Elk Grove shut down by Palatine
Tovar's pair of goals paces Pirates
By Ken Keenan
ELK GROVE -- After snapping a four-game losing streak with a 1-1 tie against Glenbard East on Saturday, Elk Grove returned to Mid-Suburban League play with a 3-0 loss to visiting Palatine on Tuesday afternoon.
Senior forward Fabian Tovar paced the Pirates' attack with a pair of goals, while senior forward/midfielder Tyler Curylo scored once and added an assist. The Pirates improved to 6-1-1 overall and 4-1-1 in conference, while the Grenadiers fell to 3-6-2, 0-6-0.
"Nothing comes easy in the MSL -- every game is a fight," said Elk Grove coach Rob Shepard, whose club trailed 1-0 at halftime. "We're not winning, but we are giving a fight. We have to have our young guys grow up. We told the guys, you have to concentrate at all times. We'll go back to work in practice, and get ourselves on the right side (of winning and losing)."
Grens senior midfielder Ivan Corona said that although the losses are "frustrating," his team isn't about to throw in the towel.
"The season's not over," Corona said. "We put in the work at practice, and we'll just have to work harder."
Curylo scored the game's first goal with exactly 24 minutes remaining in the first half, beating senior Elk Grove goalkeeper Alberto Centeno to the left side after a corner kick by sophomore forward/midfielder Adan Flores led to a scramble in front. Tovar -- Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match -- made it 2-0 in the eighth minute of the second half, tapping in a beautiful cross by senior midfielder Gavin Falotico.
Seven minutes later, Tovar closed the scoring after taking a pass from Curylo and cutting across the front of the net before burying a close-in shot past Centeno.
"It feels really good (to score twice)," Tovar said. "The first one, I saw Gavin running out and outrace the defender, and the second one, Tyler gave me a nice pass and I made a diagonal run. When the team scores a couple of goals, it makes us more calm, knowing we can organize ourselves."
Palatine head coach Willie Filian was especially pleased with Tovar's output, considering that Curylo has been the club's top scoring threat most of the season.
"Fabian has coming along, and that allows Tyler some space, as he's been bottled up by our opponents lately," Filian said. "It's nice to have Fabian come in and be dangerous, and play consistently."
Elk Grove entered the pitch in the second half with a charge in its step. Six minutes in, Grens senior forward Carlos Miranda worked the left wing, and after a cross by senior defender Bobby Hlavin was blocked by Flores, EG junior midfielder Ivan Rodriguez was stopped by Pirates sophomore keeper Dylan Ruzbasan.
With 26:40 remaining, Elk Grove junior midfielder Oscar Suarez uncorked a 30-yard blast that went wide left, and moments later Miranda attempted to hit speedy senior forward Edgar Soto with a long pass that missed its mark. Four minutes later, Soto chased another long ball in hopes of gaining a breakaway, followed by a free kick from Corona that also eluded Soto.
Falotico manned the back end with a solid presence all match to help keep Elk Grove off the scoreboard.
"Knowing Elk Grove has been struggling, it's easier for the underdog to play the hardest," he said. "But we held our own."
Filian labeled Falotico as a strong, athletic kid who covers a lot of ground.
"He's versatile ... does a lot of things for us," Filian said. "When he's not on the field, it's noticeable."
Meanwhile, Alberto Centeno did his part to keep the Grens within striking distance until Shepard and Filian emptied their respective benches down the stretch. The veteran Elk Grove keeper made several solid stops, including a save on a Curylo shot 10 minutes into the first half, and then on another Curylo chance five minutes later. Forty seconds after Palatine's first goal, Curylo was stopped by Centeno yet again.
"In my opinion, Alberto is the best goalie around, hands down," Shepard said. "He's consistently good each game. He reads the game well and has the ability to hang and float to tip balls over the net. Some goalies have at least one weakness, but Alberto does not. He's just a phenomenal player, and we need to do right by him."
Corona agreed, adding, "He's been stepping it up all season, making a lot of important saves. He's not real vocal, but he steps it up with the way he plays. He's definitely covered our butts when we've had our heads down defensively."
Though Filian said he was content with the victory, he acknowledged that it was no easy task.
"Elk Grove outplayed us in segments," he said. "Elk Grove has a young team, but it's a skillful team that works hard, and we had to work hard to contain them."
Starting lineups
Elk Grove
G Alberto Centeno
D Bobby Hlavin
D Dan Hadler
D Connor Emmerich
M Ivan Corona
M Ivan Perez
M Joey Weber
M Ivan Corona
M Noe Centeno
F Edgar Soto
F Carlos Miranda
Palatine
G Dylan Ruzbasan
D Evan Braun
D Kevin Burke
D Liam Obernesser
D Colin O'Meara
M Logan Vidal
M Logan Hedrick
M Gavin Falotico
F Tyler Curylo
F Adan Flores
F Fabian Tovar
Man of the Match: Fabian Tovar, Palatine
Officials: Jay Weiss, Vic Walker, Juan Hernandez
Tovar's pair of goals paces Pirates
By Ken Keenan
ELK GROVE -- After snapping a four-game losing streak with a 1-1 tie against Glenbard East on Saturday, Elk Grove returned to Mid-Suburban League play with a 3-0 loss to visiting Palatine on Tuesday afternoon.
