Send in the Spaniard
Freshman wins Barrington Tournament in PK shootout
By Derek Wolff
BARRINGTON —Standing on the sidelines postgame at Barrington High School on Saturday night talking to the media with teammate Hugo Flores translating must have felt a world away for Warren freshman Martin Fuentes.
The forward followed his family over to the United States earlier in the summer when his father took a teaching job. He just turned 14 years old last week.
Already, he’s winning tournaments with penalty shootout goals, as was the case against the host Broncos (4-1-1) when the Warren (4-1-1) captured the Barrington Classic with a 4-2 shootout advantage.
English still may be relatively new for Fuentes, as was the situation. But he didn’t flinch.
“He feels happy and very proud to be here as the winning goal,” said translator Flores. “He’s never been in a situation like that, ever. He thought that he wasn’t going to take it, he wasn’t going to score but he’s glad that he scored it in the end.”
The full 80 minutes of regulation and 20 additional minutes of overtime failed to produce a goal so the two sides headed to the spot to determine a champion.
The players may have found it fitting after waiting for the third place match to do the same thing. After a 1-1 tie, Boylan bested St. Charles North 4-3 and pushed back the start time of the championship game about 45 minutes.
Ivan Esquivel scored on the opening kick for Warren, just sneaking it past the outstretched arms of Broncos goalkeeper Alex Ruffolo on the left side.
Barrington’s first attempt wasn’t as fortunate.
Sophomore forward Klaus Pallan’s shot was stopped by Blair McCormick, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match.
“I saw him look there right away and then initially he pulled his knee in so I just followed the ball,” McCormick said. “I think it really sets the tone for the rest of the guys and gives them confidence to just go up there and do their job and make the goal.”
Warren went up 2-0 in the shootout on the next kick, with senior defender Matt Haight beating Ruffolo, who again guessed correctly but wasn’t rewarded.
Everything kept going right for the Blue Devils when Barrington sophomore midfielder Gio Guarnero missed the next kick wide left.
“He sent me the wrong way but it was a good feeling to see it,” McCormick said. “It was almost as good as saving it.”
Warren’s Richie Flores rang one off the post and out in the third round while Barrington’s Luke Sellers scored, closing the gap to 2-1 Blue Devils.
Both sides scored in the fourth round, setting the stage for Fuentes to win it.
“We practice PKs almost every practice so it was natural for me to make a save and the guys to put it in,” McCormick said. “They did great.”
Blue Devils coach Jason Ahonen praised Fuentes for acclimating so well at the varsity level, saying that he was too good for the freshman team.
“He’s patient, he’s calm, cool,” Ahonen said. “Physically he gets muscled off the ball but his vision, his touch is good. It was something we noticed immediately so we brought him forward.
“He makes the right play. He might not always complete the pass but his vision, his touch allows him to put himself and our team in a position to be successful.”
Ahonen also credited his back line with holding up all night.
“Our back line has gotten a lot better,” Ahonen said. “Obviously they have a big guy (Hans Pallan) up front. Matt Haight did a tremendous job on him, marking. They’re getting more and more comfortable.”
Barrington had quality opportunities to score down the stretch and in overtime but couldn’t convert. Fatigue led to yellow cards for two Broncos and one Blue Devil in the overtime periods.
Broncos coach Scott Steib was pleased that his side put in the effort the entire time and is playing good soccer in the first part of the season.
“It was a good game,” Steib said. “We played well, just didn’t get that last touch so I’m alright with it. This early for us to be where we’re at is great. It’s a good team. … I’m proud of my players, a lot of good things going on. We’re in a good spot. I like where we’re at after six games and heading into conference.”
It shows up as a loss on the record but Steib felt the Broncos would benefit from the game going forward.
“There’s no way this doesn’t give us momentum going into the Mid-Surburban League,” he said. “We still have to go out and perform but you know what they say about momentum, she’s a funny lady. You never know when she might walk out of the room. We’re in a good spot.”
Barrington returned just six players from last season but has tremendous depth thanks to a well-prepared junior class, he said.
“The only problem we’ve got is the kids who’ve been playing have been doing so well that there’s a bunch of kids who need minutes, and we haven’t been able to find them for them yet.
“I’m really looking for those opportunities but it’s been hard because we’re in tight games, meaningful games and the guys that have been playing have been playing well.”
Ahonen was pleased with the result but knows from experience that it means little in the long run.
Warren went 15-3-3 last season but was bounced in the first round of the IHSA state playoffs as was Barrington at 15-8-0.
“It’s nice but at the end of the year though, you’re judged by postseason success,” Ahonen said. “It’s a stepping stone. It’s a nice accomplishment. We’ll come back and open up (North Suburban) conference (Lake Division) play on Tuesday against Stevenson, and I’m excited that we’re growing as a group.”
Each team had four members named to the all-tournament team at halftime.
Barrington midfielders Luke Sellers and Zach Carbonara, defender Nash Pirie and forward Hans Pallan received the honor as did Warren midfielders Alex Fratila and Ivan Esquivel, forward Jacob Luka and defender Haight.
Starting lineups
Warren
GK Blair McCormick
D Richie Flores
D Matt Haight
D Jack Tully
D Declan Porter
M Alex Fratila
M Niko Jokic
M Jacob Luka
M Ivan Esquivel
M Kody Anderson
F Martin Fuentes
Barrington
GK Alex Ruffolo
D John Gadbois
D Braeden Nelson
D Josh Coulter
D Nash Pirie
M Zach Carbonara
M Luke Sellers
M Caleb Orr
M Gio Guarnero
F Hans Pallan
F Kyle Owen
Man of the Match: Blair McCormick, GK, Warren
Freshman wins Barrington Tournament in PK shootout
By Derek Wolff
BARRINGTON —Standing on the sidelines postgame at Barrington High School on Saturday night talking to the media with teammate Hugo Flores translating must have felt a world away for Warren freshman Martin Fuentes.
