Lake Zurich downs OPRF
in wild penalty kick session
Oak Park and River Forest's late goal sent game to extra time
By Dave Owen
LA GRANGE -- Two-minute offenses aren’t limited to American football.
In a wild final flurry of momentum swings Saturday at the PepsiCo Showdown, Oak Park and River Forest and Lake Zurich finished regulation and a pair of five-minute overtimes tied 2-2 before the Bears (3-4-0) produced a winning 5-4 margin in the penalty kick session.
“We had a few clean opportunities early on (in the match) and we missed,” Oak Park and River Forest assistant coach Luis Perez said. “When we have those opportunities, we need to really focus and take advantage. You never know what’s going to come later on, and it could change the dynamic of a game.
“If we score early and get a bigger advantage, we can play a little differently, so that’s one lesson. The other thing is to keep fighting – you never know what’s going to happen, and you can never let your guard down.”
Fighting to the finish was certainly not an issue on either side Saturday.
The teams exchanged goals by Oak Park and River Forest’s Max Klevgard (off an Evan Kindler assist 12:53 into the game) and Lake Zurich’s Trevor Niedzwicki (header at the post off a cross 2:32 into the second half).
Outside of those finishes, goalkeepers Will Dunne (Oak Park) and Dan Grabowski (Lake Zurich) each denied numerous big scoring chances with great saves.
But the first 77 minutes gave no sign of what surprises the next three minutes would hold.
In the 78th minute, a dribble into the box by Lake Zurich’s Brandon Klett changed the tone of the match.
Klett was fouled to set up a Scott Shadrik penalty kick goal that made the score 2-1 in favor of the Bears.
But Oak Park and River Forest had an amazing answer to adversity.
A Klevgard 20-yard direct kick with 1:40 left was deflected wide for a corner kick. Ethan Hausman’s ensuing serve was swatted out of the crease by Lake Zurich goalkeeper Grabowski, but Jacob Meister’s ensuing perfect chip from the top of the box was headed in by Kindler to retie the game with 1:15 remaining in regulation.
“We were kind of down once it was 2-1,” Oak Park and River Forest senior defender Justin Bruce said. “But once we got that goal, our adrenaline pushed up and we just wanted the game more than them at that point.”
The Huskies’ momentum seemed to hit its ultimate level with 15 seconds to go. After Jack Kwan was fouled, Meister’s 28-yard direct kick into the box was headed in by Klevgard for an apparent last-second game winner – only to be nullified by an offsides call.
“After they went ahead we came back, battled and got the tie,” Perez said. “We were really pumped. On that last goal we scored it looked like we were onside -– the officials said we were offsides on the first flick, so we got unlucky, I guess.”
Bears goalkeeper Grabowski said he used a little strategy to get the close call.
“I saw a guy to the left of me, who was the guy that eventually went offside,” he said. “I knew if I left him (moved forward) he would be offside, so I tried to go and punch the ball out. I was unlucky and missed the ball, so it got to him, but luckily he was offside.”
With the offsides call made, the teams went to a pair of five-minute overtimes. The only big chance of those sessions was a huge one. Dunne’s point-blank save on Kevin Johlie 1:10 into the first overtime was followed by a Zane Chung-Mehdi rebound off the left post.
A third Bears chance on the play was blocked and cleared by Oak Park and River Forest defender Matt Schiffner.
In the penalty kick session, the first eight shooters converted for a 4-4 tie. Then
the game of inches again haunted the Huskies. Grabowski made a great save at the left post on Kindler, and Lake Zurich’s Niedzwicki followed with a shot that a diving Dunne got a piece of before it caromed into the net for the game-winner.
“We battled hard for the tie. Then we were unlucky on the PKs,” Perez said. “But that’s how it goes sometimes.”
Grabowski’s clutch save on an elite striker earned him Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match honors.
“Dan coming up huge and getting the save was obviously the key,” Lake Zurich coach Mike Schmitz said.
“It was a pretty crazy game. You think you have it, and it slips away in the last couple of minutes. That could be tough, but I was really proud of our guys for bouncing back and sticking with it, and then finishing the PKs.”
After Oak Park and River Forest’s Zachary El Metennani, Klevgard, Dunne and Kyle Pendleton scored on their PKs, Grabowski came up big.
“I always look at the way they lined up,” Grabowski said of his PK strategy. “I looked at all of them, and every single time they looked one way and kicked the other. It was the fifth one. Four (PK scores) were already way too many for me, so I just tried to step up at the big moment with a save.
“This (win) gives us a lot of confidence, especially on PKs. We had lost two in a row, and we set goals to never go on a losing streak.”
