North rises over Central
in battle of Plainfields
North backline proves too tough for Central
By Derek Wolff
PLAINFIELD — An early season Southwest Prairie Conference fixture between rivals Plainfield North and Plainfield Central pitted the reigning champion against a side it hadn’t had much success against.
North (8-0) changed that story line on Tuesday afternoon after a 4-0 drubbing of the Wildcats to remain perfect.
The Tigers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first half and limited Central’s opportunities moving forward. Substitute Mitchell Rathbun added the fourth goal for the visitors in the 61st minute.
By then any hope of a full-on comeback was out the window, but Central did create a number of chances to get on the board, particularly from set pieces.
Central coach Kevin Fitzgerald acknowledged that his opponent was clearly the better side but felt that the chances were there for his team to get back in the game.
“I really did think we should have had a couple,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s not like we were without chances. A lot of 4-0 games you see the ball in one half, 80 percent possession. It wasn’t that. Don’t get me wrong, they were better and they beat us. But we probably could have gotten one or two (goals), I thought. Some of it’s finishing, some of it’s mentality.”
North’s forwards wasted little time exploiting the youthful Central backfield, which included sophomores Ricky Garcia and Matt Geib and freshman Ish Contreras.
North striker Nicholas Anweiler opened the scoring for the Tigers in the 10th minute, dribbling around a defender and converting into the lower left corner for the 1-0 lead.
Seventeen minutes later Tigers midfielder and Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match Jordan Schure curled one in to double the lead. He added his second of the day two minutes later.
Driving back downfield after winning possession, North earned a free kick from 20 yards out when Garcia earned a yellow card with a hard challenge. North midfielder James Thompson sent it into the box, connecting with Schure on a run, who flicked it in with his head to make it 3-0.
“I saw (Thompson) was looking for one of us to run near post and flick it on,” Schure said. “That’s what we usually go for, and it worked out. It was a great ball by James.”
The Tigers were able to capitalize on their early chances behind solid possession and found open spacing for their runs. Coach Mike Skupien said his forwards, Anweiler and junior Austin Collier, helped open the attack and worked well together, leading to a number of chances.
“Really we just played direct,” Skupien said. “Nick Anweiler and Austin Collier were very good, with one guy winning first ball and the other guy looking to run in behind him for second ball. Those two guys linked together very well.”
The win meant a good deal to Tigers goalkeeper Cade Fink, considering the history between the two sides.
“Oh, it’s huge, especially playing Central,” Fink said. “This is only the second time in school history we’ve beaten them, so anytime you can beat an in-conference opponent like this it’s fantastic. It’s a good feeling.”
Fink’s shutout was the result of determined play by North’s back four defenders, who held the line all night and limited Central’s attacking runs. Central was forced to generate most of its chances via corner kicks.
Fink said the combined effort of his defense has made everyone’s job easier and that the overall team success this season has flowed through them.
“They play together," Fink said. "They’re very loud and talk to each other and make my job and their jobs easier. Defensively I think we’ve played very sound, especially through direct balls and set plays. We’re getting through every 50-50 ball, and our offense is so skilled we’re putting the ball in the back of the net.”
For Central (2-2-1), the turnaround needs to come quickly with a home game against Marmion Academy on Thursday before the Pepsi Showdown begins this weekend.
Striker Edgar Cardenas said the team will get back to work in practice in order to prepare for the big games ahead.
“We need to work harder and talk to each other, play with more heart,” Cardenas said. “Work hard at practice, and we’ll get the result we want.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
G-Cade Fink
D-Ethan Barangan
D-Travis Foust
D-Adam Ratini
M-Zachary Barangan
M-Jake Farley
M-Jordan Schure
M-James Thompson
F-Nicholas Anweiler
F-Austin Collier
F-Austin Hansen
Plainfield Central
G-Sebastian Zajac
D-Gustavo Sanchez
D-Gage Wuestenfeld
D-Ricky Garcia
D-Phil Garcia
D-Ish Contreras
D-Matt Geib
M-Jard Petrovic
M-Ozzie Gutierrez
M-Joel Sanchez
F-Edgar Cardenas
Man of the Match: Jordan Schure, Plainfield North
Referees: Harry Arroyo Jr., Curt Wegner, Mike McDermott
in battle of Plainfields
North backline proves too tough for Central
By Derek Wolff
PLAINFIELD — An early season Southwest Prairie Conference fixture between rivals Plainfield North and Plainfield Central pitted the reigning champion against a side it hadn’t had much success against.
