Waubonsie Valley shows 'good'
side in beating Neuqua Valley
What a difference a day makes for Warriors
By Matt Le Cren
AURORA – By now everyone should know to expect the unexpected with Waubonsie Valley.
The Warriors have won consecutive games just twice this season but have lost back-to-back games on only one occasion.
Waubonsie Valley coach Jose Garcia never knows when the “good” Waubonsie team will come to play or when the “bad” Waubonsie team will show up.
He got the latter on Monday when the Warriors were hammered 4-0 by Batavia on the opening night of the Warrior Invite.
But 24 hours later it was the former, as Waubonsie Valley got two goals from co-captain Jon Braun and upset Neuqua Valley 2-0.
How big of a turnaround was it? Well, Neuqua Valley came in having won seven straight matches and 10 of its last 11 and hadn’t been shut out in eight games. The Wildcats had outscored their opponents 22-4 during their streak and had just won the Gateway Classic in St. Louis over the weekend.
“We got the good one today,” Garcia said. “It’s a good feeling right now.
“I think we played well. I think we hustled, and the spirit was there today. It was Senior Night, so I think that was a big motivator. I’m really proud of them and I hope this run continues.”
The Warriors prevented Neuqua Valley from clinching the Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division championship outright. Metea Valley (8-8-1, 4-1) can now grab a share of the crown if it beats Waubonsie Valley on Thursday and South Elgin next Tuesday. The Wildcats (11-6, 6-1) are already assured of a spot in the Upstate Eight Conference title game against Batavia on Oct. 15, thanks to their 2-0 victory over Metea Valley on Aug. 28.
None of that mattered to Waubonsie Valley senior defender Jason Wolfe, who anchored a back line that became just the fourth team to shut out Neuqua Valley this fall.
“Obviously Neuqua is our rival,” Wolfe said. “This is one of the biggest games of the season, and beating them really boosts our confidence a huge amount. Confidence is a huge part of the game, and when we’re feeling good and playing with intensity, we can’t be beat.”
The Warriors looked like a completely different team just one day after getting thrashed by Batavia. Neuqua Valley coach Skip Begley wasn’t surprised by that.
“Waubonsie’s got a lot of quality wins, so we didn’t take them lightly at all,” Begley said. “They are a very up-and-down team. I saw them play last night against Batavia; totally different look tonight to their team and well-executed game plan on their part.
“I think their game plan was to hold and counter, and they had a lot of people in the box and did very well against us.”
That they did. The Wildcats held a 21-7 advantage in shots, including 10-3 in the first half, which was dominated by the visitors.
But Neuqua had nothing to show for it. Waubonsie Valley goalie Eddie Sanchez, who recorded his first shutout of the season, made five of his nine saves before the break, including back-to-back denials on hard shots from Kas Baladi and Ryan Ross with 6:45 to go.
Waubonsie defenders also blocked several shots, with Wolfe rejecting a pair of one-timers from Austin Flatt that appeared ticketed for the back of the net. Flatt also had a rebound shot hit the crossbar.
“We knew that Ryan Ross is a great player as well as Austin Flatt,” Wolfe said. “We knew that with Ryan we just had to contain him. We knew Ryan is right-footed, so we had to make him stay on his left foot. It was just more tactics is what it all came down to there, and Eddie (Sanchez) came up with some great saves as well.”
Spending most of a half defending against a superior attack is tough for any team, but the Warriors were up to the challenge.
“It all comes down to intensity, to be honest,” Wolfe said. “It looked like we wanted it more than them out there. We have a lot to thank our fans for.”
Braun had a lot to thank Wolfe for on what turned out to be the game-winning goal.
Wolfe lofted a long ball from the midfield into the Neuqua box, where Braun was marked by a defender. Braun volleyed the ball past the defender and Neuqua goalie Brady Moody with 28:36 left in the second half.
“It was a great ball right between the 18 and the 6, and I was just calm, cool and collected and just put it away off the first time,” Braun said.
