Benet gets job done at Saint Viator
Redwings wrap up second place ESCC finish with 2-1 win
By Bobby Narang
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS — Benet ended its regular season in a no-frills environment.
The Redwings are headed into the playoffs looking to win their second-straight state championship, though this time they will be competing in Class 3A.
Two years ago, Benet stormed to the Class AA state title without allowing a single goal in seven playoff matches. The team experienced the pinnacle of high school spor and celebrated in front of a large crowd on the brightest stage.
Friday was a different story at Saint Viator.
The Redwings, ranked no. 14 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, put a bow on the 2021 regular-season at the campus grass pitch at Saint Viator, which had no scoreboard, no pre-game or in-game announcements or halftime music nor any lights.
And the game was played on a Friday afternoon, spilling close to the kickoff for both school’s American-style football teams that night.
But for Benet and their hosts, this was no ordinary playing-out-the-string regular-season finale. The final 10 minutes featured a yellow card given to Benet to go with a red card to Saint Viator.
The East Suburban Catholic Conference game had numerous altercations in the final 15 minutes, and was a physical battle throughout the 80 minutes
The Redwings benefitted from a questionable foul call in the box that allowed T.J. McVey to blast a penalty kick into the back of the net in the 70th minute for a 2-1 win over the Lions.
“I stuttered a bit, but was confident it was going to go in,” McVey said of his PK. “We weren’t finishing our chances, so I knew it was important to get that one in.
“We definitely were looking at this game, not proud of the way we played, but a win is a win. We’re going to have games like this in the playoffs, so this was good for us to win this.”
McVey’s penalty kick spoiled a strong effort by Saint Viator senior goalie Geovanny Andino, who finished with 11 saves.
The Redwings (12-5-1, 7-1-1) had to settle for second place in the East Suburban Catholic Conference following a tough 3-1 home loss to Notre Dame on Oct. 9.
Finally, after a two-year wait, the Redwings can begin their quest for another state title. The 2020-21 was delayed until the spring and had no playoffs.
Benet, the no. 2 seed in the Class 3A Morton Sectional, plays 15-seed Proviso East in an Argo Regional semifinal at 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 19. The winner will face either (7) Young or (9) Argo on Oct. 23
McVey, a member of the 2019 Class AA state title team, said he’s ready for the postseason to begin, especially following Friday’s aggressive game. The senior said beating Notre Dame (Peoria) 2-0 in the 2019 supersectionals remains one of his favorite memories.
But McVey said he’s ready to make new memories.
“We’re in Class 3A, so it’s going to be no easy games, even in the first round,” he said. “In 2A, we had a few easy games.
“We’re ready for the test. Obviously, it’s been a fast and short season, but we’re ready and prepared by playing tough games since August. We’ve been preparing every day for this moment.”
Throughout the spirited match, Saint Viator fans had one constant saying, “Way to go Geo” in regards to Andino’s stellar play in the net. He dived to make saves to his left and right and snagged hard-hit shots. His play started taking a toll on the Redwings and their frustration mounted late in the match.
The Lions keeper, sporting a mask to protect his broken nose, called it one of his best games of the season.
“I just overthought on the penalty kick, so that was frustrating to me,” Andino said. “I’m still beating myself up for that. The main thing is to forget about this loss, and to keep moving forward. It was definitely a good game."
Saint Viator first-year coach Bryon DeLeon said Andino has played at a high level throughout the season. He recorded four saves in the final 16 minutes, including two diving saves off shots from Andy Nash.
“Our keeper has played amazing the whole season," DeLeon said. “He’s been great, even back to the PepsiCo Showdown. He missed a few games with a broken nose, but he’s back now and playing really well.”
Nash credited Andino for stopping Benet from padding to their lead.
“Their goalkeeper made a few saves, but it was on our end, because we had so many chances in the box,” Nash said. “We were slipping a lot, trying to plant our feet. We normally shoot a lot better than that. It wasn’t a good representation of our finishing (ability).”
The Redwings notched the first goal when Nico Picha lofted a shot from 16 yards into the goal off an assist from Nash in the 10th minute. Two minutes later, McVey nearly added more scoting with two good shots. Saint Viator’s Jack Glasstetter tied the game with a header in the 27th minute, partly due to a long throw from Andino after he recorded a save.