Senior forward Fabian Tovar paced the Pirates' attack with a pair of goals, while senior forward/midfielder Tyler Curylo scored once and added an assist. The Pirates improved to 6-1-1 overall and 4-1-1 in conference, while the Grenadiers fell to 3-6-2, 0-6-0.
"Nothing comes easy in the MSL -- every game is a fight," said Elk Grove coach Rob Shepard, whose club trailed 1-0 at halftime. "We're not winning, but we are giving a fight. We have to have our young guys grow up. We told the guys, you have to concentrate at all times. We'll go back to work in practice, and get ourselves on the right side (of winning and losing)."
Grens senior midfielder Ivan Corona said that although the losses are "frustrating," his team isn't about to throw in the towel.
"The season's not over," Corona said. "We put in the work at practice, and we'll just have to work harder."
Curylo scored the game's first goal with exactly 24 minutes remaining in the first half, beating senior Elk Grove goalkeeper Alberto Centeno to the left side after a corner kick by sophomore forward/midfielder Adan Flores led to a scramble in front. Tovar -- Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match -- made it 2-0 in the eighth minute of the second half, tapping in a beautiful cross by senior midfielder Gavin Falotico.
Seven minutes later, Tovar closed the scoring after taking a pass from Curylo and cutting across the front of the net before burying a close-in shot past Centeno.
"It feels really good (to score twice)," Tovar said. "The first one, I saw Gavin running out and outrace the defender, and the second one, Tyler gave me a nice pass and I made a diagonal run. When the team scores a couple of goals, it makes us more calm, knowing we can organize ourselves."
Palatine head coach Willie Filian was especially pleased with Tovar's output, considering that Curylo has been the club's top scoring threat most of the season.
"Fabian has coming along, and that allows Tyler some space, as he's been bottled up by our opponents lately," Filian said. "It's nice to have Fabian come in and be dangerous, and play consistently."
Elk Grove entered the pitch in the second half with a charge in its step. Six minutes in, Grens senior forward Carlos Miranda worked the left wing, and after a cross by senior defender Bobby Hlavin was blocked by Flores, EG junior midfielder Ivan Rodriguez was stopped by Pirates sophomore keeper Dylan Ruzbasan.
With 26:40 remaining, Elk Grove junior midfielder Oscar Suarez uncorked a 30-yard blast that went wide left, and moments later Miranda attempted to hit speedy senior forward Edgar Soto with a long pass that missed its mark. Four minutes later, Soto chased another long ball in hopes of gaining a breakaway, followed by a free kick from Corona that also eluded Soto.
Falotico manned the back end with a solid presence all match to help keep Elk Grove off the scoreboard.
"Knowing Elk Grove has been struggling, it's easier for the underdog to play the hardest," he said. "But we held our own."
Filian labeled Falotico as a strong, athletic kid who covers a lot of ground.
"He's versatile ... does a lot of things for us," Filian said. "When he's not on the field, it's noticeable."
Meanwhile, Alberto Centeno did his part to keep the Grens within striking distance until Shepard and Filian emptied their respective benches down the stretch. The veteran Elk Grove keeper made several solid stops, including a save on a Curylo shot 10 minutes into the first half, and then on another Curylo chance five minutes later. Forty seconds after Palatine's first goal, Curylo was stopped by Centeno yet again.
"In my opinion, Alberto is the best goalie around, hands down," Shepard said. "He's consistently good each game. He reads the game well and has the ability to hang and float to tip balls over the net. Some goalies have at least one weakness, but Alberto does not. He's just a phenomenal player, and we need to do right by him."
Corona agreed, adding, "He's been stepping it up all season, making a lot of important saves. He's not real vocal, but he steps it up with the way he plays. He's definitely covered our butts when we've had our heads down defensively."
Though Filian said he was content with the victory, he acknowledged that it was no easy task.
"Elk Grove outplayed us in segments," he said. "Elk Grove has a young team, but it's a skillful team that works hard, and we had to work hard to contain them."
Starting lineups
Elk Grove
G Alberto Centeno
D Bobby Hlavin
D Dan Hadler
D Connor Emmerich
M Ivan Corona
M Ivan Perez
M Joey Weber
M Ivan Corona
M Noe Centeno
F Edgar Soto
F Carlos Miranda
Palatine
G Dylan Ruzbasan
D Evan Braun
D Kevin Burke
D Liam Obernesser
D Colin O'Meara
M Logan Vidal
M Logan Hedrick
M Gavin Falotico
F Tyler Curylo
F Adan Flores
F Fabian Tovar
Man of the Match: Fabian Tovar, Palatine
Officials: Jay Weiss, Vic Walker, Juan Hernandez