Oak Park and River Forest was left to contemplate the many what-ifs of the match, especially late in regulation.
“We had a great free kick that got called offside, and I personally disagree with the call,” Bruce said. “They did better in the penalty kick shootout than we did, but I think we should have had that goal. But they’re a good team. They played hard.”
The Huskies had plenty of standout performances.
“I thought Evan Kindler did really well up top,” Perez said. “He pressured hard and worked hard to draw fouls and get us some free kicks and earn some corners, and he battled for every ball in the air.
“I thought he did a great job, and (Jack) Kwan off the bench – he goes high and gets the ball on the net. He did a great job too.”
Grabowski made diving saves on Kindler in the 22nd minute of the first half and with 26 minutes left in the match. The latter chance came off a nice Cam Duncan pass, in which Grabowski raced off his line to block the shot.
Dunne also frustrated the Bears with big saves, twice denying Andrew Pytlak. His best stop came with 16:50 left in regulation, when Dunne made a flying block to deflect Dylan Niedzwicki’s 6-yarder wide.
Defender Corey Hellman had a block and clear of the crease on a Lake Zurich corner kick with 14:40 to go.
Through the many twists and turns late in the match, one message resonated for the Huskies.
“Not to lay back when you’re winning,” Bruce said, referring to Oak Park and River Forest’s 1-0 lead and first-half control of play.
“We tend to ease off and not pressure as hard when we have the lead, and not mark our men," Bruce said. "That’s how they scored (the first goal) on us. A guy was wide open on a corner and headed it in. We have to keep our tenacity.”
Starting lineups
Lake Zurich
GK- Dan Grabowski
D- Trevor Niedzwicki
D- Ian Root
D- Ty Carey
D- Kyle Schroeder
M- Scott Shadrick
M- Zane Chung-Mehdi
M- Jordan Fleita
M- Kevin Johlie
F- Nate Rathe
F- Brandon Klett
Oak Park and River Forest
GK- Will Dunne
D- Matt Schiffner
D- Justin Bruce
D- Cuyler Dull
D- Jacob Meister
M- Max Klevgard
M- Kyle Pendleton
M- Devin Cuneen
M- Ethan Hausman
F- Evan Kindler
F- Zachary El Metennani
Man of the Match: Dan Grabowski, GK, Lake Zurich
in wild penalty kick session
Oak Park and River Forest's late goal sent game to extra time
By Dave Owen
LA GRANGE -- Two-minute offenses aren’t limited to American football.
In a wild final flurry of momentum swings Saturday at the PepsiCo Showdown, Oak Park and River Forest and Lake Zurich finished regulation and a pair of five-minute overtimes tied 2-2 before the Bears (3-4-0) produced a winning 5-4 margin in the penalty kick session.
“We had a few clean opportunities early on (in the match) and we missed,” Oak Park and River Forest assistant coach Luis Perez said. “When we have those opportunities, we need to really focus and take advantage. You never know what’s going to come later on, and it could change the dynamic of a game.
“If we score early and get a bigger advantage, we can play a little differently, so that’s one lesson. The other thing is to keep fighting – you never know what’s going to happen, and you can never let your guard down.”
Fighting to the finish was certainly not an issue on either side Saturday.
The teams exchanged goals by Oak Park and River Forest’s Max Klevgard (off an Evan Kindler assist 12:53 into the game) and Lake Zurich’s Trevor Niedzwicki (header at the post off a cross 2:32 into the second half).
Outside of those finishes, goalkeepers Will Dunne (Oak Park) and Dan Grabowski (Lake Zurich) each denied numerous big scoring chances with great saves.
But the first 77 minutes gave no sign of what surprises the next three minutes would hold.
In the 78th minute, a dribble into the box by Lake Zurich’s Brandon Klett changed the tone of the match.
Klett was fouled to set up a Scott Shadrik penalty kick goal that made the score 2-1 in favor of the Bears.
But Oak Park and River Forest had an amazing answer to adversity.
A Klevgard 20-yard direct kick with 1:40 left was deflected wide for a corner kick. Ethan Hausman’s ensuing serve was swatted out of the crease by Lake Zurich goalkeeper Grabowski, but Jacob Meister’s ensuing perfect chip from the top of the box was headed in by Kindler to retie the game with 1:15 remaining in regulation.
“We were kind of down once it was 2-1,” Oak Park and River Forest senior defender Justin Bruce said. “But once we got that goal, our adrenaline pushed up and we just wanted the game more than them at that point.”