“It was a great play, just got a perfect ball right to me,” Glasstetter said. “I was in the right spot and the right time. It was a great counterattack, just a great play.
“We learned a lot about ourselves in this match. Benet is one of the top teams the last couple of years, but we proved we can play with them. We’ve had a couple of tough games, but this proves going into the playoffs we can play with anybody.
“We have to play our game, not get too high or too low. Today, we played at a good level, though toward the end it got crazy. We have to execute.”
Andino said his throw was his favorite highlight.
“I’m really proud of my throw, because I’ve worked so hard on my throws and the curves,” Andino said. “To see it actually work in the game was great. It was awesome.”
Benet peppered Andino with shots in the first 23 minutes of the second half, which even prompted a referee to remark, “It doesn’t matter how many opportunities you have, you have to put them away.”
McVey scored the winning goal on his penalty kick with 10 minutes remaining, which led to a physical finish that caused the fans to get involved with words of frustration.
The red card was issued to a Saint Viator player in the final two minutes, while another player had an injury timeout in the final minute.
Benet senior defender John Griffin said Friday's game was an ideal tune-up for the playoffs.
“The final objective is to win, but we ended up getting that,” Griffin said. “Still, it was very rough at the end, but we got the win.
“We’re ready for the playoffs. We still have a lot of guys from that (2019) team to bring along the winning mentality. We have to keep pushing each other to get better to allow us to win these close games.”
Nash added that the Redwings are focused on showing they belong in Class 3A, especially after playing a tough schedule to prepare for the playoffs. Nash said he’s excited about his first time through the playoffs.
“I feel 3A has gone pretty good for what we thought it would be,” Nash said. “We’ve competed against some of the best teams in the state. We’ve been doing really well. I think we do have a really good chance to make it to the finals.
“We definitely have to be consistent on offense, finishing our chances and winning 50/50 tackles and not letting teams score off set pieces or even get set pieces. We have to play well through the middle, finding open passes.”
Starting lineups
Benet
GK Evan Lucas
D Jared Plummer
D Evan Frazier
D Nick Roe
D Dan Boyle
M Nico Picha
M Brendan Forsythe
M Daniel Pepping
F John Kolb
F Andy Nash
F T.J. McVey
Saint Viator
GK Geovanny Andino
D Riley DiMarco
D Quentin Perry
D Rowan McDonnell
D Patrick Hartman
M Anthony Anderson
M Brendan Oleksak
M Michael McManaman
M Josh Bottarini
F Jack Glasstetter
F Connor Giroux
Chicagoland Man of the Match: T.J. McVey, sr., F, Benet
Scoring summary
First half
Benet — Nico Picha (Andy Nash), 10th minute
St. Viator — Jack Glasstetter (unassisted) 27th minute
Second half
Benet — T.J. McVey (penalty kick), 70th minute
Redwings wrap up second place ESCC finish with 2-1 win
By Bobby Narang
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS — Benet ended its regular season in a no-frills environment.
The Redwings are headed into the playoffs looking to win their second-straight state championship, though this time they will be competing in Class 3A.
Two years ago, Benet stormed to the Class AA state title without allowing a single goal in seven playoff matches. The team experienced the pinnacle of high school spor and celebrated in front of a large crowd on the brightest stage.
Friday was a different story at Saint Viator.
The Redwings, ranked no. 14 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, put a bow on the 2021 regular-season at the campus grass pitch at Saint Viator, which had no scoreboard, no pre-game or in-game announcements or halftime music nor any lights.
And the game was played on a Friday afternoon, spilling close to the kickoff for both school’s American-style football teams that night.
But for Benet and their hosts, this was no ordinary playing-out-the-string regular-season finale. The final 10 minutes featured a yellow card given to Benet to go with a red card to Saint Viator.
The East Suburban Catholic Conference game had numerous altercations in the final 15 minutes, and was a physical battle throughout the 80 minutes
The Redwings benefitted from a questionable foul call in the box that allowed T.J. McVey to blast a penalty kick into the back of the net in the 70th minute for a 2-1 win over the Lions.
“I stuttered a bit, but was confident it was going to go in,” McVey said of his PK. “We weren’t finishing our chances, so I knew it was important to get that one in.
“We definitely were looking at this game, not proud of the way we played, but a win is a win. We’re going to have games like this in the playoffs, so this was good for us to win this.”
