Buffalo Grove latest
Streamwood shutout victim
Sabres advance to New Trier final with 2-0 win
By Dave Owen
NORTHFIELD- Streamwood is showing its 2014 fourth-place state finish was no fluke.
In their debut season at the elite Northside College Showcase, the Sabres (4-1) defeated Buffalo Grove 2-0 Wednesday for their third-straight shutout in the tournament and fourth already this season. Streamwood advances to Friday’s 7 p.m. title match against Glenbrook North at New Trier’s Northfield campus.
“We have our goals, and this (tournament title) is our first goal of the season,” Streamwood coach Matt Polovin said. “The guys are excited to get another shutout – we’ve shut out all three teams in this tournament, which is unbelievable. With the young team I have it keeps building their confidence.
“Now they can start thinking about playing for the championship of a very prestigious tournament,” Polovin added. “It’s an exciting time for these guys, and they deserve it. I want them to know what they accomplished and keep working, and by Friday hopefully bring home a good trophy.”
For Buffalo Grove (0-3-1), the match continued an early season trend: solid play except for a short stretch of play, which again proved costly.
“We just once again have to play a full, disciplined 80 minutes,” Bison coach Brad Abel said. “We had that five-minute lapse that cost us the game. We’re holding it together for most of the game, except for that few minutes. And it’s a whole team thing, not just one individual.
“But I’m positive. I’d rather this happen now before the Mid-Suburban League season. Seeing this tough competition we’ll hopefully learn from our mistakes and be ready to go come the Mid-Suburban League.”
Buffalo Grove had the first two shots on goal of the game, including a great threat 31:20 before halftime. Alexis Alvarez passed to Colin Doyle in on the right, who nicely maneuvered between two defenders and lined an 18-yard shot that Streamwood goalkeeper Daniel Dominguez dove to his left to deflect wide.
But the momentum turned quickly to the Sabres in the 14th minute.
Edwin Rueda’s 32-yard high direct kick was deflected over the crossbar by Bison goalkeeper Caleb Mayhorn. On the ensuing Aldo Lazaro corner kick, defender Erie Ortiz made a great diagonal run across the box to deflect the ball off the crossbar. Brian Benitez was free in front to put away the rebound for a 1-0 Streamwood lead 25:40 before halftime.
At the 23:59 mark, the Sabres struck again on another nice combination play that ended with Rueda’s low 15-yard drive inside the post for a 2-0 lead. Donnie Sosa unselfishly dummied a shot off a Jair Zuniga pass, allowing the ball to go through to Rueda at a better angle.
“No. 20 Jair (Zuniga) passed it in, and Donnie was going for it, but I had a better chance at a goal so I said ‘let it go’ and he let it go,” Rueda said. “I placed it right to the side, and it went in.”
Rueda’s efforts as both a scorer and a solid midfielder earned him Man of the Match honors.
“We were working together and just working hard to get those goals in,” Rueda said. “In the second half we didn’t score, but we did everything possible in the first half so we wouldn’t have to worry about it in the second half.”
The Streamwood defense led by senior co-captain Aaron Villegas did the rest, earning the shutout despite Buffalo Grove’s eventual 7-6 advantage in total shots on goal.
“The first 20-25 minutes we played excellent,” Villegas said, “and after we got the two goals we started playing a little bit down. But I tried to keep them up, and we kept that shutout. That’s our main goal, to get as many shutouts as we can this season.”
The Bison didn’t make it easy.
“We played very well as a team and had a lot of opportunities,” Buffalo Grove’s Doyle said. “We just didn’t finish. We had build-up from the back all the way to the top, but our finishing just wasn’t there today.”
Doyle had the most agonizing chance with 11:50 left in the match, when he lined a 10-yarder from the left side off the left post.
Before that, great Bison threats included two Colin Dekorsi chances late in the first half. Dominguez grabbed Dekorsi’s 18-yard shot 16:10 before halftime, then with
15 seconds left in the half, Dekorsi raced in left off passes from Alex Alfaro and Drew Brauner – only to be denied when Dominguez nicely blocked his low 10-yard liner.
Brauner later stole a clearing attempt and had his 25-yard shot snared by Dominguez.