North (8-0) changed that story line on Tuesday afternoon after a 4-0 drubbing of the Wildcats to remain perfect.
The Tigers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first half and limited Central’s opportunities moving forward. Substitute Mitchell Rathbun added the fourth goal for the visitors in the 61st minute.
By then any hope of a full-on comeback was out the window, but Central did create a number of chances to get on the board, particularly from set pieces.
Central coach Kevin Fitzgerald acknowledged that his opponent was clearly the better side but felt that the chances were there for his team to get back in the game.
“I really did think we should have had a couple,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s not like we were without chances. A lot of 4-0 games you see the ball in one half, 80 percent possession. It wasn’t that. Don’t get me wrong, they were better and they beat us. But we probably could have gotten one or two (goals), I thought. Some of it’s finishing, some of it’s mentality.”
North’s forwards wasted little time exploiting the youthful Central backfield, which included sophomores Ricky Garcia and Matt Geib and freshman Ish Contreras.
North striker Nicholas Anweiler opened the scoring for the Tigers in the 10th minute, dribbling around a defender and converting into the lower left corner for the 1-0 lead.
Seventeen minutes later Tigers midfielder and Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match Jordan Schure curled one in to double the lead. He added his second of the day two minutes later.
Driving back downfield after winning possession, North earned a free kick from 20 yards out when Garcia earned a yellow card with a hard challenge. North midfielder James Thompson sent it into the box, connecting with Schure on a run, who flicked it in with his head to make it 3-0.
“I saw (Thompson) was looking for one of us to run near post and flick it on,” Schure said. “That’s what we usually go for, and it worked out. It was a great ball by James.”
The Tigers were able to capitalize on their early chances behind solid possession and found open spacing for their runs. Coach Mike Skupien said his forwards, Anweiler and junior Austin Collier, helped open the attack and worked well together, leading to a number of chances.
“Really we just played direct,” Skupien said. “Nick Anweiler and Austin Collier were very good, with one guy winning first ball and the other guy looking to run in behind him for second ball. Those two guys linked together very well.”
The win meant a good deal to Tigers goalkeeper Cade Fink, considering the history between the two sides.
“Oh, it’s huge, especially playing Central,” Fink said. “This is only the second time in school history we’ve beaten them, so anytime you can beat an in-conference opponent like this it’s fantastic. It’s a good feeling.”
Fink’s shutout was the result of determined play by North’s back four defenders, who held the line all night and limited Central’s attacking runs. Central was forced to generate most of its chances via corner kicks.
Fink said the combined effort of his defense has made everyone’s job easier and that the overall team success this season has flowed through them.
“They play together," Fink said. "They’re very loud and talk to each other and make my job and their jobs easier. Defensively I think we’ve played very sound, especially through direct balls and set plays. We’re getting through every 50-50 ball, and our offense is so skilled we’re putting the ball in the back of the net.”
For Central (2-2-1), the turnaround needs to come quickly with a home game against Marmion Academy on Thursday before the Pepsi Showdown begins this weekend.
Striker Edgar Cardenas said the team will get back to work in practice in order to prepare for the big games ahead.
“We need to work harder and talk to each other, play with more heart,” Cardenas said. “Work hard at practice, and we’ll get the result we want.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
G-Cade Fink
D-Ethan Barangan
D-Travis Foust
D-Adam Ratini
M-Zachary Barangan
M-Jake Farley
M-Jordan Schure
M-James Thompson
F-Nicholas Anweiler
F-Austin Collier
F-Austin Hansen
Plainfield Central
G-Sebastian Zajac
D-Gustavo Sanchez
D-Gage Wuestenfeld
D-Ricky Garcia
D-Phil Garcia
D-Ish Contreras
D-Matt Geib
M-Jard Petrovic
M-Ozzie Gutierrez
M-Joel Sanchez
F-Edgar Cardenas
Man of the Match: Jordan Schure, Plainfield North
Referees: Harry Arroyo Jr., Curt Wegner, Mike McDermott