Pallan hat trick holds up for Barrington
Palatine's second-half comeback falls short
By Ken Keenan
PALATINE -- A hat trick by Barrington's Hans Pallan in the first 18 minutes barely held up for Barrington Tuesday night, as host Palatine rallied for a pair of goals in the second half before falling 3-2 in Mid-Suburban League West action.
The Broncos were patient and poised in the first half, controlling play with a possession game that featured crisp passing and smart spacing, leaving the Pirates looking flat-footed en route to a 3-0 deficit at the break. But two quick strikes by Palatine in a two-minute span early in the second session made a game of it, and it was a back-and-forth affair from that point until the final horn.
"We came out on the front foot, but I never saw Palatine be emotionally flat like that, and we were great in those moments to jump on 'em," said Broncos head coach Scott Steib, whose squad improved to 12-6-0 overall and 5-3 in conference play. "But we have so much respect for how hard Palatine plays, so we were ready for a brouhaha. Any win over Palatine is fantastic, We knew they'd have chances, but we were able to keep the wheels screwed on."
Pallan, a junior defender playing up front in the match, scored the first of his three goals in the eighth minute, banging in a solid cross from sophomore forward Kyle Owen for a 1-0 lead. Just over a minute later, Pallan -- Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match -- tallied his second goal, pouncing on an Owen shot that hit the post and dropped at his feet. The third goal came after a scramble in front, with Pallantapping the ball past Palatine sophomore goalkeeper Dylan Ruzbasan amid a cluster of players.
"We've been working on finishing, and we came out hot and stayed like that in the first half," Pallan said. "We got the ball down by the wings, and we were able to keep the ball and keep moving. It's my first season at forward, so scoring three goals felt good."
Palatine coach Willie Filian was feeling anything but good at the half, and he used the intermission to address his team's sluggish start. The loss dropped the Pirates to 7-3-1 (5-3-1).
"The sad part is, we talked about a good start ... make sure we finish tackles and stay organized," he said. "Take away the first 15 minutes or so and it's a game. But they did a nice job passing, and they had us chasing. We challenged our guys at halftime to win the second half, and not overcomplicate. Our organization, our pressure, at least we got that back. But that first 15 minutes was our crappiest segment all season."
The Pirates cut the lead to 3-1 in the 50th minute, when senior midfielder Tyler Curylo redirected a killer throw-in by senior defender Kevin Burke past Broncos senior keeper Alex Ruffolo. Two minutes later, another monster throw-in by Burke was headed in by junior midfielder Matt Mayer in traffic, and suddenly it was 3-2.
"Throw-ins are just one aspect of his game," Filian said. "He's a big, strong kid who puts everything into it."
Burke explained, "We do set pieces every day in practice -- we practice those plays. Being down 3-0, coming back to get two goals was really good. The first half, we were not talking at all. But the second half, we came out strong, so it was a tale of two halves. At least we can say we outplayed them in the second half."
Barrington came out attacking from the first minute on, registering its first shot on goal in the third minute and continuing to push the pace, with Pallan eventually making the Pirates pay.
"He was in the right place at the right time -- a first-half hat trick is great," Steib said.
Also in the "right place" was Barrington senior Giles Phillips. Normally a midfielder, he played center back and dominated in the air, clearing countless balls out of danger near the Broncos' goal and spearheading numerous counterattacks.
"In the first half, we were connecting on plays. It was pretty soccer out there," Phillips said. "(Palatine) came on quick in the second half. We tried to weather the storm, and held out."
Nodding his head in agreement, Pallan said, "They came out hot in the second half, but we kept the lead. That was the important thing."
Filian said the important thing for his crew was to remember the lesson learned from starting out slowly.
"We have to play 80 minutes," he said. "The first 15 minutes count the same."
Starting lineups
Barrington
GK: Alex Ruffolo
D: Giles Phillips
D: Jason Carbonara
D: Nash Pirie
D: Jason Frenk
MF: Brian Tapia
MF: Casey Slingo
MF: Austin Grzebieniak
MF: Luke Sellers
F: Kyle Owen
F: Hans Pallan
Palatine
GK: Dylan Ruzbasan
D: Liam Obernesser
D: Colin O'Meara
D: Kevin Burke
D: Evan Braun
MF: Adan Flores
MF: Gavin Falotico
MF: Alejandro Vidal
MF: Tyler Curylo
F: Fabian Tovar
F: Joe Standridge
Man of the Match: Hans Pallan, Barrington
Officials: Mohammed Mushtaq, Nikola Aleksic, Boguslaw Rosinski
Palatine's second-half comeback falls short
By Ken Keenan
PALATINE -- A hat trick by Barrington's Hans Pallan in the first 18 minutes barely held up for Barrington Tuesday night, as host Palatine rallied for a pair of goals in the second half before falling 3-2 in Mid-Suburban League West action.