The forward followed his family over to the United States earlier in the summer when his father took a teaching job. He just turned 14 years old last week.
Already, he’s winning tournaments with penalty shootout goals, as was the case against the host Broncos (4-1-1) when the Warren (4-1-1) captured the Barrington Classic with a 4-2 shootout advantage.
English still may be relatively new for Fuentes, as was the situation. But he didn’t flinch.
“He feels happy and very proud to be here as the winning goal,” said translator Flores. “He’s never been in a situation like that, ever. He thought that he wasn’t going to take it, he wasn’t going to score but he’s glad that he scored it in the end.”
The full 80 minutes of regulation and 20 additional minutes of overtime failed to produce a goal so the two sides headed to the spot to determine a champion.
The players may have found it fitting after waiting for the third place match to do the same thing. After a 1-1 tie, Boylan bested St. Charles North 4-3 and pushed back the start time of the championship game about 45 minutes.
Ivan Esquivel scored on the opening kick for Warren, just sneaking it past the outstretched arms of Broncos goalkeeper Alex Ruffolo on the left side.
Barrington’s first attempt wasn’t as fortunate.
Sophomore forward Klaus Pallan’s shot was stopped by Blair McCormick, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match.
“I saw him look there right away and then initially he pulled his knee in so I just followed the ball,” McCormick said. “I think it really sets the tone for the rest of the guys and gives them confidence to just go up there and do their job and make the goal.”
Warren went up 2-0 in the shootout on the next kick, with senior defender Matt Haight beating Ruffolo, who again guessed correctly but wasn’t rewarded.
Everything kept going right for the Blue Devils when Barrington sophomore midfielder Gio Guarnero missed the next kick wide left.
“He sent me the wrong way but it was a good feeling to see it,” McCormick said. “It was almost as good as saving it.”
Warren’s Richie Flores rang one off the post and out in the third round while Barrington’s Luke Sellers scored, closing the gap to 2-1 Blue Devils.
Both sides scored in the fourth round, setting the stage for Fuentes to win it.
“We practice PKs almost every practice so it was natural for me to make a save and the guys to put it in,” McCormick said. “They did great.”
Blue Devils coach Jason Ahonen praised Fuentes for acclimating so well at the varsity level, saying that he was too good for the freshman team.
“He’s patient, he’s calm, cool,” Ahonen said. “Physically he gets muscled off the ball but his vision, his touch is good. It was something we noticed immediately so we brought him forward.
“He makes the right play. He might not always complete the pass but his vision, his touch allows him to put himself and our team in a position to be successful.”
Ahonen also credited his back line with holding up all night.
“Our back line has gotten a lot better,” Ahonen said. “Obviously they have a big guy (Hans Pallan) up front. Matt Haight did a tremendous job on him, marking. They’re getting more and more comfortable.”
Barrington had quality opportunities to score down the stretch and in overtime but couldn’t convert. Fatigue led to yellow cards for two Broncos and one Blue Devil in the overtime periods.
Broncos coach Scott Steib was pleased that his side put in the effort the entire time and is playing good soccer in the first part of the season.
“It was a good game,” Steib said. “We played well, just didn’t get that last touch so I’m alright with it. This early for us to be where we’re at is great. It’s a good team. … I’m proud of my players, a lot of good things going on. We’re in a good spot. I like where we’re at after six games and heading into conference.”
It shows up as a loss on the record but Steib felt the Broncos would benefit from the game going forward.
“There’s no way this doesn’t give us momentum going into the Mid-Surburban League,” he said. “We still have to go out and perform but you know what they say about momentum, she’s a funny lady. You never know when she might walk out of the room. We’re in a good spot.”
Barrington returned just six players from last season but has tremendous depth thanks to a well-prepared junior class, he said.
“The only problem we’ve got is the kids who’ve been playing have been doing so well that there’s a bunch of kids who need minutes, and we haven’t been able to find them for them yet.
“I’m really looking for those opportunities but it’s been hard because we’re in tight games, meaningful games and the guys that have been playing have been playing well.”
Ahonen was pleased with the result but knows from experience that it means little in the long run.
Warren went 15-3-3 last season but was bounced in the first round of the IHSA state playoffs as was Barrington at 15-8-0.
“It’s nice but at the end of the year though, you’re judged by postseason success,” Ahonen said. “It’s a stepping stone. It’s a nice accomplishment. We’ll come back and open up (North Suburban) conference (Lake Division) play on Tuesday against Stevenson, and I’m excited that we’re growing as a group.”
Each team had four members named to the all-tournament team at halftime.
Barrington midfielders Luke Sellers and Zach Carbonara, defender Nash Pirie and forward Hans Pallan received the honor as did Warren midfielders Alex Fratila and Ivan Esquivel, forward Jacob Luka and defender Haight.
Starting lineups
Warren
GK Blair McCormick
D Richie Flores
D Matt Haight
D Jack Tully
D Declan Porter
M Alex Fratila
M Niko Jokic
M Jacob Luka
M Ivan Esquivel
M Kody Anderson
F Martin Fuentes
Barrington
GK Alex Ruffolo
D John Gadbois
D Braeden Nelson
D Josh Coulter
D Nash Pirie
M Zach Carbonara
M Luke Sellers
M Caleb Orr
M Gio Guarnero
F Hans Pallan
F Kyle Owen
Man of the Match: Blair McCormick, GK, Warren