Year of obstacles didn't deter
South Elgin's Wano, Doherty
By Dave Owen
What at first glance seems like a star-crossed season for South Elgin has obscured star-studded performances by senior Alex Wano and junior Ryan Doherty.
While the Storm’s 2-0-1 start was derailed by a two-week shutdown in late March due to COVID-19, Wano and Doherty has excelled through thick and thin in 2021.
Doherty leads South Elgin (4-6-2) in goals with seven, and Doherty, Wano and senior Bryce Jungers share the team lead in assists with four each.
But individual accomplishments aside, an already delayed season has dissolved into a series of what-ifs.
“Our COVID pause a couple weeks ago really came at an unfortunate time,” Wano said. “We were 2-0-1 at that point, and we just came off a hard-fought battle with one of the best teams in the state, Naperville Central, and the result was a tie.
“After the two-week break we faced a little bit of inconsistency as a team. We were not getting the results that we wanted, and I think that break really put a wrench in our momentum that we had leading up to it.”
Doherty had a similar take on how early promise came to a literal halt.
“Early in the season our team came out with a ton of momentum,” Doherty said. “By game 4 we were still undefeated and looking like one of the top teams in the state. Sadly, a couple of injuries during practice took out some key players for us, and then we had to take a two-week break to quarantine.
“When we returned we looked super sluggish and lacked motivation. We've been slowly trying to turn things around, but the amount of games so quickly has left many members of our team either hurt or fatigued.”
That amount of games reached break neck speed in the past week.
The Storm had four games in six days, starting with a Monday loss at East Aurora and culminating with a season-ending loss Saturday to defending Class 3A state champion and repeat league titleist West Chicago.
The Storm has certainly gained strength throughout the high school careers of Doherty and Wano.
Doherty was the lone freshman on varsity in 2018, when South Elgin struggled to a 3-14-1 record.
The next fall was a totally different story. After a 3-6-3 start, the Storm went on an eight-game unbeaten streak en route to an eventual 12-9-4 record.
“My freshman year my team lacked commitment,” Doherty said. “Many members of the team looked at the year as a throw-away year, because we graduated so many seniors the year before.”
The arrival of new coach Jerzy Skowron helped fuel the quick turnaround.
“Jerzy coming to South Elgin was super refreshing,” Doherty said, “and gave our program new hope. He made us want to win and hungry to play.”
The improvement coincided with Wano’s first full season on varsity.
“Coach Jerzy has done an exceptional job with this program ever since he stepped in and took the job two years ago,” Wano said. “Personally I had a little bit of confidence issues going into my junior season. I really didn't know my role on the team, where I would be playing, and felt a little lost.
“Everything switched after the first couple games. Coach Jerzy gave me the confidence and structure that I needed that year, and it resulted in me winning many awards at the end of the season, and a very successful season for me as an individual and for us as a team.
“The culture that he has built with this program is something truly amazing, and I cannot wait to see what great things he does with this program in the future. I have learned so many things from him about soccer, but coach Jerzy has also taught me how to become a better person in life moving forward.
“I know he will always be there for any one of his players who needs him. The development and growth I have seen in myself as a soccer player and as a person is something that coach Jerzy has shown me ever since since we had our first conversation.”
Skowron has also noticed Wano’s rapid development.
"As a kid who had absolutely zero confidence in himself and his ability last season, Alex has turned into one of the most hard-nosed and hardest-working midfielders I've had the pleasure of coaching and seeing on the soccer field,” Skowron said.
“His personal accolades last season (all-conference, all-sectional, all-area honorable mention) were no fluke. His confidence and talent have caught up to his tenacity and his desire to lead. He is the engine that makes us run. His stats have improved this season as we've unleashed him into the attack, giving him more freedom in the midfield.”
Doherty began his South Elgin career as a defender, but his knack for scoring has continued to develop.
A major sign of that came late in that 2018 season.
“My freshman year we were in the playoffs against Huntley High School,” Doherty said. “It was our corner kick which was crossed in and cleared by the defense, the ball slowly rolled out to me at around the 35-yard line.
“I hit the ball one-time top corner to give us the lead in the game. That was for sure my favorite goal of my high school career.”
Many more goals of lesser distance have followed. One highlight of this season was his hat-trick in the Storm’s 6-0 win over Larkin on April 8.
“The first five years of my soccer career (back to youth soccer) were spent playing center back,” Doherty said. “Although playing the most defensive oriented position, I was still one of the most consistent goal-scorers on my team growing up. In my later years, I was slowly moved up the field where I really broke out as an attack-oriented player.
“Learning how to finish and find open space in the last couple of years has made me a serious threat when in the attacking half of the field.”