“We had 8-or-9 shots that were good,” Abel said. “We had one that hit the post, and a couple good saves by the keeper.”
Hans Haller was another major factor for the Bison. The tall defender was dangerous on throw-ins (a 35-yarder that high hopped to require a leaping catch by Dominguez) and free kicks (including a 75-yard try that one hopped to Dominguez). Another long Haller free kick set up a 25-yard Doyle shot over the net 7:35 before halftime.
“He (Heller) is a huge presence out there,” Abel said. “He’s the tallest on the field, one of the fastest on the field. We just have to get our heads or feet on some of these throws and kicks. And on a dead ball we’ve given up I think four goals (this season) on set pieces.”
Streamwood had its own great threats even after going up 2-0. A 15-yard Lazaro liner with 25:05 left was stopped on a high block by Bison second-half goalkeeper Daniel Sempoch.
Then with 21:30 to go, a blocked endline shot by Alex Herrera rebounded to Sosa, whose 8-yard blast clanged off the right post. Sosa later sent a low 20-yarder inches wide of the left post.
“They’re a phenomenal team, they’re technical and pass the ball well,” Abel said of Streamwood. “We got tired in the second half, because we were chasing the game.”
But for the Sabres, the night was mostly about defense and depth.
“Last year we had a couple of standout guys,” Polovin said. “This year we have a big group that if you put them out there, they’re going to do a nice job.
“Our defense did well holding their own and staying organized. An unfortunate injury to Jair (Zuniga, with 20:44 left), his ankle got a little tweeked, but we put in Martin Munoz, and he did a great job out there. That shows when you have a team that plays with chemistry and unity, they’re getting it.”
While many Sabres like Munoz, Ortiz, Lazaro and Rueda had strong individual defensive moments, Villegas made multiple steals or shot denials and was the glue to the defense.
“Aaron Villegas really kept the guys organized back there, did a lot of talking and made sure guys were where they were supposed to be,” Polovin said. “When they had pressure, there was always cover. Aaron made sure they were organized that way. I thought he did a really nice job.”
With one exception, Villegas has been impressed by the defense’s play this fall.
“Wheeling (a 3-2 loss Aug. 27) was bad communication, and we weren’t all in sync,” Villegas said. “There was no flow. Our coaches push us, so we have to learn.”
The Sabres have many astute observers.
“We have I think 11 underclassmen,” Villegas said, “and whenever we sub in the intensity stays the same which is great because we don’t want it to plummet. They’re doing a really good job, especially for the beginning of the season.”
Said Rueda: “I feel like right now we’re doing really good. We beat some tough teams already – we have three wins in a row now in a tough tournament. We just have to keep it going. I know the team wants it.”
Streamwood’s hopes are especially high for the end of the season.
“That (2014 state trip) boosted our confidence up,” Villegas said. “Now we’re going for first place. Last year fourth place wasn’t what we wanted. We want the state title.”
For Buffalo Grove, its high talent level needs to be matched by consistency.
“We just have to keep confidence as a team,” Doyle said. “We’ve been playing well but goals just aren’t going in. We just have to keep going.
“We made a good run at the end of last year (winning regionals) and we have a lot of the same guys. We just have to keep positive.”
Like the stock market, past performance doesn’t automatically guarantee future results. But the talent is there for the Bison to quickly rebound.
“We just have to find our identity, and maybe one or two of these that hit the post – if they go in it’s a different story,” Abel said. “But I’m glad we’re playing this competition, and hopefully come conference next Tuesday we’ll be ready to go.”
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove
GK- Caleb Mayhorn
D- Gorgis Yelda
D- Ryan Drum
D- Brendan Carr
D- Hans Haller
MF- Alexis Alvarez
MF- Alex Alfaro
MF- Drew Brauner
MF- Hector Herrera
F- Colin Dekorsi
F- Colin Doyle
Streamwood
GK- Daniel Dominguez
D- Erie Ortiz
D- Jair Zuniga
D- Aaron Villegas
D- Bryan Mora
MF- Aldo Lazaro
MF- Armondo Sanchez
MF- Edwin Rueda
MF- Luis Segura
F- Donnie Sosa
F- Brian Benitez
Man of the Match: Edwin Rueda, MF, Streamwood
Streamwood shutout victim
Sabres advance to New Trier final with 2-0 win
By Dave Owen
NORTHFIELD- Streamwood is showing its 2014 fourth-place state finish was no fluke.
