Early onslaught carries
Buffalo Grove past Prospect
Brauner leads speedy Bison with pair of goals
By Ken Keenan
MOUNT PROSPECT -- Powered by three goals in the first 10 minutes of play, Buffalo Grove steamrolled host Prospect 4-0 in MSL East action Thursday night.
Utilizing long passes and speed, speed, speed, the Bison attack was led by Drew Brauner, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match. The junior midfielder, playing mostly in the upper third, gave Buffalo Grove a 1-0 lead just over three minutes into the match, and then sealed the deal on a 20-yard free kick rocket in the sixth minute of the second half.
Bison junior forward Collin Doyle headed in a ball from close range with 34:29 remaining in the first half for a 2-0 lead, and fellow junior forward Alexis Alvarez finished the scoring in the opening session with a low blast past Prospect senior goalkeeper Peter Flynn with 31 minutes left. Alvarez picked up a loose ball off of a throw-in and created room to set up his shot.
Doyle assisted on Brauner's first goal, while sophomore forward Collin Dekorski counted a helper on Doyle's tally.
"The 3-0 jump really got us going," said Buffalo Grove head coach Rick Carlson, whose squad improved to 4-4-0 overall. "We were going up and down the field ... did a nice job of switching the field, and kept the energy high throughout the match."
Senior midfielder Zach Masciopinto, another sprinter pressing the issue for the run-and-gun Bison, agreed.
"We like to capitalize and finish the runs ... connect on long passes and get it by the defense," he said. "That's what we need to do to be successful."
Brauner said the Bison were motivated to hit the pitch running following a 3-1 loss to Conant in the team's previous match.
"The last game, we were pretty flat, so we wanted to come out with a lot of energy," he said.
Prospect, which dropped to 1-6-0, didn't fold, though, and controlled play for the majority of a seven-minute stretch in the first half after digging the 3-0 hole. Knights senior midfielder Dominick Taldone was stuffed by the Bison defense in close with 22 minutes to go, and senior forward Alex Whiteman bounced a header wide soon after. Buffalo Grove senior keeper Connor May then robbed junior defender Eryk Soltys with a leaping, left-handed save with 18:30 left.
"Down 3-0 the first eight minutes -- that's unacceptable. We did not come to play," Whiteman said. "Then I felt the chances came, but we didn't capitalize."
Masciopinto said he expected Prospect to make a run, "so we needed to stick to our game plan, not let them attack and play like it's 0-0."
Carlson also tipped his cap to the losing squad, citing the play of senior defender Connor Reid and junior defenders Hans Haller, Ryan Drum and Gorgis Yelda for helping to keep the Knights off the scoreboard.
"Prospect didn't give up -- they stuck to it and never backed down," Carlson said. "But we were solid in the back."
Flynn kept it at 3-0 with a series of fine saves early in the second session, stopping Doyle from the left side and jumping to grab another chance in traffic before Brauner buried his free kick.
Though his club has been battling injuries so far this season, Knights head coach Jason Cohen offered no excuses.
"We're trying to find some discipline and get guys on the right page," he said. "We have to focus on the group and not individuals. We're inexperienced, but we have to come and play -- and develop and work."
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove
G Connor May
D Ryan Drum
D Gorgis Yelda
D Hans Haller
D Connor Reid
M Zach Masciopinto
M Drew Brauner
M Alex Alfaro
F Collin Dekorski
F Alexis Alvarez
F Collin Doyle
Prospect
G Peter Flynn
D Miguel Cruz
D Eryk Soltys
D Nick Tuczak
D Grant Whitebloom
M Jake Cavaini
M Celso Soto
M Adam Sovoia
M Dominick Taldone
F Alex Whiteman
F Maciel Lojewski
Man of the Match: Drew Brauner, Buffalo Grove
Officials: Dave Koder, Mike Valsamis, Lukas Zielinski
Buffalo Grove past Prospect
Brauner leads speedy Bison with pair of goals
By Ken Keenan
MOUNT PROSPECT -- Powered by three goals in the first 10 minutes of play, Buffalo Grove steamrolled host Prospect 4-0 in MSL East action Thursday night.
Utilizing long passes and speed, speed, speed, the Bison attack was led by Drew Brauner, Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match. The junior midfielder, playing mostly in the upper third, gave Buffalo Grove a 1-0 lead just over three minutes into the match, and then sealed the deal on a 20-yard free kick rocket in the sixth minute of the second half.
Bison junior forward Collin Doyle headed in a ball from close range with 34:29 remaining in the first half for a 2-0 lead, and fellow junior forward Alexis Alvarez finished the scoring in the opening session with a low blast past Prospect senior goalkeeper Peter Flynn with 31 minutes left. Alvarez picked up a loose ball off of a throw-in and created room to set up his shot.
Doyle assisted on Brauner's first goal, while sophomore forward Collin Dekorski counted a helper on Doyle's tally.
"The 3-0 jump really got us going," said Buffalo Grove head coach Rick Carlson, whose squad improved to 4-4-0 overall. "We were going up and down the field ... did a nice job of switching the field, and kept the energy high throughout the match."
Senior midfielder Zach Masciopinto, another sprinter pressing the issue for the run-and-gun Bison, agreed.
"We like to capitalize and finish the runs ... connect on long passes and get it by the defense," he said. "That's what we need to do to be successful."
Brauner said the Bison were motivated to hit the pitch running following a 3-1 loss to Conant in the team's previous match.
"The last game, we were pretty flat, so we wanted to come out with a lot of energy," he said.
Prospect, which dropped to 1-6-0, didn't fold, though, and controlled play for the majority of a seven-minute stretch in the first half after digging the 3-0 hole. Knights senior midfielder Dominick Taldone was stuffed by the Bison defense in close with 22 minutes to go, and senior forward Alex Whiteman bounced a header wide soon after. Buffalo Grove senior keeper Connor May then robbed junior defender Eryk Soltys with a leaping, left-handed save with 18:30 left.
"Down 3-0 the first eight minutes -- that's unacceptable. We did not come to play," Whiteman said. "Then I felt the chances came, but we didn't capitalize."
Masciopinto said he expected Prospect to make a run, "so we needed to stick to our game plan, not let them attack and play like it's 0-0."
Carlson also tipped his cap to the losing squad, citing the play of senior defender Connor Reid and junior defenders Hans Haller, Ryan Drum and Gorgis Yelda for helping to keep the Knights off the scoreboard.
"Prospect didn't give up -- they stuck to it and never backed down," Carlson said. "But we were solid in the back."
Flynn kept it at 3-0 with a series of fine saves early in the second session, stopping Doyle from the left side and jumping to grab another chance in traffic before Brauner buried his free kick.
Though his club has been battling injuries so far this season, Knights head coach Jason Cohen offered no excuses.
"We're trying to find some discipline and get guys on the right page," he said. "We have to focus on the group and not individuals. We're inexperienced, but we have to come and play -- and develop and work."
Starting lineups
Buffalo Grove
G Connor May
D Ryan Drum
D Gorgis Yelda
D Hans Haller
D Connor Reid
M Zach Masciopinto
M Drew Brauner
M Alex Alfaro
F Collin Dekorski
F Alexis Alvarez
F Collin Doyle
Prospect
G Peter Flynn
D Miguel Cruz
D Eryk Soltys
D Nick Tuczak
D Grant Whitebloom
M Jake Cavaini
M Celso Soto
M Adam Sovoia
M Dominick Taldone
F Alex Whiteman
F Maciel Lojewski
Man of the Match: Drew Brauner, Buffalo Grove
Officials: Dave Koder, Mike Valsamis, Lukas Zielinski