Ahmeti, Hoffman Estates
low past Prospect
High-octane offense leads Hawks
By Ken Keenan
MOUNT PROSPECT -- Twenty-four hours after failing to generate much
offense at all during a 2-0 loss to Elk Grove, Hoffman Estates went
into full attack mode Tuesday night to blow past host Prospect 3-0 in
Mid-Suburban League play.
The Hawks -- who improved to 3-8-0 overall and 3-5-0 in conference --
were led by relentless senior forward Remzi Ahmeti, who turned a 1-0
halftime lead into a three-goal bulge with a pair of second-half
tallies. After senior defender Mark Hauser opened the scoring in the
12th minute with a blistering blast from 40 yards out on the right
side, Ahmeti made it 2-0 less than three minutes into the second
session; he completed the scoring with 29:22 remaining.
Throughout the match, Hoffman Estates combined patience and savvy in
maintaining possession, methodically moving upfield before attacking
like a pack of wolves.
Ahmeti's first goal provided a good example. A smooth-as-silk passing
sequence, started by Ahmeti, featured eight touches before the lanky
forward took a final pass from junior midfielder Noe Padilla and
finished with a 15-yard turnaround shot that cleanly beat Knights'
senior goalkeeper Nick Jozefowski.
Ahmeti notched his second goal in similar fashion. After three touches
led to a short shot by sophomore mid Nelson Diaz Velasquez that
Jozefowski stopped with a fine, diving save, Ahmeti pounced on the
rebound and pounded the ball home.
"We did a better job moving the ball than we did (Monday) night ...
switching the field a lot," said Ahmeti, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of
the Match. "I was hungry out there. I always want to score goals."
Hoffman Estates head coach Matt Sriver said, "(Ahmeti) is dangerous
whenever he gets the ball. He's a playmaker."
Galloping alongside Ahmeti was senior midfielder Konrad Kieruzal, who
was consistently dangerous as well, whether in concert with Ahmeti or
on his own.
"We have a little bit of chemistry on the field, and (Ahmeti) finished
his opportunities," Kieruzal said. "We were putting pressure on the
(Prospect) defense all night."
Prospect head coach Paul Elkins, whose squad fell to 4-7-0 overall and
2-6-0 in league play, tipped his cap to the Hawks and their vigorous
push up front. At the same time, he was disappointed with the Knights'
response.
"I give Hoffman credit -- they had some technical players," he said.
"(Ahmeti and Kieruzal), they're both a load. But we seemed to be a
step slow, a step soft, in a lot of areas."
Busy Prospect junior defenders James Estrella and Grant Whitebloom
pointed to a lack of cohesiveness in assessing why the Hawks had so
much room to roam.
"There was not enough communication," Whitebloom said. "All 11 players
have to be working together. Hoffman Estates played well, but we
didn't come to play our best tonight."
Estrella said, "I feel the defense has to step up further. Their
players could get around us, and they capitalized on that. You've got
to have communication, hustle and determination. You have to want to
get the ball and keep the ball."
Added Elkins: "We had communication breakdowns. We always talk about
that. But we weren't hearing each other, and we gave the ball away a
lot."
And when the Knights did, Ahmeti and Co. wasted little time in
mounting a counterattack, especially after Hauser's rocket broke the
ice.
"The first goal gave us momentum," Kieruzal said.
Added Sriver: "Everyone was feeding off how good (Hauser's) shot was,
and then it was two-touch -- and communication. No one hung on too
long."
In the 29th minute, Hawks' sophomore defender Nelson Diaz Velasquez
grabbed a loose ball and fed Ahmeti, who dribbled from right to left
before putting a shot on Jozefowski. With 3:10 left in the first half,
Hauser made a nice run but was foiled by Estrella.
Less than a minute after Ahmeti's first tally, Kieruzal broke through
for a shot on the Knights' keeper. About 50 seconds before Ahmeti
upped the advantage to 3-0, a series of crisp passes resulted in an
opportunity for Hawks' junior mid Luis Gurrola, who fired wide right.