In their debut season at the elite Northside College Showcase, the Sabres (4-1) defeated Buffalo Grove 2-0 Wednesday for their third-straight shutout in the tournament and fourth already this season. Streamwood advances to Friday’s 7 p.m. title match against Glenbrook North at New Trier’s Northfield campus.
“We have our goals, and this (tournament title) is our first goal of the season,” Streamwood coach Matt Polovin said. “The guys are excited to get another shutout – we’ve shut out all three teams in this tournament, which is unbelievable. With the young team I have it keeps building their confidence.
“Now they can start thinking about playing for the championship of a very prestigious tournament,” Polovin added. “It’s an exciting time for these guys, and they deserve it. I want them to know what they accomplished and keep working, and by Friday hopefully bring home a good trophy.”
For Buffalo Grove (0-3-1), the match continued an early season trend: solid play except for a short stretch of play, which again proved costly.
“We just once again have to play a full, disciplined 80 minutes,” Bison coach Brad Abel said. “We had that five-minute lapse that cost us the game. We’re holding it together for most of the game, except for that few minutes. And it’s a whole team thing, not just one individual.
“But I’m positive. I’d rather this happen now before the Mid-Suburban League season. Seeing this tough competition we’ll hopefully learn from our mistakes and be ready to go come the Mid-Suburban League.”
Buffalo Grove had the first two shots on goal of the game, including a great threat 31:20 before halftime. Alexis Alvarez passed to Colin Doyle in on the right, who nicely maneuvered between two defenders and lined an 18-yard shot that Streamwood goalkeeper Daniel Dominguez dove to his left to deflect wide.
But the momentum turned quickly to the Sabres in the 14th minute.
Edwin Rueda’s 32-yard high direct kick was deflected over the crossbar by Bison goalkeeper Caleb Mayhorn. On the ensuing Aldo Lazaro corner kick, defender Erie Ortiz made a great diagonal run across the box to deflect the ball off the crossbar. Brian Benitez was free in front to put away the rebound for a 1-0 Streamwood lead 25:40 before halftime.
At the 23:59 mark, the Sabres struck again on another nice combination play that ended with Rueda’s low 15-yard drive inside the post for a 2-0 lead. Donnie Sosa unselfishly dummied a shot off a Jair Zuniga pass, allowing the ball to go through to Rueda at a better angle.
“No. 20 Jair (Zuniga) passed it in, and Donnie was going for it, but I had a better chance at a goal so I said ‘let it go’ and he let it go,” Rueda said. “I placed it right to the side, and it went in.”
Rueda’s efforts as both a scorer and a solid midfielder earned him Man of the Match honors.
“We were working together and just working hard to get those goals in,” Rueda said. “In the second half we didn’t score, but we did everything possible in the first half so we wouldn’t have to worry about it in the second half.”
The Streamwood defense led by senior co-captain Aaron Villegas did the rest, earning the shutout despite Buffalo Grove’s eventual 7-6 advantage in total shots on goal.
“The first 20-25 minutes we played excellent,” Villegas said, “and after we got the two goals we started playing a little bit down. But I tried to keep them up, and we kept that shutout. That’s our main goal, to get as many shutouts as we can this season.”
The Bison didn’t make it easy.
“We played very well as a team and had a lot of opportunities,” Buffalo Grove’s Doyle said. “We just didn’t finish. We had build-up from the back all the way to the top, but our finishing just wasn’t there today.”
Doyle had the most agonizing chance with 11:50 left in the match, when he lined a 10-yarder from the left side off the left post.
Before that, great Bison threats included two Colin Dekorsi chances late in the first half. Dominguez grabbed Dekorsi’s 18-yard shot 16:10 before halftime, then with
15 seconds left in the half, Dekorsi raced in left off passes from Alex Alfaro and Drew Brauner – only to be denied when Dominguez nicely blocked his low 10-yard liner.
Brauner later stole a clearing attempt and had his 25-yard shot snared by Dominguez.