“Garcia and [assistant coach C.J.] Schmid told me at halftime when I have that much time in open space to just play it into the box,” Wolfe said. “We have a lot of height on this team. Jon is one of the tallest players. He just has to get a head on it or a foot on it, and it goes in.”
Braun, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, now has nine goals. He added a big insurance tally Tuesday night thanks to some luck with 13:25 remaining. He found a loose ball that had caromed off a couple of players in the box and rifled a 15-yard shot that hit Neuqua defender Max Plesh and went in.
After that, it was just a matter of the Warriors holding the line. The Wildcats had some chances, including several free kicks, but all of their set pieces sailed far over the crossbar. The dominance Neuqua showed in the first half wasn’t there in the second half, which was more evenly played.
“At halftime our coaches told us this is our field, this is our night and we didn’t want to lose after losing to Batavia yesterday,” Braun said. “We wanted to make a statement, and that’s what we did in the second half.”
To Begley, it was the first half that spoke volumes.
“I thought we lost the game in the first half when you look back at it,” Begley said. “Just too many chances to score and we didn’t. We’ve talked about it all year: Scoring makes everybody happy, makes the game a lot more fun.
“[Sanchez] came up twice huge with big saves. He played very well in the first half and then in the second half I thought we just looked to get back in the game too fast; too many balls played into the box and not enough possession through the midfield and then look for a good scoring opportunity.
“[There was] just very poor communication on the first goal, and the second goal was even uglier but it was in the back of the net.”
Starting lineups
Neuqua Valley
GK Brady Moody
D Jack Schoonenberg
D Max Plesh
D Jacob Graham
D Reed Kurtenbach
M Joel Algrem
M Nick Chevalier
M Kas Baladi
M Xavi Ortiz
F Austin Flatt
F Ryan Ross
Waubonsie Valley
GK Eddie Sanchez
D Rogelio Grimaldo
D Jeff Ito
D Justin Damon
D Jason Wolfe
D Chris Vitro
M Drew Valek
M Henry Zehnal
M Leo Mendoza
F Tyler Barker
F Jon Braun
Man of the Match: Jon Braun, Waubonsie Valley
side in beating Neuqua Valley
What a difference a day makes for Warriors
By Matt Le Cren
AURORA – By now everyone should know to expect the unexpected with Waubonsie Valley.
The Warriors have won consecutive games just twice this season but have lost back-to-back games on only one occasion.
Waubonsie Valley coach Jose Garcia never knows when the “good” Waubonsie team will come to play or when the “bad” Waubonsie team will show up.
He got the latter on Monday when the Warriors were hammered 4-0 by Batavia on the opening night of the Warrior Invite.
But 24 hours later it was the former, as Waubonsie Valley got two goals from co-captain Jon Braun and upset Neuqua Valley 2-0.
How big of a turnaround was it? Well, Neuqua Valley came in having won seven straight matches and 10 of its last 11 and hadn’t been shut out in eight games. The Wildcats had outscored their opponents 22-4 during their streak and had just won the Gateway Classic in St. Louis over the weekend.
“We got the good one today,” Garcia said. “It’s a good feeling right now.
“I think we played well. I think we hustled, and the spirit was there today. It was Senior Night, so I think that was a big motivator. I’m really proud of them and I hope this run continues.”
The Warriors prevented Neuqua Valley from clinching the Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division championship outright. Metea Valley (8-8-1, 4-1) can now grab a share of the crown if it beats Waubonsie Valley on Thursday and South Elgin next Tuesday. The Wildcats (11-6, 6-1) are already assured of a spot in the Upstate Eight Conference title game against Batavia on Oct. 15, thanks to their 2-0 victory over Metea Valley on Aug. 28.
None of that mattered to Waubonsie Valley senior defender Jason Wolfe, who anchored a back line that became just the fourth team to shut out Neuqua Valley this fall.
“Obviously Neuqua is our rival,” Wolfe said. “This is one of the biggest games of the season, and beating them really boosts our confidence a huge amount. Confidence is a huge part of the game, and when we’re feeling good and playing with intensity, we can’t be beat.”
