Streamwood wins
first game of post-Nestor era
Slow start dooms Jacobs
By Dave Surico
ALGONQUIN -- The prevailing preseason question posed to Streamwood coach Matt Polovin was: How is your team going to be without midfielder Nestor Ascencio?
"I think he made these guys, the guys who were on the team last year, a whole lot better," Polovin said of the two-time coaches' all-state selection who played 60 minutes in his college debut at Dominican University on Friday. "They were like little sponges out there. They saw how he did things, how he was on the field, off the field, just his work ethic."
The Sabres Edwin Rueda showed that he was an especially good observer of his storied teammate in the opening game of the Jacobs Tournament. The midfielder was poised and efficient as he deftly directed the Streamwood attack in the Sabres 2-0 victory over host Jacobs on Friday.
"It's pretty much my job right now, now that Nestor left. It's a hard spot to fill in," Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match said. "I honestly learned a lot from him. He's a great player. I just want to help out the team now that he's gone. I really don't care who scores as long as the ball goes in, and we get a good result."
Polovin sees the improvement in the 5-foot-4-inch junior.
"Edwin basically took over for Nestor," said Polovin. "He doesn't panic. He gets the ball, and he's always looking for someone. He wants the ball back. He knows when to attack. He's a definitely a huge catalyst in the middle of the field for us. He really made that center of the pitch his."
Rueda contributed to a dominant start from Streamwood that included three corner kicks in the opening minutes.
The Sabres were aided by an offensive weapon from the back third -- goalkeeper Sergio Blanco. With a strong wind at his back the 2013 IHSSCA all-section choice pounded the ball down the field. Several off his kicks landed in or near the opposing 18-yard box, and one came close to a score.
And host Jacobs didn't help itself in the first half. The Golden Eagles struggled mightily to link passes, control touches and solve the visitors' offside trap, which led to numerous raised sideline flags, including one just inside midfield.
Streamwood (1-1) finally broke through in the 19th minute. Freshman Oscar Chavez got free on the right side and lofted a perfect ball to an unmarked Alan Camarena centered near the penalty spot. The senior put away the header for the only goal the Sabres needed. The pressure continued with rare exception but didn't have anything more to show for it.
Jacobs bent, but didn't break. Bolstered by that fact, and with the wind at their backs, the Golden Eagles could have come out strong in the second half. Instead, it was Streamwood that pounced into near-immediate action.
Camarena sent a ball from the left side that crossed the field and found defender Christian Balbinio near the top of the box. He ripped a shot into the net just 35 seconds after intermission.
That could have sounded the death knell for Jacobs. However the young side, which includes only four seniors, began to find its stride.
"I was proud of the boys," said coach Anthony Cappello. "After giving up that early goal in the second half they could have throw the towel in ... but they fought through it and worked through it."
The hosts started to shift the momentum in the 43rd minute. A rare indecisive moment from Streamwood keeper Blanco left the ball available in the box, but neither Andrew Craig or Konrad Wasilewski could get a foot on it. Dan Kim followed with a cross that yielded a header shot on goal from Chris Rigby.
Jacobs continued to take it to Streamwood keeper Blanco, but the senior kept the door closed. A long Craig liner required a stop at the right post. Blanco followed a few touches later with a slide to clear the ball out of danger.
Streamwood countered and almost cashed in when substitute Blerim Shabani sent a nice through ball that Camarena ran onto. The subsequent shot rose just over the crossbar.
Jacobs answered immediately. Ean Wilson sent a strong effort into the box that Blanco came out to clear, and Craig finished a strong run down the right side with a hard shot that the Streamwood keeper handled in the 54th minute.
In the 61st minute, Jacobs got a big break it didn't convert. Streamwood's Blanco mistakenly scooped up a ball from a teammate, which set Jacobs up about 12 yards out. Streamwood massed its team on the goal line, and the resulting effort went wide.
"One of my players kicked it back, but i thought it was unintentional," said Blanco, whose personal goal is to better his mark of 13 shutouts last season. "It was a mistake, but it didn't cost us a goal. So it's all good."
The keeper had to continue to work to maintain his clean sheet. In the 64th minute, he came off his line to kick the ball out of danger and then grabbed the ball off the foot of Wasilewski.
Winning coach Polovin was please with the effort.
"This was a game of chances," he said. "Just in the first half alone I think we had eight or nine right in front of the goal. Percentage-wise, we put three or four of those in this game's out of reach early.
"We put a lot of pressure on them, and I think that just shows our fitness. Our guys were nonstop all game, and I think they were just tiring them out.
"We changed formation to a 3-5-2. We have a lot of speed so we're looking to penetrate the defense. And then when they win the ball, we're looking at high pressure."
The fact that the tournament games are only 70 minutes provides little relief for Jacobs, which will play four matches in less than 48 hours. The Golden Eagles lost 2-1 to Prospect in their opener, which was moved from Wednesday to Thursday, and have 9 and 11 a.m. games Saturday. That's okay with Jacob's Cappello.
