Goal in first half holds up for Willowbrook
Warriors top Hinsdale South in conference opener
By Ken Keenan
LAKE VILLA -- A first-half goal by Benny Heredia turned out to be all host Willowbrook needed to hold off Hinsdale South for a 1-0 victory Tuesday in the first WSC Gold contest of the 2014 season for both clubs.
Heredia, a sophomore midfielder playing forward most of the night, banged in a shot from close range with 16:33 remaining before halftime after taking a beautiful feed from senior forward Mike Rogalski. Rogalski, a team captain who was a force with the ball throughout the match, earned Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match honors.
"We strung some passes together, and I knew Benny was behind me," Rogalski said in describing the scoring play. "He cut inside and made an amazing shot. Getting the first goal was crucial. We only played one good half and still won."
Indeed, the Hornets -- who fell to 0-8-0 -- turned up the volume in the second half after allowing the Warriors (4-2-1 overall) numerous chances in the opening 40 minutes.
Right out of the gate, Rogalski set up speedy sophomore forward Saul Hernandez for a good chance that was spoiled when Hernandez inadvertently stepped on the ball. Moments later, Rogalski dribbled in close but was forced wide.
In the 10th minute, Hernandez and Heredia executed a nifty give-and-go, but the Warriors couldn't finish. About two minutes later, a Willowbrook throw-in led to a beautiful passing sequence from Hernandez to senior defender Gideon Karasek to junior midfielder Lucas Betts, who switched the field with a smooth roll to junior defender Stasiu Szudrowicz before possession was lost.
With 21:50 to go before intermission, Heredia had a short shot blocked, leading to a corner kick by senior midfielder Kristian Johansson that created yet another chance in front of busy Hinsdale South senior goalkeeper Alec Carpenter.
Exactly one minute later, sharp passing between Heredia and Hernandez resulted in yet another close-in opportunity, followed 30 seconds later by a rocket from junior midfielder Arkadiusz Szlachta that sailed a touch high.
"Our possession game has improved -- we call it possession with a purpose -- with moving the ball and switching fields," Warriors coach Pete Ginter said. "I thought we were effective. Our passing combinations were great.
"Rogalski was really distributing the ball with a lot of mobility and reading our other players to put the passes in the passing lanes. That gives our offense power. And when you're controlling the ball, it takes pressure off your defense."
But the second half was a different story, as a more physical Hinsdale South squad scrapped its way to more opportunities in the Willowbrook end.
Warriors junior goalkeeper Riad Perviz -- who recorded his second shutout of the campaign -- made a solid save on a hard 20-yard shot by junior Myk Meilus five minutes in, and soon after Perviz saved a long shot on a free kick by Hornets freshman forward Karel Ondra.
With 11:20 to go in the match, Perviz scooped up a bouncing 50-yard free kick by senior defender Lucas Carlson, while yet another long-range free kick by Carlson was smothered by Johansson and Co. in front.
"The first half, we had no shape -- our midfield didn't get back," Carlson said. "We're solid defensively, but we need to make sure our team is in shape in the diamond (formation), otherwise it breaks down. In the second half, we got our defense together and started winning some 50-50 balls."
A mad scramble in front of the Warriors goal with 40 seconds left in the match ended up with the ball in Perviz's hands, and a free kick by Meilus was then headed out by Rogalski as the ball trickled away at game's end.
Hinsdale South assistant coach Eric Dykstra, filling in for ill head coach James VanDenburgh, was proud of the Hornets for pushing the pace in the final 40 minutes.
"Every game, we're improving," Dykstra said. "Their heads were in it, and they fought to the very end. It's about collecting your thoughts at halftime, learning from the first half, and then following up in the second half. And we had good passing and possession in the second half."
Johansson admitted that the Warriors let off the gas pedal a bit in the second half.
"We kind of hurried our passes and didn't play as well," Johansson said. "But (junior defender and team captain) Mike Sommers, Rogalski and the guys in back held it together."
They did, and Willowbrook celebrated a 1-0-0 start in conference play.
"When you start conference games, you want to do well," Ginter said. "It means a lot to win. That's the bottom line."
Starting lineups
Willowbrook
G Asmir Perviz
D Gideon Karasek
D Mike Sommers
D Stasiu Szudrowicz
MF Aaron Johnson
MF Arkadiusz Szlachta
MF Lucas Betts
MF Kristian Johansson
F Benny Heredia
F Saul Hernandez
F Mike Rogalski
Hinsdale South
G Alec Carpenter
D Lucas Carlson
D Austin West
D Paul Figus
MF Mike Noble
MF Chris Metcalf
MF Jovan Krcadinac
F Zach Duffy
F Dino Vessol
F Alec Raatz
F Karel Ondra
Man of the Match: Mike Rogalski, Willowbrook
Officials: Boris Vukovic, Mark Sobiech, Chris Landers
Warriors top Hinsdale South in conference opener
By Ken Keenan
LAKE VILLA -- A first-half goal by Benny Heredia turned out to be all host Willowbrook needed to hold off Hinsdale South for a 1-0 victory Tuesday in the first WSC Gold contest of the 2014 season for both clubs.
