Batavia Football Holds Off Wheaton Warrenville South 27-24
GMedia Reporting | Oct 16, 2026
BATAVIA, Ill. — The Batavia High School football team earned a hard-fought 27-24 victory against Wheaton Warrenville South High School on Friday night at Bulldog Stadium in Batavia, Illinois.
The Bulldogs established momentum early in the first quarter with an effective opening drive. Charlie Rosengren (#7) capped off the initial possession by taking a 1-yard handoff from quarterback Michael Vander Luitgaren (#8) into the end zone. Although the Tigers blocked the extra-point kick attempt, Batavia struck again shortly after. Vander Luitgaren pushed through defensive contact for a 3-yard rushing touchdown. Batavia then successfully executed a two-point conversion pass from Vander Luitgaren to Zeng (#14), extending the home team’s lead to 14–0.
Wheaton Warrenville South mounted a strong response during the second quarter. The Tigers got on the board when wide receiver Blake Ittersagen (#13) hauled in a touchdown pass while fighting off Batavia defender Luke Gardner (#24). Kicker Drew Maletich (#82) converted the extra point to bring the score to 14–7. On a subsequent drive, Tigers running back Trent Simpson (#23) spun off a defender and drove into the end zone for a rushing touchdown. Another extra point from Maletich tied the game at 14–14.
Batavia quickly answered before the end of the first half. Vander Luitgaren connected with receiver Thomas Prescott (#3), who caught a pass near the goal line to score a touchdown with 1:14 remaining in the quarter. Although the extra point attempt missed, Batavia carried a 20/14 lead into halftime. Receiver Darin Ashiru (#13) also helped propel Batavia’s offensive drive during the half.
Defensive play dominated the third quarter as both teams made critical stops to keep each other out of the end zone. Action escalated again in the fourth quarter when Maletich kicked a field goal to trim Batavia’s lead to 20–17. The Bulldogs responded as Zeng scored a late touchdown with 2:48 left on the clock, pushing the score to 27–17 after a successful extra point. Wheaton Warrenville South continued to fight back as Jacob Bellows (#88) scored a late rushing touchdown. The extra point brought the Tigers within three points at 27–24, but Batavia ran out the remaining clock to secure the Senior Night victory.
