Lefevre's heroics lead Fremd to finals
Hot keeper stops New Trier in 1-0 win
By Ken Keenan
BARRINGTON -- Fully extending his left arm to match the flight of his body, Fremd goalkeeper Will Lefevre launched his team to a berth in the Class 3A state finals with a save of galactic proportions in the final minutes of a nail-biting 1-0 win over New Trier in the Barrington #2 Supersectional final Tuesday night.
After a wild scramble in front of the Vikings' cage, Lefevere stoned New Trier junior forward Spencer Farina with a spectacular, leaping one-handed stop in the 75th minute, preserving a precarious advantage provided by the foot of senior defender Ben Borst less than six minutes prior.
"You've just gotta react -- don't think twice and just go for the ball," said Lefevre, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match. "With a 1-0 lead, you want to keep it out of the back of the net. All I can do is keep my head up. I just happened to be there, and now we're going downstate."
Borst, who scored on a tap-in after a corner kick by senior midfielder Zach Schoffstall created traffic in front of Trevians senior keeper Jonathan Jaggard, had trouble finding words to describe Lefevre's feat.
"Unreal ... just awesome," said Schoffstall. "(Lefevre) made some crazy saves."
Lefevre's first big stop of the match came with 19:30 left in the first half, when he dove to rob New Trier senior forward Duncan Gill on a nice turnaround shot from five yards out. Twenty second later, Lefevre stopped Gill again. Trevian senior midfielder Steven Childs was the next victim, firing a 20-yard rocket that Lefevre smothered in the 28th minute.
"(Fremd) really collapsed well on defense, but that goalie played a helluva game," Childs said. "We gave up that goal on a corner, which is tough. But every team is good when you get this far (in postseason play), and we still had a great season."
New Trier entered the supersectional final on a nine-game winning streak, and finished the 2014 campaign with a stellar 21-4-2 mark overall. Fremd is set to play Hinsdale Central (17-4-4) in the state semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday at Hoffman Estates High School. The Vikings, who have won 11-straight games and boast a 13-game unbeaten streak, improved to 19-5-1.
"Soccer-wise, New Trier probably outplayed us -- but that's the sport," said Vikings head coach Steve Keller. "We just got the one (goal) we needed and bunkered down. We feel confident with (Lefevre) back there, and tonight he did it again. I feel fortunate. We didn't play our best, so to hang on and beat New Trier is a great result."
New Trier had the better of the play early on, with senior defender Tanner Walsh sending a shot over the top of the net in the second minute, and Farina heading a ball wide two minutes later.
But Fremd held its ground. With 24:50 left in the first half, a nice passing play among senior midfielders Jacob Cuthbert and Kurt Rettke, and sophomore forward Luke Schoffstall, resulted in a header on goal. Later a throw-in gave senior forward Ben Poder a chance that hit the side of the net with nine minutes remaining before intermission.
"We panicked a bit at the beginning, but we settled down. In the second half we got the job done," Keller said.
"After we got the lead, we wanted to keep the intensity up and make (New Trier) make the mistakes," added Borst. "We've come a long way from 2-4 to start the season (including a 2-0 loss to New Trier on Aug. 29). We've played some pretty talented teams, so we had a lot of confidence heading into this one."
With its sparkling record as proof, New Trier took the field with its collective head held just as high.
"You can't frame a season in one game," said New Trier head coach Wes Molyneaux amid a host of teary-eyed Trevians. "To be one of the few teams left means something. We wanted to go Downstate, but it takes the ball bouncing the right way -- and a little luck. But it didn't bounce our way tonight."
It did for the Vikings, who were greeted by a sea of classmates rushing the squad after the final horn sounded. The team returns to the Final Four for the first time since a third place finish in 2011.
"Going downstate, you wish it upon every kid to have that opportunity," Keller said. "Especially with 10 seniors, it'll be a neat way to wrap up our season."
Starting lineups
New Trier
GK: Jonathan Jaggard
D: Richard Pigott
D: Sam Boyd
D: Tim Moriarty
D: Tanner Walsh
MF: Connor Rife
MF: Steven Childs
MF: Jamey Minturn
F: Duncan Gill
F: Tommy Belliel
F: Spencer Farina
Fremd
GK: Will Lefevre
D: Danny Burton
D: Ben Borst
D: Tomas Peleckas
D: Luke Kosacz
MF: Rohan Menon
MF: Zach Schoffstall
MF: Jacob Cuthbert
MF: Kurt Rettke
F: Ben Poder
F: Luke Schoffstall
Man of the Match: Will Lefevre, Fremd
Officials: Rick Geati, Jeff Ryder, Scott Lichtfuss.