Doherty’s improvement has not gone unnoticed.
“A guy that I feel like that has so much potential and teams are starting to finally realize and respect his talent as a player is Ryan Doherty,” Wano said. “This kid is one of the best players I will ever step on the field with. Everything about his game is so enjoyable to watch, and I will forever be thankful to be his teammate.”
Doherty made quite a first impression on Skowron, and his status has only grown from there.
“He was a very talented and skilled player when I came into the program in the summer of 2019,” Skowron said. “You could tell he had the confidence as a sophomore. Being a two-year starter (at the time), he kept growing and maturing as a player and as a young man.
“Now in his junior year, he has been on a whole other level. Day in and day out, he has shown that he is one of the most talented and dynamic attacking players in the state. I've said this a few times this season already. (But) his stats this season won't show it.
“With our injuries/COVID break, he's taken a lot of the scoring/attacking load without much help,” Skowron added. “Teams notice his dynamic play, and by the time he touches the ball for the second time, he has three or four defenders keying on him for about 70 minutes each game.”
Wano had a goal or assist in South Elgin’s first six games after the two-week lockdown ended, with goals vs. Larkin and Bartlett and assists in the other four matches (including on Doherty’s goal April 12 against Aurora East).
“When making a great pass and seeing your teammate finish is a sense of joy you feel when the ball goes into the back of the net,” Wano said. “(With assists) I just have been more relaxed on the ball this season. Making one extra pass could be the factor of a goal scored and winning the game.
“Finding and setting up my teammates isn't always easy. But by having confidence on the ball, great things come from it.
“Also I would say I am pretty dangerous on set pieces,” Wano added. “I’m always trying to get a deflection on goal or towards a teammate, and good things end up happening when you touch the ball inside the 18. My teammates have done an exceptional job of finishing their opportunities, so it is a sense of joy when you are the middle man making the plays happen.”
Naturally, the Storm’s big 2019 season holds Wano’s best memory of high school soccer. But with a twist.
“For some people everyone remembers a huge win or a thriller finish when asked about a memorable moment,” Wano said. “For me I think the game that defined us as a program was when we lost 1-0 to West Chicago at their place in 2019.
“I truly believe that game will always be one of our best defensive games this program will ever have at SEHS. Also West Chicago became state champions that year, a phenomenal team, but we showed them grit. We battled for 80 minutes all throughout the game and gave them, I feel like, one of their toughest matchups all season.”
That early season battle was a sign of great things to come.
“People finally were starting to realize this program is legit, and it will continue to have success in the future,” Wano said. “I couldn't have been more proud of my teammates. We all played together and sometimes you don't get the results you want, but at the end of the day we played together as a team. We battled hard.”
Then came the school shutdown last March, and a roller coaster 2020-21 year dealing with the continued COVID-19 crisis.
Wano found one positive of the postponement of soccer until the spring. Playing on the golf team for the first time last fall, Wano (who also played volleyballat the school) earned all-conference honors.
“This year has definitely been different for all of us,” Wano said. “Not having a fall season and then hearing that we won't have any playoff games (this spring) really hurt us as a team and me individually.
"Having a senior season condensed with no postseason opportunities was hard for me to accept at first. Every team has had to adjust, and that’s what we did. We are fortunate to have some sort of season this spring, and we continue to get better as players each and every day.”
Wano’s all-around improvement has been a product of hard work.
“For me my role isn't always going to show up on stat sheets or get talked about, how someone scores two or three goals in a game,” he said. “My coaches have always talked about my scrappiness and mentality as a player. The little things that I do defensively I feel is a huge part of helping others out around me.
“Whether it's always contesting for challenges in the air, or trying to read the defense on their next pass. I feel like my determination to clean up whatever mistakes my team has is always been something that I work at.
“I feel like I’ve improved in a lot of aspects,” Wano added. “My confidence has increased so much more from last season, and I think my knowledge of the game has also improved. I’m more poised on the ball this year and make quicker decisions on and off the ball.”
Those improvements will all pay off with a post-South Elgin career. Wano plans to play this fall at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where he will major in criminal justice.
“UW-Platteville is getting an exceptional student-athlete,” Skowron said, “and an even better young man.”
As for Doherty, one more year remains at South Elgin to further hone his high-level soccer skills.
“I feel like this sport is a perfect combination of all things I enjoy,” he said, “being able to creatively think, and also being able to master the technical side of soccer makes for a game that is impossible to get bored of. The feeling you get when scoring a game-winning goal or making a really nice tackle is unmatched.”
And come the fall, Skowron expects even bigger things from Doherty.
“We highly expect his numbers to match his talent next season,” Skowron said. “If colleges, media, and other programs in the state don't know who he is right now, they will very soon.”