"You want these tests," he said. "You want these tough physical mental tests early in the season. You want to see what you're made of. You don't want it to be all rainbows and sunshine on the front end of the year. You need some adversity to build some chracter, build some unity with the group. It'll be good in the long run."
Juniors Craig and Rigby, and sophomore keeper Ethan Pickering were among the bright spots for the Golden Eagles.
Craig moved up from defense in the second half to ratchet up the offense for the home team.
"Today we just needed to finish our chances and get more chances on the ball," said Craig, who didn't play last season due to an ACL injury. "Possession was a big thing, but we couldn't get a hold of it.
"In the second half it was kind of a shocker when they scored right way, but we still worked hard and didn't put the white flags up and tried to fight back."
Rigby sees betters days ahead for his squad.
"The season's just starting. We can still get in this if we can ... play hard," he said. "It's just going to make us work harder."
Goalkeeper Pickering has come on strong after just eight months at the position. The former freshman team forward switched to tje position when he saw an opportunity within the Jacobs program.
"He put in a lot of training," said Cappello. "He's still very raw, but he made two saves in the first half that not a lot of goalies make. He got his hand up, a nice quick, little flash on a shot from eight yards away. There's still some technical work he's got to do, but he's embraced the opportunity."
Pickering got some extra some help in his second varsity start. Three teammates cleared balls off the line to keep the game withing reach.
Cappello also recognized freshman call-up Gabe Swourthoot, who came off the bench and made a difference in the midfield.
Throw-ins
Jacobs received two yellow cards in the match, and Streamwood received one.
Jacobs junior Eduardo Guimaray is scheduled to make his varsity debut against Harvard at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Golden Eagles close out the tournament against Kaneland at 11 a.m. Streamwood, which lost 3-2 in its season opener at Waubonsie Valley, plays Kaneland at 9 and Harvard at 11.
Starting lineups
Streamwood
GK: Sergio Blanco
D: Christian Balbinio
D Mike Delaney
D: Aaron Villegas
CDM: Erie Ortiz
MF: Marcos Rojo
CMF: Edwin Rueda
RMF: Oscar Chavez
LMF: Rafael Gil
F: Donnie Sosa
F: Alan Camarena
Jacobs
GK: Ethan Pickering
D: Andrew Craig
D: Jacob Moser
D: Erik Merdinger
MF: Daniel Kim
MF: Ean Wilson
MF: Gustavo Valdez
MF: Chris Rigby
MF: Nick Voss
F: Noah Melick
F: Konrad Wasilewski
Man of the Match: Edwin Rueda, Streamwood.
Officials: center Jeff Ryder; ARs Mark Foster and Bob Spooner.
first game of post-Nestor era
Slow start dooms Jacobs
By Dave Surico
ALGONQUIN -- The prevailing preseason question posed to Streamwood coach Matt Polovin was: How is your team going to be without midfielder Nestor Ascencio?
"I think he made these guys, the guys who were on the team last year, a whole lot better," Polovin said of the two-time coaches' all-state selection who played 60 minutes in his college debut at Dominican University on Friday. "They were like little sponges out there. They saw how he did things, how he was on the field, off the field, just his work ethic."
The Sabres Edwin Rueda showed that he was an especially good observer of his storied teammate in the opening game of the Jacobs Tournament. The midfielder was poised and efficient as he deftly directed the Streamwood attack in the Sabres 2-0 victory over host Jacobs on Friday.
"It's pretty much my job right now, now that Nestor left. It's a hard spot to fill in," Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match said. "I honestly learned a lot from him. He's a great player. I just want to help out the team now that he's gone. I really don't care who scores as long as the ball goes in, and we get a good result."
Polovin sees the improvement in the 5-foot-4-inch junior.
"Edwin basically took over for Nestor," said Polovin. "He doesn't panic. He gets the ball, and he's always looking for someone. He wants the ball back. He knows when to attack. He's a definitely a huge catalyst in the middle of the field for us. He really made that center of the pitch his."
Rueda contributed to a dominant start from Streamwood that included three corner kicks in the opening minutes.
The Sabres were aided by an offensive weapon from the back third -- goalkeeper Sergio Blanco. With a strong wind at his back the 2013 IHSSCA all-section choice pounded the ball down the field. Several off his kicks landed in or near the opposing 18-yard box, and one came close to a score.
And host Jacobs didn't help itself in the first half. The Golden Eagles struggled mightily to link passes, control touches and solve the visitors' offside trap, which led to numerous raised sideline flags, including one just inside midfield.
Streamwood (1-1) finally broke through in the 19th minute. Freshman Oscar Chavez got free on the right side and lofted a perfect ball to an unmarked Alan Camarena centered near the penalty spot. The senior put away the header for the only goal the Sabres needed. The pressure continued with rare exception but didn't have anything more to show for it.
Jacobs bent, but didn't break. Bolstered by that fact, and with the wind at their backs, the Golden Eagles could have come out strong in the second half. Instead, it was Streamwood that pounced into near-immediate action.
Camarena sent a ball from the left side that crossed the field and found defender Christian Balbinio near the top of the box. He ripped a shot into the net just 35 seconds after intermission.