The Warriors looked like a completely different team just one day after getting thrashed by Batavia. Neuqua Valley coach Skip Begley wasn’t surprised by that.
“Waubonsie’s got a lot of quality wins, so we didn’t take them lightly at all,” Begley said. “They are a very up-and-down team. I saw them play last night against Batavia; totally different look tonight to their team and well-executed game plan on their part.
“I think their game plan was to hold and counter, and they had a lot of people in the box and did very well against us.”
That they did. The Wildcats held a 21-7 advantage in shots, including 10-3 in the first half, which was dominated by the visitors.
But Neuqua had nothing to show for it. Waubonsie Valley goalie Eddie Sanchez, who recorded his first shutout of the season, made five of his nine saves before the break, including back-to-back denials on hard shots from Kas Baladi and Ryan Ross with 6:45 to go.
Waubonsie defenders also blocked several shots, with Wolfe rejecting a pair of one-timers from Austin Flatt that appeared ticketed for the back of the net. Flatt also had a rebound shot hit the crossbar.
“We knew that Ryan Ross is a great player as well as Austin Flatt,” Wolfe said. “We knew that with Ryan we just had to contain him. We knew Ryan is right-footed, so we had to make him stay on his left foot. It was just more tactics is what it all came down to there, and Eddie (Sanchez) came up with some great saves as well.”
Spending most of a half defending against a superior attack is tough for any team, but the Warriors were up to the challenge.
“It all comes down to intensity, to be honest,” Wolfe said. “It looked like we wanted it more than them out there. We have a lot to thank our fans for.”
Braun had a lot to thank Wolfe for on what turned out to be the game-winning goal.
Wolfe lofted a long ball from the midfield into the Neuqua box, where Braun was marked by a defender. Braun volleyed the ball past the defender and Neuqua goalie Brady Moody with 28:36 left in the second half.
“It was a great ball right between the 18 and the 6, and I was just calm, cool and collected and just put it away off the first time,” Braun said.
“Garcia and [assistant coach C.J.] Schmid told me at halftime when I have that much time in open space to just play it into the box,” Wolfe said. “We have a lot of height on this team. Jon is one of the tallest players. He just has to get a head on it or a foot on it, and it goes in.”
Braun, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, now has nine goals. He added a big insurance tally Tuesday night thanks to some luck with 13:25 remaining. He found a loose ball that had caromed off a couple of players in the box and rifled a 15-yard shot that hit Neuqua defender Max Plesh and went in.
After that, it was just a matter of the Warriors holding the line. The Wildcats had some chances, including several free kicks, but all of their set pieces sailed far over the crossbar. The dominance Neuqua showed in the first half wasn’t there in the second half, which was more evenly played.
“At halftime our coaches told us this is our field, this is our night and we didn’t want to lose after losing to Batavia yesterday,” Braun said. “We wanted to make a statement, and that’s what we did in the second half.”
To Begley, it was the first half that spoke volumes.
“I thought we lost the game in the first half when you look back at it,” Begley said. “Just too many chances to score and we didn’t. We’ve talked about it all year: Scoring makes everybody happy, makes the game a lot more fun.
“[Sanchez] came up twice huge with big saves. He played very well in the first half and then in the second half I thought we just looked to get back in the game too fast; too many balls played into the box and not enough possession through the midfield and then look for a good scoring opportunity.
“[There was] just very poor communication on the first goal, and the second goal was even uglier but it was in the back of the net.”
Starting lineups
Neuqua Valley
GK Brady Moody
D Jack Schoonenberg
D Max Plesh
D Jacob Graham
D Reed Kurtenbach
M Joel Algrem
M Nick Chevalier
M Kas Baladi
M Xavi Ortiz
F Austin Flatt
F Ryan Ross
Waubonsie Valley
GK Eddie Sanchez
D Rogelio Grimaldo
D Jeff Ito
D Justin Damon
D Jason Wolfe
D Chris Vitro
M Drew Valek
M Henry Zehnal
M Leo Mendoza
F Tyler Barker
F Jon Braun
Man of the Match: Jon Braun, Waubonsie Valley