In the 57th minute, Ahmeti danced around at least four defenders to
draw a corner kick, which Gurrola then delivered to Kieruzal for a
header that was blocked in front.
"Our guys were working their buns off," Sriver said. "We just went out
and executed. Overall, it was a really good team win, and it's
something we can build on."
Prospect did produce some offense, forcing Hoffman Estates senior
keeper Christian Peralta to work for his shutout.
With 18:40 left in the first half, speedy Knights' senior forward
Chris Cooney charged the net from deep on the left side, but Peralta
smothered the ball before Cooney could unleash a shot. Prospect senior
forward Ivan Stoilov uncorked a scissor kick inside the box that
sailed over the net in the 44th minute, and just 15 seconds elapsed
before senior mid Eryk Soltys rifled a 20-yard shot that Peralta
stopped.
"We showed a little spark of energy, but Hoffman Estates was just
better tonight," Elkins said. "We have to play with more toughness and
unselfishness. I don't think we showed a lot of emotion and desire.
"We have to learn from this game. We have to do the right things and
have the right attitude to have success."
Starting lineups
Hoffman Estates
GK: Christian Peralta
D: Mark Hauser
D: Gliberto Perez
D: Sebestian Cajiao
D: Nelson Diaz Velasquez
M: Konrad Kieruzal
M: Noe Padilla
M: Luis Gurrola
M: Joey Sopikiotis
M: Declan Rustay
F: Remzi Ahmeti
Prospect
GK: Nicolas Jozefowski
D: Patrick Walsh
D: James Estrella
D: Grant Whitebloom
D: Nick Kosla
M: Eryk Soltys
M: Elai Kobayashi-Solomon
M: Ross LaCamera
F: Chris Cooney
F: Nico Mho
F: Dominik Limanowka
Man of the Match: Remzi Ahmeti, F, Hoffman Estates
Officials: Janusz Kieca, Boguslaw Rosinski, Mariusz Folta
low past Prospect
High-octane offense leads Hawks
By Ken Keenan
MOUNT PROSPECT -- Twenty-four hours after failing to generate much
offense at all during a 2-0 loss to Elk Grove, Hoffman Estates went
into full attack mode Tuesday night to blow past host Prospect 3-0 in
Mid-Suburban League play.
The Hawks -- who improved to 3-8-0 overall and 3-5-0 in conference --
were led by relentless senior forward Remzi Ahmeti, who turned a 1-0
halftime lead into a three-goal bulge with a pair of second-half
tallies. After senior defender Mark Hauser opened the scoring in the
12th minute with a blistering blast from 40 yards out on the right
side, Ahmeti made it 2-0 less than three minutes into the second
session; he completed the scoring with 29:22 remaining.
Throughout the match, Hoffman Estates combined patience and savvy in
maintaining possession, methodically moving upfield before attacking
like a pack of wolves.
Ahmeti's first goal provided a good example. A smooth-as-silk passing
sequence, started by Ahmeti, featured eight touches before the lanky
forward took a final pass from junior midfielder Noe Padilla and
finished with a 15-yard turnaround shot that cleanly beat Knights'
senior goalkeeper Nick Jozefowski.
Ahmeti notched his second goal in similar fashion. After three touches
led to a short shot by sophomore mid Nelson Diaz Velasquez that
Jozefowski stopped with a fine, diving save, Ahmeti pounced on the
rebound and pounded the ball home.
"We did a better job moving the ball than we did (Monday) night ...
switching the field a lot," said Ahmeti, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of
the Match. "I was hungry out there. I always want to score goals."
Hoffman Estates head coach Matt Sriver said, "(Ahmeti) is dangerous
whenever he gets the ball. He's a playmaker."
Galloping alongside Ahmeti was senior midfielder Konrad Kieruzal, who
was consistently dangerous as well, whether in concert with Ahmeti or
on his own.
