Intensity and victory
belong to Batavia
Top-rated St. Charles East absorbs first defeat
By Steve Nemeth
ST. CHARLES -- Intensity may not show up in statistics, but according to St. Charles East coach Paul Jennison, it was there on the scoreboard.
The Saints – ranked No. 1 from preseason to week No. 3 by the Chicago Sun-Times – suffered their first loss Tuesday as visiting Batavia scored midway through the opening half and then held on defensively for the 1-0 victory in a crucial showdown within the Upstate Eight Conference River Division.
The Bulldogs improved to 7-1-1 overall and 3-0 in the UEC River, while St. Charles East dipped to 8-1 and 2-1.
“I know it sounds cliche to talk about intensity, but the bottom line is we didn't have enough of it,” Jennison admitted. “Batavia did what they needed to for the win, so give them credit.
“Maybe this will be a positive for us; maybe the ranking, publicity, was on one or two minds. Hopefully they learned we can't blame anyone else. It’s up to me now to help them regroup, get in a good practice tomorrow because things don’t get any easier Thursday against Waubonsie Valley.”
Batavia’s previous weekend may have made it easier for the Bulldogs to have the confidence and desire to prove their No. 14 rating isn't high enough. Coach Mark Gianfrancesco’s crew defeated defending Class 3A champion Edwardsville – ending a 23-match unbeaten streak for the Tigers – in the semifinals of the downstate Morton Invitational.
After a 0-0 deadlock in regulation, Rochester earned the first-place trophy in the finals thanks to a 6-5 penalty kick shootout. Then again, maybe the intensity for Batavia was revenge-minded.
“We wanted this one and came here knowing how strong East is and remembering last year when they beat us 5-0,” said Ian Larsen, whose team-best eighth goal of the season marked his second match winner.
Through all the previous Batavia contests, net time has been split between Kevin Fiddelke and John Faraone, but Fiddelke was the only goalie available Tuesday. The 80-minute clean sheet earned him Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“Our back line deserves so much credit in terms of how they defended East's set pieces and corners,” Fiddelke said in sharing credit. “They showed a ton of energy, and I just wanted to match their effort.”
The visiting Bulldogs were having a tough time matching East’s offense in the early going. The Saints’ Taylor Ortiz had a stellar cross run parallel through the goal box just begging for any kind of touch for the first real threat. Then the East senior had a 14-yard blast that was stopped by Fiddelke.
At the 19:10 mark, Larson stepped up as he has done all year. He has registered either a goal or an assist in every Batavia outing except the 0-0 tourney title tie.
“Adam (Heinz) battled real hard to get the ball and make a touch pass back to me. My instincts kicked in and I did a pivot turn for the shot, and it went under their keeper's arm,” Larsen said.
Off the restart, Ortiz tried to pull East even with a rocket from the right side, but Fiddelke made the save.
Fifteen seconds after halftime, Ortiz had a header off a crossing pass sail over the goal. Eight minutes later, East had consecutive tries rejected, followed shortly after that by a save on an Evan DiLeonardi boot.
The two sides traded near misses before the midpoint of the second half. Then the Saints’ Zach Manibog tried curving a shot inside the far post, only to have Fiddelke make a tip save.
East keeper Steven Owens kept his team from trailing by two with some impressive goalkeeping. Batavia’s Davis DiBiase dribbled away from a pair of Saints defenders to nail a laser shot that Owens blocked. DiBiase put the rebound back on net, only to have an East defender save it off the line. DiBiase had a third crack at the net, only to be thwarted again by Owens.
The Bulldogs’ Erik Faessler had a well-timed head flick that gave the Bulldogs’ Matt Allen a breakaway that was stopped by Owens rushing out.
“For a sophomore, I’d say Owens’ effort shows he’s grown up as a solid varsity keeper,” Jennison said.
The majority of the final five minutes was St. Charles East’s push for an equalizer, including a DiLeonardi header that landed on the top netting.
“You have to give credit to Batavia, they outplayed us,” senior Kyle McLean noted. “For whatever reason, our ‘mojoing’ just didn’t come together. All we can do is put this one behind us and get back into the rhythm of play we demonstrated before.”
Having senior co-captain Jordan Moore rejoin the lineup should be a big boost and make for a more pleasant experience than watching from the sideline while icing his knee.
“Maybe this will be a reality boost for us because our ability just wasn’t there as a group,” Moore said. “Sitting there watching it gives you a different perspective on what’s happening. I’m anxious to get back out there and be able to affect the plays I couldn’t do anything about today.”
Statistically, East held a 19-17 advantage for overall attempts, but the Bulldogs were up 12-10 in terms of shots on frame. The Saints also had a decisive 8-1 edge for corner kicks.
“I think this is a loss we’re going to take personally as the season goes on,” senior Brandon Villanueva noted. “We didn’t like the way last year ended (1-0 sectional final loss to Lake Park), and I think that feeling and this loss will be motivation for us going forward.”
Starting lineups
Batavia
G Kevin Fiddelke
D Nathan Carey
D Daniel Zagoren
D Joe Jorgenson
D Nick Konopacki
M Adam Heinz
M Luke Laurich
M Brandon Yunker
M Erik Faessler
F Kevin Collins
F Ian Larson
St. Charles East
G Steven Owens
D Kyle McLean
D Ryan Stackhouse
D Brandon Villaneuva
D Robert Wolak
M Taylor Ortiz
M Michael Lucatorto
M Evan DiLeonardi
M Christian Memije
F Zach Manibog
F Tyler Robbins
Man of the Match: Kevin Fiddelke
Referees: Miguel Chavez, Mike Lichtfuss, Craig Davelis
belong to Batavia
Top-rated St. Charles East absorbs first defeat
By Steve Nemeth
ST. CHARLES -- Intensity may not show up in statistics, but according to St. Charles East coach Paul Jennison, it was there on the scoreboard.