That could have sounded the death knell for Jacobs. However the young side, which includes only four seniors, began to find its stride.
"I was proud of the boys," said coach Anthony Cappello. "After giving up that early goal in the second half they could have throw the towel in ... but they fought through it and worked through it."
The hosts started to shift the momentum in the 43rd minute. A rare indecisive moment from Streamwood keeper Blanco left the ball available in the box, but neither Andrew Craig or Konrad Wasilewski could get a foot on it. Dan Kim followed with a cross that yielded a header shot on goal from Chris Rigby.
Jacobs continued to take it to Streamwood keeper Blanco, but the senior kept the door closed. A long Craig liner required a stop at the right post. Blanco followed a few touches later with a slide to clear the ball out of danger.
Streamwood countered and almost cashed in when substitute Blerim Shabani sent a nice through ball that Camarena ran onto. The subsequent shot rose just over the crossbar.
Jacobs answered immediately. Ean Wilson sent a strong effort into the box that Blanco came out to clear, and Craig finished a strong run down the right side with a hard shot that the Streamwood keeper handled in the 54th minute.
In the 61st minute, Jacobs got a big break it didn't convert. Streamwood's Blanco mistakenly scooped up a ball from a teammate, which set Jacobs up about 12 yards out. Streamwood massed its team on the goal line, and the resulting effort went wide.
"One of my players kicked it back, but i thought it was unintentional," said Blanco, whose personal goal is to better his mark of 13 shutouts last season. "It was a mistake, but it didn't cost us a goal. So it's all good."
The keeper had to continue to work to maintain his clean sheet. In the 64th minute, he came off his line to kick the ball out of danger and then grabbed the ball off the foot of Wasilewski.
Winning coach Polovin was please with the effort.
"This was a game of chances," he said. "Just in the first half alone I think we had eight or nine right in front of the goal. Percentage-wise, we put three or four of those in this game's out of reach early.
"We put a lot of pressure on them, and I think that just shows our fitness. Our guys were nonstop all game, and I think they were just tiring them out.
"We changed formation to a 3-5-2. We have a lot of speed so we're looking to penetrate the defense. And then when they win the ball, we're looking at high pressure."
The fact that the tournament games are only 70 minutes provides little relief for Jacobs, which will play four matches in less than 48 hours. The Golden Eagles lost 2-1 to Prospect in their opener, which was moved from Wednesday to Thursday, and have 9 and 11 a.m. games Saturday. That's okay with Jacob's Cappello.
"You want these tests," he said. "You want these tough physical mental tests early in the season. You want to see what you're made of. You don't want it to be all rainbows and sunshine on the front end of the year. You need some adversity to build some chracter, build some unity with the group. It'll be good in the long run."
Juniors Craig and Rigby, and sophomore keeper Ethan Pickering were among the bright spots for the Golden Eagles.
Craig moved up from defense in the second half to ratchet up the offense for the home team.
"Today we just needed to finish our chances and get more chances on the ball," said Craig, who didn't play last season due to an ACL injury. "Possession was a big thing, but we couldn't get a hold of it.
"In the second half it was kind of a shocker when they scored right way, but we still worked hard and didn't put the white flags up and tried to fight back."
Rigby sees betters days ahead for his squad.
"The season's just starting. We can still get in this if we can ... play hard," he said. "It's just going to make us work harder."
Goalkeeper Pickering has come on strong after just eight months at the position. The former freshman team forward switched to tje position when he saw an opportunity within the Jacobs program.
"He put in a lot of training," said Cappello. "He's still very raw, but he made two saves in the first half that not a lot of goalies make. He got his hand up, a nice quick, little flash on a shot from eight yards away. There's still some technical work he's got to do, but he's embraced the opportunity."
Pickering got some extra some help in his second varsity start. Three teammates cleared balls off the line to keep the game withing reach.
Cappello also recognized freshman call-up Gabe Swourthoot, who came off the bench and made a difference in the midfield.
Throw-ins
Jacobs received two yellow cards in the match, and Streamwood received one.
Jacobs junior Eduardo Guimaray is scheduled to make his varsity debut against Harvard at 9 a.m. Saturday. The Golden Eagles close out the tournament against Kaneland at 11 a.m. Streamwood, which lost 3-2 in its season opener at Waubonsie Valley, plays Kaneland at 9 and Harvard at 11.
Starting lineups
Streamwood
GK: Sergio Blanco
D: Christian Balbinio
D Mike Delaney
D: Aaron Villegas
CDM: Erie Ortiz
MF: Marcos Rojo
CMF: Edwin Rueda
RMF: Oscar Chavez
LMF: Rafael Gil
F: Donnie Sosa
F: Alan Camarena
Jacobs
GK: Ethan Pickering
D: Andrew Craig
D: Jacob Moser
D: Erik Merdinger
MF: Daniel Kim
MF: Ean Wilson
MF: Gustavo Valdez
MF: Chris Rigby
MF: Nick Voss
F: Noah Melick
F: Konrad Wasilewski
Man of the Match: Edwin Rueda, Streamwood.
Officials: center Jeff Ryder; ARs Mark Foster and Bob Spooner.