Benet keeps the heat on
in rout of Hinsdale South
Redwings show killer instinct in 7-0 victory
By Matt Le Cren
LISLE – That was better. Much better.
Benet bounced back from a disappointing season-opening loss to Downers Grove North by routing visiting Hinsdale South 7-0 on Thursday.
The Redwings scored five times in the first 21 minutes, shredding a Hinsdale South defense that shut out Curie 4-0 three days earlier.
Daniel Morefield paced the Benet attack with two goals and an assist, while Connor Mote also scored twice and Richie Michalik and Jacob Graiber registered a goal and an assist apiece. Devin Martini capped the scoring, blasting a 30-yard free kick off the hands of Hinsdale South goalie Christopher Meyers with 7:23 to go in the second half.
“We knew we had talent, and on Tuesday, after watching the film, it was obvious that we were combining much better than we did last year, connecting through the midfield, but then we just didn’t put our head down and go to goal,” Benet coach Sean Wesley said. “Today was a totally different story. We had all kinds of guys putting their head down and going to goal and finding the target.
“On Tuesday we took something like 18 shots and only put six on goal. Here’s a complete 180 where we start the first half, take 10 shots and put eight on frame, and we made it very hard on them.”
A goal from Mote had given Benet a 1-0 halftime lead against Downers North on Tuesday, but the Redwings didn’t press their advantage after the break and the Trojans rallied for a 2-1 victory.
The Redwings (1-1) made sure there would be no repeat of that. They relentlessly attacked, using precision passing and speed to get in behind the Hornets with regularity.
Graiber, a senior who played club soccer last fall, got things started when he sprung Morefield into the box in the eighth minute. Morefield beat Meyers with a short shot to the far post.
It was the start of something great for the Redwings, who nearly scored three times in the next 45 seconds. Morefield had a goal disallowed by an offsides call. Meyers, who made seven saves, dove off his line to cut off a cross from Morefield that would have resulted in a tap-in opportunity. Meyers also made a diving stop on a quick shot from Graiber.
But Hinsdale South could not keep the Redwings at bay for long.
Graiber and Morefield struck twice in a span of 1:17, using a recipe that would become familiar and tart to the visitors.
First, Michalik lofted a cross from the left corner to the near post, where Graiber elevated and powered a header into the upper 90 for a 2-0 lead at the 27:31 mark. Then Ben Kelly took over Michalik’s role. He dribbled quickly around the left end and crossed to the wide-open Morefield, who tucked a half-volley from 10 yards out off the inside of the left post before Meyers had time to react.
Then it was Mote’s turn. The junior volleyed home David Diltz’s cross from, you guessed it, the left corner. Michalik buried a penalty kick with 19:21 remaining for a 5-0 bulge.
“We would pass it to our center guy and then we would be able to connect to the sides and make runs into the center,” Mote said. “That’s how we did it.”
So what was different from Tuesday?
“I felt like we connected our passes up top more,” Mote said. “We played a different formation – a 4-3-3 – so we had an extra guy up top. That actually helped us a lot moving the ball side-to-side. That was the difference.”
While the Redwings have 15 players returning from last year’s 15-5-2 squad that won a regional championship, there are major differences between the two squads. The main one is the absence of All-American striker Kyle Kenagy, who has taken his prodigious scoring talents to Yale.
But his graduation might merely have given players like Morefield, Mote and newcomer Graiber the opportunity to showcase their skills.
“We’re kind of trying to do it by committee this year,” said Morefield, who assisted on Mote’s second goal six minutes into the second half. “We had Kyle, and Kyle scored a ton of goals for us. Now our strategy this year is we have a couple guys that can help us fill that role, fill that void.
“I think we have a lot of depth this year. We have 15 guys who can put a lot of goals in for us, and I think that’s going to be great for us.”
Wesley agreed, saying he likes the unselfish attitude that Morefield, Mote and Graiber have shown in the early going.
“(Those are) three guys who want to pass the ball, who want to combine with each other,” Wesley said. “I think we have a much different look than we had last year. Last year we were looking for one guy, connecting with him and then watching him run.
“This year everybody’s got their head up and looking to pass. When we’re mobile off the ball, we’re pretty dangerous.”
Hinsdale South (1-1) wasn’t dangerous at all until late in the match after Wesley cleared his bench. Benet goalie Konrad Bayer did not have to make a save in the first half, and his replacement, Brian Gould, made only one after intermission.
The Hornets were outshot 20-9, with five of their shots coming in the final 15 minutes. They had only two real chances to avert the shutout, the first when Bart Majerczyk hit the outside of the left post with a corner kick and the second coming off another corner kick when the visitors hit the crossbar with two shots and the post with another.
While Benet's switch to a 4-3-3 paid dividends, it doesn’t mean the Redwings will play that formation exclusively. Wesley likes his players’ versatility and plans to utilize it in any way he can.
“I think it’s game-to-game,” Wesley said. “It’s early in the season, and we’re trying a lot of things. I played 27 guys tonight. That’s not always going to be the case.
“Graiber can play anywhere, Mote can play anywhere, Morefield could play anywhere. All of those guys could end up in our midfield too, so we’ll see.”
Starting lineups
Hinsdale South
G Christopher Meyers
D John Cabrera
D Mick Meylus
D Nicholas Yurchak
D Christian Lopez
M Ryan Wooten
M Homar Garcia
M Eduardo Lopez
M Bart Majerczyk
F Karel Ondra
F Christopher Metcalf
Benet
G Konrad Beyer
D Harrison Burke
D Charlie Kane
D Hashem Atassi
D Richie Michalik
M Ryley Guay
M Bennett Curtis
M Ben Kelly
F Connor Mote
F Jacob Graiber
F Daniel Morefield
Man of the Match: Daniel Morefield, F, Benet
in rout of Hinsdale South
Redwings show killer instinct in 7-0 victory
By Matt Le Cren
LISLE – That was better. Much better.