Hot keeper stops New Trier in 1-0 win
By Ken Keenan
BARRINGTON -- Fully extending his left arm to match the flight of his body, Fremd goalkeeper Will Lefevre launched his team to a berth in the Class 3A state finals with a save of galactic proportions in the final minutes of a nail-biting 1-0 win over New Trier in the Barrington #2 Supersectional final Tuesday night.
After a wild scramble in front of the Vikings' cage, Lefevere stoned New Trier junior forward Spencer Farina with a spectacular, leaping one-handed stop in the 75th minute, preserving a precarious advantage provided by the foot of senior defender Ben Borst less than six minutes prior.
"You've just gotta react -- don't think twice and just go for the ball," said Lefevre, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match. "With a 1-0 lead, you want to keep it out of the back of the net. All I can do is keep my head up. I just happened to be there, and now we're going downstate."
Borst, who scored on a tap-in after a corner kick by senior midfielder Zach Schoffstall created traffic in front of Trevians senior keeper Jonathan Jaggard, had trouble finding words to describe Lefevre's feat.
"Unreal ... just awesome," said Schoffstall. "(Lefevre) made some crazy saves."
Lefevre's first big stop of the match came with 19:30 left in the first half, when he dove to rob New Trier senior forward Duncan Gill on a nice turnaround shot from five yards out. Twenty second later, Lefevre stopped Gill again. Trevian senior midfielder Steven Childs was the next victim, firing a 20-yard rocket that Lefevre smothered in the 28th minute.
"(Fremd) really collapsed well on defense, but that goalie played a helluva game," Childs said. "We gave up that goal on a corner, which is tough. But every team is good when you get this far (in postseason play), and we still had a great season."
New Trier entered the supersectional final on a nine-game winning streak, and finished the 2014 campaign with a stellar 21-4-2 mark overall. Fremd is set to play Hinsdale Central (17-4-4) in the state semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday at Hoffman Estates High School. The Vikings, who have won 11-straight games and boast a 13-game unbeaten streak, improved to 19-5-1.
"Soccer-wise, New Trier probably outplayed us -- but that's the sport," said Vikings head coach Steve Keller. "We just got the one (goal) we needed and bunkered down. We feel confident with (Lefevre) back there, and tonight he did it again. I feel fortunate. We didn't play our best, so to hang on and beat New Trier is a great result."
New Trier had the better of the play early on, with senior defender Tanner Walsh sending a shot over the top of the net in the second minute, and Farina heading a ball wide two minutes later.
But Fremd held its ground. With 24:50 left in the first half, a nice passing play among senior midfielders Jacob Cuthbert and Kurt Rettke, and sophomore forward Luke Schoffstall, resulted in a header on goal. Later a throw-in gave senior forward Ben Poder a chance that hit the side of the net with nine minutes remaining before intermission.
"We panicked a bit at the beginning, but we settled down. In the second half we got the job done," Keller said.
"After we got the lead, we wanted to keep the intensity up and make (New Trier) make the mistakes," added Borst. "We've come a long way from 2-4 to start the season (including a 2-0 loss to New Trier on Aug. 29). We've played some pretty talented teams, so we had a lot of confidence heading into this one."
With its sparkling record as proof, New Trier took the field with its collective head held just as high.
"You can't frame a season in one game," said New Trier head coach Wes Molyneaux amid a host of teary-eyed Trevians. "To be one of the few teams left means something. We wanted to go Downstate, but it takes the ball bouncing the right way -- and a little luck. But it didn't bounce our way tonight."
It did for the Vikings, who were greeted by a sea of classmates rushing the squad after the final horn sounded. The team returns to the Final Four for the first time since a third place finish in 2011.
"Going downstate, you wish it upon every kid to have that opportunity," Keller said. "Especially with 10 seniors, it'll be a neat way to wrap up our season."
Starting lineups
New Trier
GK: Jonathan Jaggard
D: Richard Pigott
D: Sam Boyd
D: Tim Moriarty
D: Tanner Walsh
MF: Connor Rife
MF: Steven Childs
MF: Jamey Minturn
F: Duncan Gill
F: Tommy Belliel
F: Spencer Farina
Fremd
GK: Will Lefevre
D: Danny Burton
D: Ben Borst
D: Tomas Peleckas
D: Luke Kosacz
MF: Rohan Menon
MF: Zach Schoffstall
MF: Jacob Cuthbert
MF: Kurt Rettke
F: Ben Poder
F: Luke Schoffstall
Man of the Match: Will Lefevre, Fremd
Officials: Rick Geati, Jeff Ryder, Scott Lichtfuss.