South Elgin's Wano, Doherty
By Dave Owen
What at first glance seems like a star-crossed season for South Elgin has obscured star-studded performances by senior Alex Wano and junior Ryan Doherty.
While the Storm’s 2-0-1 start was derailed by a two-week shutdown in late March due to COVID-19, Wano and Doherty has excelled through thick and thin in 2021.
Doherty leads South Elgin (4-6-2) in goals with seven, and Doherty, Wano and senior Bryce Jungers share the team lead in assists with four each.
But individual accomplishments aside, an already delayed season has dissolved into a series of what-ifs.
“Our COVID pause a couple weeks ago really came at an unfortunate time,” Wano said. “We were 2-0-1 at that point, and we just came off a hard-fought battle with one of the best teams in the state, Naperville Central, and the result was a tie.
“After the two-week break we faced a little bit of inconsistency as a team. We were not getting the results that we wanted, and I think that break really put a wrench in our momentum that we had leading up to it.”
Doherty had a similar take on how early promise came to a literal halt.
“Early in the season our team came out with a ton of momentum,” Doherty said. “By game 4 we were still undefeated and looking like one of the top teams in the state. Sadly, a couple of injuries during practice took out some key players for us, and then we had to take a two-week break to quarantine.
“When we returned we looked super sluggish and lacked motivation. We've been slowly trying to turn things around, but the amount of games so quickly has left many members of our team either hurt or fatigued.”
That amount of games reached break neck speed in the past week.
The Storm had four games in six days, starting with a Monday loss at East Aurora and culminating with a season-ending loss Saturday to defending Class 3A state champion and repeat league titleist West Chicago.
The Storm has certainly gained strength throughout the high school careers of Doherty and Wano.
Doherty was the lone freshman on varsity in 2018, when South Elgin struggled to a 3-14-1 record.
The next fall was a totally different story. After a 3-6-3 start, the Storm went on an eight-game unbeaten streak en route to an eventual 12-9-4 record.
“My freshman year my team lacked commitment,” Doherty said. “Many members of the team looked at the year as a throw-away year, because we graduated so many seniors the year before.”
The arrival of new coach Jerzy Skowron helped fuel the quick turnaround.
“Jerzy coming to South Elgin was super refreshing,” Doherty said, “and gave our program new hope. He made us want to win and hungry to play.”
The improvement coincided with Wano’s first full season on varsity.
“Coach Jerzy has done an exceptional job with this program ever since he stepped in and took the job two years ago,” Wano said. “Personally I had a little bit of confidence issues going into my junior season. I really didn't know my role on the team, where I would be playing, and felt a little lost.
“Everything switched after the first couple games. Coach Jerzy gave me the confidence and structure that I needed that year, and it resulted in me winning many awards at the end of the season, and a very successful season for me as an individual and for us as a team.
“The culture that he has built with this program is something truly amazing, and I cannot wait to see what great things he does with this program in the future. I have learned so many things from him about soccer, but coach Jerzy has also taught me how to become a better person in life moving forward.
“I know he will always be there for any one of his players who needs him. The development and growth I have seen in myself as a soccer player and as a person is something that coach Jerzy has shown me ever since since we had our first conversation.”
Skowron has also noticed Wano’s rapid development.
"As a kid who had absolutely zero confidence in himself and his ability last season, Alex has turned into one of the most hard-nosed and hardest-working midfielders I've had the pleasure of coaching and seeing on the soccer field,” Skowron said.
“His personal accolades last season (all-conference, all-sectional, all-area honorable mention) were no fluke. His confidence and talent have caught up to his tenacity and his desire to lead. He is the engine that makes us run. His stats have improved this season as we've unleashed him into the attack, giving him more freedom in the midfield.”
Doherty began his South Elgin career as a defender, but his knack for scoring has continued to develop.
A major sign of that came late in that 2018 season.
“My freshman year we were in the playoffs against Huntley High School,” Doherty said. “It was our corner kick which was crossed in and cleared by the defense, the ball slowly rolled out to me at around the 35-yard line.
“I hit the ball one-time top corner to give us the lead in the game. That was for sure my favorite goal of my high school career.”
Many more goals of lesser distance have followed. One highlight of this season was his hat-trick in the Storm’s 6-0 win over Larkin on April 8.
“The first five years of my soccer career (back to youth soccer) were spent playing center back,” Doherty said. “Although playing the most defensive oriented position, I was still one of the most consistent goal-scorers on my team growing up. In my later years, I was slowly moved up the field where I really broke out as an attack-oriented player.
“Learning how to finish and find open space in the last couple of years has made me a serious threat when in the attacking half of the field.”
Doherty’s improvement has not gone unnoticed.