The Huskies’ momentum seemed to hit its ultimate level with 15 seconds to go. After Jack Kwan was fouled, Meister’s 28-yard direct kick into the box was headed in by Klevgard for an apparent last-second game winner – only to be nullified by an offsides call.
“After they went ahead we came back, battled and got the tie,” Perez said. “We were really pumped. On that last goal we scored it looked like we were onside -– the officials said we were offsides on the first flick, so we got unlucky, I guess.”
Bears goalkeeper Grabowski said he used a little strategy to get the close call.
“I saw a guy to the left of me, who was the guy that eventually went offside,” he said. “I knew if I left him (moved forward) he would be offside, so I tried to go and punch the ball out. I was unlucky and missed the ball, so it got to him, but luckily he was offside.”
With the offsides call made, the teams went to a pair of five-minute overtimes. The only big chance of those sessions was a huge one. Dunne’s point-blank save on Kevin Johlie 1:10 into the first overtime was followed by a Zane Chung-Mehdi rebound off the left post.
A third Bears chance on the play was blocked and cleared by Oak Park and River Forest defender Matt Schiffner.
In the penalty kick session, the first eight shooters converted for a 4-4 tie. Then
the game of inches again haunted the Huskies. Grabowski made a great save at the left post on Kindler, and Lake Zurich’s Niedzwicki followed with a shot that a diving Dunne got a piece of before it caromed into the net for the game-winner.
“We battled hard for the tie. Then we were unlucky on the PKs,” Perez said. “But that’s how it goes sometimes.”
Grabowski’s clutch save on an elite striker earned him Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match honors.
“Dan coming up huge and getting the save was obviously the key,” Lake Zurich coach Mike Schmitz said.
“It was a pretty crazy game. You think you have it, and it slips away in the last couple of minutes. That could be tough, but I was really proud of our guys for bouncing back and sticking with it, and then finishing the PKs.”
After Oak Park and River Forest’s Zachary El Metennani, Klevgard, Dunne and Kyle Pendleton scored on their PKs, Grabowski came up big.
“I always look at the way they lined up,” Grabowski said of his PK strategy. “I looked at all of them, and every single time they looked one way and kicked the other. It was the fifth one. Four (PK scores) were already way too many for me, so I just tried to step up at the big moment with a save.
“This (win) gives us a lot of confidence, especially on PKs. We had lost two in a row, and we set goals to never go on a losing streak.”
Oak Park and River Forest was left to contemplate the many what-ifs of the match, especially late in regulation.
“We had a great free kick that got called offside, and I personally disagree with the call,” Bruce said. “They did better in the penalty kick shootout than we did, but I think we should have had that goal. But they’re a good team. They played hard.”
The Huskies had plenty of standout performances.
“I thought Evan Kindler did really well up top,” Perez said. “He pressured hard and worked hard to draw fouls and get us some free kicks and earn some corners, and he battled for every ball in the air.
“I thought he did a great job, and (Jack) Kwan off the bench – he goes high and gets the ball on the net. He did a great job too.”
Grabowski made diving saves on Kindler in the 22nd minute of the first half and with 26 minutes left in the match. The latter chance came off a nice Cam Duncan pass, in which Grabowski raced off his line to block the shot.
Dunne also frustrated the Bears with big saves, twice denying Andrew Pytlak. His best stop came with 16:50 left in regulation, when Dunne made a flying block to deflect Dylan Niedzwicki’s 6-yarder wide.
Defender Corey Hellman had a block and clear of the crease on a Lake Zurich corner kick with 14:40 to go.
Through the many twists and turns late in the match, one message resonated for the Huskies.
“Not to lay back when you’re winning,” Bruce said, referring to Oak Park and River Forest’s 1-0 lead and first-half control of play.
“We tend to ease off and not pressure as hard when we have the lead, and not mark our men," Bruce said. "That’s how they scored (the first goal) on us. A guy was wide open on a corner and headed it in. We have to keep our tenacity.”
Starting lineups
Lake Zurich
GK- Dan Grabowski
D- Trevor Niedzwicki
D- Ian Root
D- Ty Carey
D- Kyle Schroeder
M- Scott Shadrick
M- Zane Chung-Mehdi
M- Jordan Fleita
M- Kevin Johlie
F- Nate Rathe
F- Brandon Klett
Oak Park and River Forest
GK- Will Dunne
D- Matt Schiffner
D- Justin Bruce
D- Cuyler Dull
D- Jacob Meister
M- Max Klevgard
M- Kyle Pendleton
M- Devin Cuneen
M- Ethan Hausman
F- Evan Kindler
F- Zachary El Metennani
Man of the Match: Dan Grabowski, GK, Lake Zurich