“We had 8-or-9 shots that were good,” Abel said. “We had one that hit the post, and a couple good saves by the keeper.”
Hans Haller was another major factor for the Bison. The tall defender was dangerous on throw-ins (a 35-yarder that high hopped to require a leaping catch by Dominguez) and free kicks (including a 75-yard try that one hopped to Dominguez). Another long Haller free kick set up a 25-yard Doyle shot over the net 7:35 before halftime.
“He (Heller) is a huge presence out there,” Abel said. “He’s the tallest on the field, one of the fastest on the field. We just have to get our heads or feet on some of these throws and kicks. And on a dead ball we’ve given up I think four goals (this season) on set pieces.”
Streamwood had its own great threats even after going up 2-0. A 15-yard Lazaro liner with 25:05 left was stopped on a high block by Bison second-half goalkeeper Daniel Sempoch.
Then with 21:30 to go, a blocked endline shot by Alex Herrera rebounded to Sosa, whose 8-yard blast clanged off the right post. Sosa later sent a low 20-yarder inches wide of the left post.
“They’re a phenomenal team, they’re technical and pass the ball well,” Abel said of Streamwood. “We got tired in the second half, because we were chasing the game.”
But for the Sabres, the night was mostly about defense and depth.
“Last year we had a couple of standout guys,” Polovin said. “This year we have a big group that if you put them out there, they’re going to do a nice job.
“Our defense did well holding their own and staying organized. An unfortunate injury to Jair (Zuniga, with 20:44 left), his ankle got a little tweeked, but we put in Martin Munoz, and he did a great job out there. That shows when you have a team that plays with chemistry and unity, they’re getting it.”
While many Sabres like Munoz, Ortiz, Lazaro and Rueda had strong individual defensive moments, Villegas made multiple steals or shot denials and was the glue to the defense.
“Aaron Villegas really kept the guys organized back there, did a lot of talking and made sure guys were where they were supposed to be,” Polovin said. “When they had pressure, there was always cover. Aaron made sure they were organized that way. I thought he did a really nice job.”
With one exception, Villegas has been impressed by the defense’s play this fall.
“Wheeling (a 3-2 loss Aug. 27) was bad communication, and we weren’t all in sync,” Villegas said. “There was no flow. Our coaches push us, so we have to learn.”
The Sabres have many astute observers.
“We have I think 11 underclassmen,” Villegas said, “and whenever we sub in the intensity stays the same which is great because we don’t want it to plummet. They’re doing a really good job, especially for the beginning of the season.”
Said Rueda: “I feel like right now we’re doing really good. We beat some tough teams already – we have three wins in a row now in a tough tournament. We just have to keep it going. I know the team wants it.”
Streamwood’s hopes are especially high for the end of the season.
“That (2014 state trip) boosted our confidence up,” Villegas said. “Now we’re going for first place. Last year fourth place wasn’t what we wanted. We want the state title.”
For Buffalo Grove, its high talent level needs to be matched by consistency.
“We just have to keep confidence as a team,” Doyle said. “We’ve been playing well but goals just aren’t going in. We just have to keep going.
“We made a good run at the end of last year (winning regionals) and we have a lot of the same guys. We just have to keep positive.”
Like the stock market, past performance doesn’t automatically guarantee future results. But the talent is there for the Bison to quickly rebound.
“We just have to find our identity, and maybe one or two of these that hit the post – if they go in it’s a different story,” Abel said. “But I’m glad we’re playing this competition, and hopefully come conference next Tuesday we’ll be ready to go.”
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove
GK- Caleb Mayhorn
D- Gorgis Yelda
D- Ryan Drum
D- Brendan Carr
D- Hans Haller
MF- Alexis Alvarez
MF- Alex Alfaro
MF- Drew Brauner
MF- Hector Herrera
F- Colin Dekorsi
F- Colin Doyle
Streamwood
GK- Daniel Dominguez
D- Erie Ortiz
D- Jair Zuniga
D- Aaron Villegas
D- Bryan Mora
MF- Aldo Lazaro
MF- Armondo Sanchez
MF- Edwin Rueda
MF- Luis Segura
F- Donnie Sosa
F- Brian Benitez
Man of the Match: Edwin Rueda, MF, Streamwood