“A guy that I feel like that has so much potential and teams are starting to finally realize and respect his talent as a player is Ryan Doherty,” Wano said. “This kid is one of the best players I will ever step on the field with. Everything about his game is so enjoyable to watch, and I will forever be thankful to be his teammate.”
Doherty made quite a first impression on Skowron, and his status has only grown from there.
“He was a very talented and skilled player when I came into the program in the summer of 2019,” Skowron said. “You could tell he had the confidence as a sophomore. Being a two-year starter (at the time), he kept growing and maturing as a player and as a young man.
“Now in his junior year, he has been on a whole other level. Day in and day out, he has shown that he is one of the most talented and dynamic attacking players in the state. I've said this a few times this season already. (But) his stats this season won't show it.
“With our injuries/COVID break, he's taken a lot of the scoring/attacking load without much help,” Skowron added. “Teams notice his dynamic play, and by the time he touches the ball for the second time, he has three or four defenders keying on him for about 70 minutes each game.”
Wano had a goal or assist in South Elgin’s first six games after the two-week lockdown ended, with goals vs. Larkin and Bartlett and assists in the other four matches (including on Doherty’s goal April 12 against Aurora East).
“When making a great pass and seeing your teammate finish is a sense of joy you feel when the ball goes into the back of the net,” Wano said. “(With assists) I just have been more relaxed on the ball this season. Making one extra pass could be the factor of a goal scored and winning the game.
“Finding and setting up my teammates isn't always easy. But by having confidence on the ball, great things come from it.
“Also I would say I am pretty dangerous on set pieces,” Wano added. “I’m always trying to get a deflection on goal or towards a teammate, and good things end up happening when you touch the ball inside the 18. My teammates have done an exceptional job of finishing their opportunities, so it is a sense of joy when you are the middle man making the plays happen.”
Naturally, the Storm’s big 2019 season holds Wano’s best memory of high school soccer. But with a twist.
“For some people everyone remembers a huge win or a thriller finish when asked about a memorable moment,” Wano said. “For me I think the game that defined us as a program was when we lost 1-0 to West Chicago at their place in 2019.
“I truly believe that game will always be one of our best defensive games this program will ever have at SEHS. Also West Chicago became state champions that year, a phenomenal team, but we showed them grit. We battled for 80 minutes all throughout the game and gave them, I feel like, one of their toughest matchups all season.”
That early season battle was a sign of great things to come.
“People finally were starting to realize this program is legit, and it will continue to have success in the future,” Wano said. “I couldn't have been more proud of my teammates. We all played together and sometimes you don't get the results you want, but at the end of the day we played together as a team. We battled hard.”
Then came the school shutdown last March, and a roller coaster 2020-21 year dealing with the continued COVID-19 crisis.
Wano found one positive of the postponement of soccer until the spring. Playing on the golf team for the first time last fall, Wano (who also played volleyballat the school) earned all-conference honors.
“This year has definitely been different for all of us,” Wano said. “Not having a fall season and then hearing that we won't have any playoff games (this spring) really hurt us as a team and me individually.
"Having a senior season condensed with no postseason opportunities was hard for me to accept at first. Every team has had to adjust, and that’s what we did. We are fortunate to have some sort of season this spring, and we continue to get better as players each and every day.”
Wano’s all-around improvement has been a product of hard work.
“For me my role isn't always going to show up on stat sheets or get talked about, how someone scores two or three goals in a game,” he said. “My coaches have always talked about my scrappiness and mentality as a player. The little things that I do defensively I feel is a huge part of helping others out around me.
“Whether it's always contesting for challenges in the air, or trying to read the defense on their next pass. I feel like my determination to clean up whatever mistakes my team has is always been something that I work at.
“I feel like I’ve improved in a lot of aspects,” Wano added. “My confidence has increased so much more from last season, and I think my knowledge of the game has also improved. I’m more poised on the ball this year and make quicker decisions on and off the ball.”
Those improvements will all pay off with a post-South Elgin career. Wano plans to play this fall at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where he will major in criminal justice.
“UW-Platteville is getting an exceptional student-athlete,” Skowron said, “and an even better young man.”
As for Doherty, one more year remains at South Elgin to further hone his high-level soccer skills.
“I feel like this sport is a perfect combination of all things I enjoy,” he said, “being able to creatively think, and also being able to master the technical side of soccer makes for a game that is impossible to get bored of. The feeling you get when scoring a game-winning goal or making a really nice tackle is unmatched.”
And come the fall, Skowron expects even bigger things from Doherty.
“We highly expect his numbers to match his talent next season,” Skowron said. “If colleges, media, and other programs in the state don't know who he is right now, they will very soon.”