with a 44-16 loss.
For Rochester, it was more than another win.
It was a night that validated the confidence inside the locker room, a night where preparation met opportunity, and a night that sent a message to the rest of Illinois high school football.
The Rockets didn’t just show that they could hang with one of the state’s biggest programs.
They dominated them.
It was a statement.