Heredia, a sophomore midfielder playing forward most of the night, banged in a shot from close range with 16:33 remaining before halftime after taking a beautiful feed from senior forward Mike Rogalski. Rogalski, a team captain who was a force with the ball throughout the match, earned Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match honors.
"We strung some passes together, and I knew Benny was behind me," Rogalski said in describing the scoring play. "He cut inside and made an amazing shot. Getting the first goal was crucial. We only played one good half and still won."
Indeed, the Hornets -- who fell to 0-8-0 -- turned up the volume in the second half after allowing the Warriors (4-2-1 overall) numerous chances in the opening 40 minutes.
Right out of the gate, Rogalski set up speedy sophomore forward Saul Hernandez for a good chance that was spoiled when Hernandez inadvertently stepped on the ball. Moments later, Rogalski dribbled in close but was forced wide.
In the 10th minute, Hernandez and Heredia executed a nifty give-and-go, but the Warriors couldn't finish. About two minutes later, a Willowbrook throw-in led to a beautiful passing sequence from Hernandez to senior defender Gideon Karasek to junior midfielder Lucas Betts, who switched the field with a smooth roll to junior defender Stasiu Szudrowicz before possession was lost.
With 21:50 to go before intermission, Heredia had a short shot blocked, leading to a corner kick by senior midfielder Kristian Johansson that created yet another chance in front of busy Hinsdale South senior goalkeeper Alec Carpenter.
Exactly one minute later, sharp passing between Heredia and Hernandez resulted in yet another close-in opportunity, followed 30 seconds later by a rocket from junior midfielder Arkadiusz Szlachta that sailed a touch high.
"Our possession game has improved -- we call it possession with a purpose -- with moving the ball and switching fields," Warriors coach Pete Ginter said. "I thought we were effective. Our passing combinations were great.
"Rogalski was really distributing the ball with a lot of mobility and reading our other players to put the passes in the passing lanes. That gives our offense power. And when you're controlling the ball, it takes pressure off your defense."
But the second half was a different story, as a more physical Hinsdale South squad scrapped its way to more opportunities in the Willowbrook end.
Warriors junior goalkeeper Riad Perviz -- who recorded his second shutout of the campaign -- made a solid save on a hard 20-yard shot by junior Myk Meilus five minutes in, and soon after Perviz saved a long shot on a free kick by Hornets freshman forward Karel Ondra.
With 11:20 to go in the match, Perviz scooped up a bouncing 50-yard free kick by senior defender Lucas Carlson, while yet another long-range free kick by Carlson was smothered by Johansson and Co. in front.
"The first half, we had no shape -- our midfield didn't get back," Carlson said. "We're solid defensively, but we need to make sure our team is in shape in the diamond (formation), otherwise it breaks down. In the second half, we got our defense together and started winning some 50-50 balls."
A mad scramble in front of the Warriors goal with 40 seconds left in the match ended up with the ball in Perviz's hands, and a free kick by Meilus was then headed out by Rogalski as the ball trickled away at game's end.
Hinsdale South assistant coach Eric Dykstra, filling in for ill head coach James VanDenburgh, was proud of the Hornets for pushing the pace in the final 40 minutes.
"Every game, we're improving," Dykstra said. "Their heads were in it, and they fought to the very end. It's about collecting your thoughts at halftime, learning from the first half, and then following up in the second half. And we had good passing and possession in the second half."
Johansson admitted that the Warriors let off the gas pedal a bit in the second half.
"We kind of hurried our passes and didn't play as well," Johansson said. "But (junior defender and team captain) Mike Sommers, Rogalski and the guys in back held it together."
They did, and Willowbrook celebrated a 1-0-0 start in conference play.
"When you start conference games, you want to do well," Ginter said. "It means a lot to win. That's the bottom line."
Starting lineups
Willowbrook
G Asmir Perviz
D Gideon Karasek
D Mike Sommers
D Stasiu Szudrowicz
MF Aaron Johnson
MF Arkadiusz Szlachta
MF Lucas Betts
MF Kristian Johansson
F Benny Heredia
F Saul Hernandez
F Mike Rogalski
Hinsdale South
G Alec Carpenter
D Lucas Carlson
D Austin West
D Paul Figus
MF Mike Noble
MF Chris Metcalf
MF Jovan Krcadinac
F Zach Duffy
F Dino Vessol
F Alec Raatz
F Karel Ondra
Man of the Match: Mike Rogalski, Willowbrook
Officials: Boris Vukovic, Mark Sobiech, Chris Landers