The Broncos were patient and poised in the first half, controlling play with a possession game that featured crisp passing and smart spacing, leaving the Pirates looking flat-footed en route to a 3-0 deficit at the break. But two quick strikes by Palatine in a two-minute span early in the second session made a game of it, and it was a back-and-forth affair from that point until the final horn.
"We came out on the front foot, but I never saw Palatine be emotionally flat like that, and we were great in those moments to jump on 'em," said Broncos head coach Scott Steib, whose squad improved to 12-6-0 overall and 5-3 in conference play. "But we have so much respect for how hard Palatine plays, so we were ready for a brouhaha. Any win over Palatine is fantastic, We knew they'd have chances, but we were able to keep the wheels screwed on."
Pallan, a junior defender playing up front in the match, scored the first of his three goals in the eighth minute, banging in a solid cross from sophomore forward Kyle Owen for a 1-0 lead. Just over a minute later, Pallan -- Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match -- tallied his second goal, pouncing on an Owen shot that hit the post and dropped at his feet. The third goal came after a scramble in front, with Pallantapping the ball past Palatine sophomore goalkeeper Dylan Ruzbasan amid a cluster of players.
"We've been working on finishing, and we came out hot and stayed like that in the first half," Pallan said. "We got the ball down by the wings, and we were able to keep the ball and keep moving. It's my first season at forward, so scoring three goals felt good."
Palatine coach Willie Filian was feeling anything but good at the half, and he used the intermission to address his team's sluggish start. The loss dropped the Pirates to 7-3-1 (5-3-1).
"The sad part is, we talked about a good start ... make sure we finish tackles and stay organized," he said. "Take away the first 15 minutes or so and it's a game. But they did a nice job passing, and they had us chasing. We challenged our guys at halftime to win the second half, and not overcomplicate. Our organization, our pressure, at least we got that back. But that first 15 minutes was our crappiest segment all season."
The Pirates cut the lead to 3-1 in the 50th minute, when senior midfielder Tyler Curylo redirected a killer throw-in by senior defender Kevin Burke past Broncos senior keeper Alex Ruffolo. Two minutes later, another monster throw-in by Burke was headed in by junior midfielder Matt Mayer in traffic, and suddenly it was 3-2.
"Throw-ins are just one aspect of his game," Filian said. "He's a big, strong kid who puts everything into it."
Burke explained, "We do set pieces every day in practice -- we practice those plays. Being down 3-0, coming back to get two goals was really good. The first half, we were not talking at all. But the second half, we came out strong, so it was a tale of two halves. At least we can say we outplayed them in the second half."
Barrington came out attacking from the first minute on, registering its first shot on goal in the third minute and continuing to push the pace, with Pallan eventually making the Pirates pay.
"He was in the right place at the right time -- a first-half hat trick is great," Steib said.
Also in the "right place" was Barrington senior Giles Phillips. Normally a midfielder, he played center back and dominated in the air, clearing countless balls out of danger near the Broncos' goal and spearheading numerous counterattacks.
"In the first half, we were connecting on plays. It was pretty soccer out there," Phillips said. "(Palatine) came on quick in the second half. We tried to weather the storm, and held out."
Nodding his head in agreement, Pallan said, "They came out hot in the second half, but we kept the lead. That was the important thing."
Filian said the important thing for his crew was to remember the lesson learned from starting out slowly.
"We have to play 80 minutes," he said. "The first 15 minutes count the same."
Starting lineups
Barrington
GK: Alex Ruffolo
D: Giles Phillips
D: Jason Carbonara
D: Nash Pirie
D: Jason Frenk
MF: Brian Tapia
MF: Casey Slingo
MF: Austin Grzebieniak
MF: Luke Sellers
F: Kyle Owen
F: Hans Pallan
Palatine
GK: Dylan Ruzbasan
D: Liam Obernesser
D: Colin O'Meara
D: Kevin Burke
D: Evan Braun
MF: Adan Flores
MF: Gavin Falotico
MF: Alejandro Vidal
MF: Tyler Curylo
F: Fabian Tovar
F: Joe Standridge
Man of the Match: Hans Pallan, Barrington
Officials: Mohammed Mushtaq, Nikola Aleksic, Boguslaw Rosinski