Benet bounced back from a disappointing season-opening loss to Downers Grove North by routing visiting Hinsdale South 7-0 on Thursday.
The Redwings scored five times in the first 21 minutes, shredding a Hinsdale South defense that shut out Curie 4-0 three days earlier.
Daniel Morefield paced the Benet attack with two goals and an assist, while Connor Mote also scored twice and Richie Michalik and Jacob Graiber registered a goal and an assist apiece. Devin Martini capped the scoring, blasting a 30-yard free kick off the hands of Hinsdale South goalie Christopher Meyers with 7:23 to go in the second half.
“We knew we had talent, and on Tuesday, after watching the film, it was obvious that we were combining much better than we did last year, connecting through the midfield, but then we just didn’t put our head down and go to goal,” Benet coach Sean Wesley said. “Today was a totally different story. We had all kinds of guys putting their head down and going to goal and finding the target.
“On Tuesday we took something like 18 shots and only put six on goal. Here’s a complete 180 where we start the first half, take 10 shots and put eight on frame, and we made it very hard on them.”
A goal from Mote had given Benet a 1-0 halftime lead against Downers North on Tuesday, but the Redwings didn’t press their advantage after the break and the Trojans rallied for a 2-1 victory.
The Redwings (1-1) made sure there would be no repeat of that. They relentlessly attacked, using precision passing and speed to get in behind the Hornets with regularity.
Graiber, a senior who played club soccer last fall, got things started when he sprung Morefield into the box in the eighth minute. Morefield beat Meyers with a short shot to the far post.
It was the start of something great for the Redwings, who nearly scored three times in the next 45 seconds. Morefield had a goal disallowed by an offsides call. Meyers, who made seven saves, dove off his line to cut off a cross from Morefield that would have resulted in a tap-in opportunity. Meyers also made a diving stop on a quick shot from Graiber.
But Hinsdale South could not keep the Redwings at bay for long.
Graiber and Morefield struck twice in a span of 1:17, using a recipe that would become familiar and tart to the visitors.
First, Michalik lofted a cross from the left corner to the near post, where Graiber elevated and powered a header into the upper 90 for a 2-0 lead at the 27:31 mark. Then Ben Kelly took over Michalik’s role. He dribbled quickly around the left end and crossed to the wide-open Morefield, who tucked a half-volley from 10 yards out off the inside of the left post before Meyers had time to react.
Then it was Mote’s turn. The junior volleyed home David Diltz’s cross from, you guessed it, the left corner. Michalik buried a penalty kick with 19:21 remaining for a 5-0 bulge.
“We would pass it to our center guy and then we would be able to connect to the sides and make runs into the center,” Mote said. “That’s how we did it.”
So what was different from Tuesday?
“I felt like we connected our passes up top more,” Mote said. “We played a different formation – a 4-3-3 – so we had an extra guy up top. That actually helped us a lot moving the ball side-to-side. That was the difference.”
While the Redwings have 15 players returning from last year’s 15-5-2 squad that won a regional championship, there are major differences between the two squads. The main one is the absence of All-American striker Kyle Kenagy, who has taken his prodigious scoring talents to Yale.
But his graduation might merely have given players like Morefield, Mote and newcomer Graiber the opportunity to showcase their skills.
“We’re kind of trying to do it by committee this year,” said Morefield, who assisted on Mote’s second goal six minutes into the second half. “We had Kyle, and Kyle scored a ton of goals for us. Now our strategy this year is we have a couple guys that can help us fill that role, fill that void.
“I think we have a lot of depth this year. We have 15 guys who can put a lot of goals in for us, and I think that’s going to be great for us.”
Wesley agreed, saying he likes the unselfish attitude that Morefield, Mote and Graiber have shown in the early going.
“(Those are) three guys who want to pass the ball, who want to combine with each other,” Wesley said. “I think we have a much different look than we had last year. Last year we were looking for one guy, connecting with him and then watching him run.
“This year everybody’s got their head up and looking to pass. When we’re mobile off the ball, we’re pretty dangerous.”
Hinsdale South (1-1) wasn’t dangerous at all until late in the match after Wesley cleared his bench. Benet goalie Konrad Bayer did not have to make a save in the first half, and his replacement, Brian Gould, made only one after intermission.
The Hornets were outshot 20-9, with five of their shots coming in the final 15 minutes. They had only two real chances to avert the shutout, the first when Bart Majerczyk hit the outside of the left post with a corner kick and the second coming off another corner kick when the visitors hit the crossbar with two shots and the post with another.
While Benet's switch to a 4-3-3 paid dividends, it doesn’t mean the Redwings will play that formation exclusively. Wesley likes his players’ versatility and plans to utilize it in any way he can.
“I think it’s game-to-game,” Wesley said. “It’s early in the season, and we’re trying a lot of things. I played 27 guys tonight. That’s not always going to be the case.
“Graiber can play anywhere, Mote can play anywhere, Morefield could play anywhere. All of those guys could end up in our midfield too, so we’ll see.”
Starting lineups
Hinsdale South
G Christopher Meyers
D John Cabrera
D Mick Meylus
D Nicholas Yurchak
D Christian Lopez
M Ryan Wooten
M Homar Garcia
M Eduardo Lopez
M Bart Majerczyk
F Karel Ondra
F Christopher Metcalf
Benet
G Konrad Beyer
D Harrison Burke
D Charlie Kane
D Hashem Atassi
D Richie Michalik
M Ryley Guay
M Bennett Curtis
M Ben Kelly
F Connor Mote
F Jacob Graiber
F Daniel Morefield
Man of the Match: Daniel Morefield, F, Benet