The Saints – ranked No. 1 from preseason to week No. 3 by the Chicago Sun-Times – suffered their first loss Tuesday as visiting Batavia scored midway through the opening half and then held on defensively for the 1-0 victory in a crucial showdown within the Upstate Eight Conference River Division.
The Bulldogs improved to 7-1-1 overall and 3-0 in the UEC River, while St. Charles East dipped to 8-1 and 2-1.
“I know it sounds cliche to talk about intensity, but the bottom line is we didn't have enough of it,” Jennison admitted. “Batavia did what they needed to for the win, so give them credit.
“Maybe this will be a positive for us; maybe the ranking, publicity, was on one or two minds. Hopefully they learned we can't blame anyone else. It’s up to me now to help them regroup, get in a good practice tomorrow because things don’t get any easier Thursday against Waubonsie Valley.”
Batavia’s previous weekend may have made it easier for the Bulldogs to have the confidence and desire to prove their No. 14 rating isn't high enough. Coach Mark Gianfrancesco’s crew defeated defending Class 3A champion Edwardsville – ending a 23-match unbeaten streak for the Tigers – in the semifinals of the downstate Morton Invitational.
After a 0-0 deadlock in regulation, Rochester earned the first-place trophy in the finals thanks to a 6-5 penalty kick shootout. Then again, maybe the intensity for Batavia was revenge-minded.
“We wanted this one and came here knowing how strong East is and remembering last year when they beat us 5-0,” said Ian Larsen, whose team-best eighth goal of the season marked his second match winner.
Through all the previous Batavia contests, net time has been split between Kevin Fiddelke and John Faraone, but Fiddelke was the only goalie available Tuesday. The 80-minute clean sheet earned him Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“Our back line deserves so much credit in terms of how they defended East's set pieces and corners,” Fiddelke said in sharing credit. “They showed a ton of energy, and I just wanted to match their effort.”
The visiting Bulldogs were having a tough time matching East’s offense in the early going. The Saints’ Taylor Ortiz had a stellar cross run parallel through the goal box just begging for any kind of touch for the first real threat. Then the East senior had a 14-yard blast that was stopped by Fiddelke.
At the 19:10 mark, Larson stepped up as he has done all year. He has registered either a goal or an assist in every Batavia outing except the 0-0 tourney title tie.
“Adam (Heinz) battled real hard to get the ball and make a touch pass back to me. My instincts kicked in and I did a pivot turn for the shot, and it went under their keeper's arm,” Larsen said.
Off the restart, Ortiz tried to pull East even with a rocket from the right side, but Fiddelke made the save.
Fifteen seconds after halftime, Ortiz had a header off a crossing pass sail over the goal. Eight minutes later, East had consecutive tries rejected, followed shortly after that by a save on an Evan DiLeonardi boot.
The two sides traded near misses before the midpoint of the second half. Then the Saints’ Zach Manibog tried curving a shot inside the far post, only to have Fiddelke make a tip save.
East keeper Steven Owens kept his team from trailing by two with some impressive goalkeeping. Batavia’s Davis DiBiase dribbled away from a pair of Saints defenders to nail a laser shot that Owens blocked. DiBiase put the rebound back on net, only to have an East defender save it off the line. DiBiase had a third crack at the net, only to be thwarted again by Owens.
The Bulldogs’ Erik Faessler had a well-timed head flick that gave the Bulldogs’ Matt Allen a breakaway that was stopped by Owens rushing out.
“For a sophomore, I’d say Owens’ effort shows he’s grown up as a solid varsity keeper,” Jennison said.
The majority of the final five minutes was St. Charles East’s push for an equalizer, including a DiLeonardi header that landed on the top netting.
“You have to give credit to Batavia, they outplayed us,” senior Kyle McLean noted. “For whatever reason, our ‘mojoing’ just didn’t come together. All we can do is put this one behind us and get back into the rhythm of play we demonstrated before.”
Having senior co-captain Jordan Moore rejoin the lineup should be a big boost and make for a more pleasant experience than watching from the sideline while icing his knee.
“Maybe this will be a reality boost for us because our ability just wasn’t there as a group,” Moore said. “Sitting there watching it gives you a different perspective on what’s happening. I’m anxious to get back out there and be able to affect the plays I couldn’t do anything about today.”
Statistically, East held a 19-17 advantage for overall attempts, but the Bulldogs were up 12-10 in terms of shots on frame. The Saints also had a decisive 8-1 edge for corner kicks.
“I think this is a loss we’re going to take personally as the season goes on,” senior Brandon Villanueva noted. “We didn’t like the way last year ended (1-0 sectional final loss to Lake Park), and I think that feeling and this loss will be motivation for us going forward.”
Starting lineups
Batavia
G Kevin Fiddelke
D Nathan Carey
D Daniel Zagoren
D Joe Jorgenson
D Nick Konopacki
M Adam Heinz
M Luke Laurich
M Brandon Yunker
M Erik Faessler
F Kevin Collins
F Ian Larson
St. Charles East
G Steven Owens
D Kyle McLean
D Ryan Stackhouse
D Brandon Villaneuva
D Robert Wolak
M Taylor Ortiz
M Michael Lucatorto
M Evan DiLeonardi
M Christian Memije
F Zach Manibog
F Tyler Robbins
Man of the Match: Kevin Fiddelke
Referees: Miguel Chavez, Mike Lichtfuss, Craig Davelis