Naperville Central moves on
with 2-0 win over West Aurora
Redhawks to face rivals Naperville North in sectionals
By Derek Wolff
NAPERVILLE — Coming off of a rousing win in a penalty shootout, West Aurora had high hopes for Saturday afternoon’s Naperville Central Regional final against the host Redhawks.
But those hopes didn’t come to fruition, thanks to a relentless attack from No. 1-seeded Naperville Central, as the Redhawks earned a 2-0 win over the Wildcats.
Senior forward Daniel Poole scored the game winner five minutes in, converting on a rebound after a bad clear from the far post by West Aurora’s back line.
Poole had another grade-A chance 10 minutes later when he aimed a header near post looking to beat Wildcats goalkeeper Robert Marquez. But the junior made a tough save.
Marquez’s net was under siege for most of the game, and the 2-0 score line was a gentle one, given the number of quality chances the Redhawks had.
After looking vulnerable to a counterattack that would have tied the game, the Redhawks finally added the second goal in the 48th minute.
Senior midfielder Nick Coon took a pass on the far side of the field and dribbled toward the left end of the 18 before trying to slot a low cross inside the box.
The ball redirected off a Wildcats defender and beat Marquez, whose momentum had taken him the other way in anticipation of a shot.
The goal was just the second of the year for Coon, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match, due to an injury-shortened campaign.
Being back to full strength and scoring a crucial goal in a big moment made the afternoon a lot better.
“I’ll take the goal,” Coon said. “I’ve been injured this year, so I haven’t really been able to showcase or be with the team on the field. It’s nice to get that second goal because I feel like I did at the beginning of the season.”
The Redhawks continued to dominate the scoring chances throughout the second half, while West Aurora had its best opportunity to draw a goal closer in the 60th minute.
Midfielder Oscar Gaytan found space inside the 18 and looked to score near post, beating goalkeeper Joseph Kallikadan, who relieved starter Adam Daas at halftime.
But Redhawks defender Griffin Geisler got his body in front of the shot, redirecting it back into play. Gaytan had a second chance on a header, but the ball whisked inches over the bar. It fell harmlessly into the netting, and the Redhawks survived the scare and went back to work on offense.
Marquez made a few plays down the stretch, as the Redhawks were afforded plenty of scoring looks.
The scoring chances not converted didn’t phase Redhawks coach Troy Adams, who said his side accomplished its main task.
“We played well, we scored two goals and we’re playing again on Tuesday,” Adams said. “Ultimately that’s what you want at this time of the year. Does it matter that we didn’t put away every chance? No, because we had more goals at the end of the game than they did. This time of the year, that’s all you’re hoping for.
“We talked at halftime and said we had 40 minutes to earn another 80, and that’s all you’re doing. You’re playing a game for the chance to earn another 80 minutes.”
For the Wildcats, the only real disappointment for coach Joe Sustersic came in seeing another group of seniors play in their final high school game.
“If there’s anything that’s bad about today, it’s that you’re seeing a lot of seniors ending their careers in high school,” Sustersic said. "That’s the bad thing about the state playoffs: One team progresses to the next level and the other team unfortunately has to call it quits. This is a good group of seniors that we have this year. The effort was there.”
The Wildcats had high expectations this season and a winning record, coupled with Tuesday’s upset regional semifinal victory over Waubonsie Valley, was certainly an impressive showing.
Sustersic said his side overcame adversity throughout, but Naperville Central was simply better on the day.
“We were hoping for a little more,” he said. “Some adversity caused us to have some difficulties, but the truth is everyone has injuries; everyone has kids not having the best grades, something or other like that. Credit should go to Naperville Central for what they did today.”
Naperville Central will face No. 4 Naperville North in a sectional semifinal on Tuesday in a rematch between the rivals following Naperville North’s 2-1 win on Sept. 16.
That game was Central’s sole loss on the season and has motivated the team ever since, as it looked for a rematch, Coon said.
“All season we’ve been waiting for this game,” Coon said. “I think that was our worst game of the season. They scored in the first 30 seconds, and I can’t wait until we play them again. We’re all really excited, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Adams said his side will most likely need to convert more on quality opportunities on Tuesday night if they want to advance to the sectional final.
“We want to finish a little better than we did today,” Adams said. “We want to make sure we close out a game a little stronger. If we put away all of the chances, it’s a whole different complex to the second half of the game. But maybe some got saved for Tuesday.”
Starting lineups
West Aurora
GK- Robert Marquez
D-Jacon Sheldon
D-Luis Gallegos
D-Riley Roos
M-Oscar Gaytan
M-Geovanni Martinez
M-Juan Pablo Morales
M-Riccardo Torres
M-Jose Gallegos
F-Christian Martinez
F-Julio Mejia
Naperville Central
GK-Adam Daas
D-Derek Kerbs
D-Sean Flading
D-Daniel Poole
D-Griffin Geisler
M-Riley Guttosch
M-Christopher Schwaiger
M-Noah Canlas
M-Jordi McCormack
M-Nick Coon
F-Jordi Heeneman
Man of the Match: Nick Coon, Naperville Central
with 2-0 win over West Aurora
Redhawks to face rivals Naperville North in sectionals
By Derek Wolff
NAPERVILLE — Coming off of a rousing win in a penalty shootout, West Aurora had high hopes for Saturday afternoon’s Naperville Central Regional final against the host Redhawks.