"We have a little bit of chemistry on the field, and (Ahmeti) finished
his opportunities," Kieruzal said. "We were putting pressure on the
(Prospect) defense all night."
Prospect head coach Paul Elkins, whose squad fell to 4-7-0 overall and
2-6-0 in league play, tipped his cap to the Hawks and their vigorous
push up front. At the same time, he was disappointed with the Knights'
response.
"I give Hoffman credit -- they had some technical players," he said.
"(Ahmeti and Kieruzal), they're both a load. But we seemed to be a
step slow, a step soft, in a lot of areas."
Busy Prospect junior defenders James Estrella and Grant Whitebloom
pointed to a lack of cohesiveness in assessing why the Hawks had so
much room to roam.
"There was not enough communication," Whitebloom said. "All 11 players
have to be working together. Hoffman Estates played well, but we
didn't come to play our best tonight."
Estrella said, "I feel the defense has to step up further. Their
players could get around us, and they capitalized on that. You've got
to have communication, hustle and determination. You have to want to
get the ball and keep the ball."
Added Elkins: "We had communication breakdowns. We always talk about
that. But we weren't hearing each other, and we gave the ball away a
lot."
And when the Knights did, Ahmeti and Co. wasted little time in
mounting a counterattack, especially after Hauser's rocket broke the
ice.
"The first goal gave us momentum," Kieruzal said.
Added Sriver: "Everyone was feeding off how good (Hauser's) shot was,
and then it was two-touch -- and communication. No one hung on too
long."
In the 29th minute, Hawks' sophomore defender Nelson Diaz Velasquez
grabbed a loose ball and fed Ahmeti, who dribbled from right to left
before putting a shot on Jozefowski. With 3:10 left in the first half,
Hauser made a nice run but was foiled by Estrella.
Less than a minute after Ahmeti's first tally, Kieruzal broke through
for a shot on the Knights' keeper. About 50 seconds before Ahmeti
upped the advantage to 3-0, a series of crisp passes resulted in an
opportunity for Hawks' junior mid Luis Gurrola, who fired wide right.
In the 57th minute, Ahmeti danced around at least four defenders to
draw a corner kick, which Gurrola then delivered to Kieruzal for a
header that was blocked in front.
"Our guys were working their buns off," Sriver said. "We just went out
and executed. Overall, it was a really good team win, and it's
something we can build on."
Prospect did produce some offense, forcing Hoffman Estates senior
keeper Christian Peralta to work for his shutout.
With 18:40 left in the first half, speedy Knights' senior forward
Chris Cooney charged the net from deep on the left side, but Peralta
smothered the ball before Cooney could unleash a shot. Prospect senior
forward Ivan Stoilov uncorked a scissor kick inside the box that
sailed over the net in the 44th minute, and just 15 seconds elapsed
before senior mid Eryk Soltys rifled a 20-yard shot that Peralta
stopped.
"We showed a little spark of energy, but Hoffman Estates was just
better tonight," Elkins said. "We have to play with more toughness and
unselfishness. I don't think we showed a lot of emotion and desire.
"We have to learn from this game. We have to do the right things and
have the right attitude to have success."
Starting lineups
Hoffman Estates
GK: Christian Peralta
D: Mark Hauser
D: Gliberto Perez
D: Sebestian Cajiao
D: Nelson Diaz Velasquez
M: Konrad Kieruzal
M: Noe Padilla
M: Luis Gurrola
M: Joey Sopikiotis
M: Declan Rustay
F: Remzi Ahmeti
Prospect
GK: Nicolas Jozefowski
D: Patrick Walsh
D: James Estrella
D: Grant Whitebloom
D: Nick Kosla
M: Eryk Soltys
M: Elai Kobayashi-Solomon
M: Ross LaCamera
F: Chris Cooney
F: Nico Mho
F: Dominik Limanowka
Man of the Match: Remzi Ahmeti, F, Hoffman Estates
Officials: Janusz Kieca, Boguslaw Rosinski, Mariusz Folta