But those hopes didn’t come to fruition, thanks to a relentless attack from No. 1-seeded Naperville Central, as the Redhawks earned a 2-0 win over the Wildcats.
Senior forward Daniel Poole scored the game winner five minutes in, converting on a rebound after a bad clear from the far post by West Aurora’s back line.
Poole had another grade-A chance 10 minutes later when he aimed a header near post looking to beat Wildcats goalkeeper Robert Marquez. But the junior made a tough save.
Marquez’s net was under siege for most of the game, and the 2-0 score line was a gentle one, given the number of quality chances the Redhawks had.
After looking vulnerable to a counterattack that would have tied the game, the Redhawks finally added the second goal in the 48th minute.
Senior midfielder Nick Coon took a pass on the far side of the field and dribbled toward the left end of the 18 before trying to slot a low cross inside the box.
The ball redirected off a Wildcats defender and beat Marquez, whose momentum had taken him the other way in anticipation of a shot.
The goal was just the second of the year for Coon, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match, due to an injury-shortened campaign.
Being back to full strength and scoring a crucial goal in a big moment made the afternoon a lot better.
“I’ll take the goal,” Coon said. “I’ve been injured this year, so I haven’t really been able to showcase or be with the team on the field. It’s nice to get that second goal because I feel like I did at the beginning of the season.”
The Redhawks continued to dominate the scoring chances throughout the second half, while West Aurora had its best opportunity to draw a goal closer in the 60th minute.
Midfielder Oscar Gaytan found space inside the 18 and looked to score near post, beating goalkeeper Joseph Kallikadan, who relieved starter Adam Daas at halftime.
But Redhawks defender Griffin Geisler got his body in front of the shot, redirecting it back into play. Gaytan had a second chance on a header, but the ball whisked inches over the bar. It fell harmlessly into the netting, and the Redhawks survived the scare and went back to work on offense.
Marquez made a few plays down the stretch, as the Redhawks were afforded plenty of scoring looks.
The scoring chances not converted didn’t phase Redhawks coach Troy Adams, who said his side accomplished its main task.
“We played well, we scored two goals and we’re playing again on Tuesday,” Adams said. “Ultimately that’s what you want at this time of the year. Does it matter that we didn’t put away every chance? No, because we had more goals at the end of the game than they did. This time of the year, that’s all you’re hoping for.
“We talked at halftime and said we had 40 minutes to earn another 80, and that’s all you’re doing. You’re playing a game for the chance to earn another 80 minutes.”
For the Wildcats, the only real disappointment for coach Joe Sustersic came in seeing another group of seniors play in their final high school game.
“If there’s anything that’s bad about today, it’s that you’re seeing a lot of seniors ending their careers in high school,” Sustersic said. "That’s the bad thing about the state playoffs: One team progresses to the next level and the other team unfortunately has to call it quits. This is a good group of seniors that we have this year. The effort was there.”
The Wildcats had high expectations this season and a winning record, coupled with Tuesday’s upset regional semifinal victory over Waubonsie Valley, was certainly an impressive showing.
Sustersic said his side overcame adversity throughout, but Naperville Central was simply better on the day.
“We were hoping for a little more,” he said. “Some adversity caused us to have some difficulties, but the truth is everyone has injuries; everyone has kids not having the best grades, something or other like that. Credit should go to Naperville Central for what they did today.”
Naperville Central will face No. 4 Naperville North in a sectional semifinal on Tuesday in a rematch between the rivals following Naperville North’s 2-1 win on Sept. 16.
That game was Central’s sole loss on the season and has motivated the team ever since, as it looked for a rematch, Coon said.
“All season we’ve been waiting for this game,” Coon said. “I think that was our worst game of the season. They scored in the first 30 seconds, and I can’t wait until we play them again. We’re all really excited, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Adams said his side will most likely need to convert more on quality opportunities on Tuesday night if they want to advance to the sectional final.
“We want to finish a little better than we did today,” Adams said. “We want to make sure we close out a game a little stronger. If we put away all of the chances, it’s a whole different complex to the second half of the game. But maybe some got saved for Tuesday.”
Starting lineups
West Aurora
GK- Robert Marquez
D-Jacon Sheldon
D-Luis Gallegos
D-Riley Roos
M-Oscar Gaytan
M-Geovanni Martinez
M-Juan Pablo Morales
M-Riccardo Torres
M-Jose Gallegos
F-Christian Martinez
F-Julio Mejia
Naperville Central
GK-Adam Daas
D-Derek Kerbs
D-Sean Flading
D-Daniel Poole
D-Griffin Geisler
M-Riley Guttosch
M-Christopher Schwaiger
M-Noah Canlas
M-Jordi McCormack
M-Nick Coon
F-Jordi Heeneman
Man of the Match: Nick Coon, Naperville Central