McVey’s penalty kick spoiled a strong effort by Saint Viator senior goalie Geovanny Andino, who finished with 11 saves.
The Redwings (12-5-1, 7-1-1) had to settle for second place in the East Suburban Catholic Conference following a tough 3-1 home loss to Notre Dame on Oct. 9.
Finally, after a two-year wait, the Redwings can begin their quest for another state title. The 2020-21 was delayed until the spring and had no playoffs.
Benet, the no. 2 seed in the Class 3A Morton Sectional, plays 15-seed Proviso East in an Argo Regional semifinal at 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 19. The winner will face either (7) Young or (9) Argo on Oct. 23
McVey, a member of the 2019 Class AA state title team, said he’s ready for the postseason to begin, especially following Friday’s aggressive game. The senior said beating Notre Dame (Peoria) 2-0 in the 2019 supersectionals remains one of his favorite memories.
But McVey said he’s ready to make new memories.
“We’re in Class 3A, so it’s going to be no easy games, even in the first round,” he said. “In 2A, we had a few easy games.
“We’re ready for the test. Obviously, it’s been a fast and short season, but we’re ready and prepared by playing tough games since August. We’ve been preparing every day for this moment.”
Throughout the spirited match, Saint Viator fans had one constant saying, “Way to go Geo” in regards to Andino’s stellar play in the net. He dived to make saves to his left and right and snagged hard-hit shots. His play started taking a toll on the Redwings and their frustration mounted late in the match.
The Lions keeper, sporting a mask to protect his broken nose, called it one of his best games of the season.
“I just overthought on the penalty kick, so that was frustrating to me,” Andino said. “I’m still beating myself up for that. The main thing is to forget about this loss, and to keep moving forward. It was definitely a good game."
Saint Viator first-year coach Bryon DeLeon said Andino has played at a high level throughout the season. He recorded four saves in the final 16 minutes, including two diving saves off shots from Andy Nash.
“Our keeper has played amazing the whole season," DeLeon said. “He’s been great, even back to the PepsiCo Showdown. He missed a few games with a broken nose, but he’s back now and playing really well.”
Nash credited Andino for stopping Benet from padding to their lead.
“Their goalkeeper made a few saves, but it was on our end, because we had so many chances in the box,” Nash said. “We were slipping a lot, trying to plant our feet. We normally shoot a lot better than that. It wasn’t a good representation of our finishing (ability).”
The Redwings notched the first goal when Nico Picha lofted a shot from 16 yards into the goal off an assist from Nash in the 10th minute. Two minutes later, McVey nearly added more scoting with two good shots. Saint Viator’s Jack Glasstetter tied the game with a header in the 27th minute, partly due to a long throw from Andino after he recorded a save.
“It was a great play, just got a perfect ball right to me,” Glasstetter said. “I was in the right spot and the right time. It was a great counterattack, just a great play.
“We learned a lot about ourselves in this match. Benet is one of the top teams the last couple of years, but we proved we can play with them. We’ve had a couple of tough games, but this proves going into the playoffs we can play with anybody.
“We have to play our game, not get too high or too low. Today, we played at a good level, though toward the end it got crazy. We have to execute.”
Andino said his throw was his favorite highlight.
“I’m really proud of my throw, because I’ve worked so hard on my throws and the curves,” Andino said. “To see it actually work in the game was great. It was awesome.”
Benet peppered Andino with shots in the first 23 minutes of the second half, which even prompted a referee to remark, “It doesn’t matter how many opportunities you have, you have to put them away.”
McVey scored the winning goal on his penalty kick with 10 minutes remaining, which led to a physical finish that caused the fans to get involved with words of frustration.
The red card was issued to a Saint Viator player in the final two minutes, while another player had an injury timeout in the final minute.
Benet senior defender John Griffin said Friday's game was an ideal tune-up for the playoffs.
“The final objective is to win, but we ended up getting that,” Griffin said. “Still, it was very rough at the end, but we got the win.
“We’re ready for the playoffs. We still have a lot of guys from that (2019) team to bring along the winning mentality. We have to keep pushing each other to get better to allow us to win these close games.”
Nash added that the Redwings are focused on showing they belong in Class 3A, especially after playing a tough schedule to prepare for the playoffs. Nash said he’s excited about his first time through the playoffs.
“I feel 3A has gone pretty good for what we thought it would be,” Nash said. “We’ve competed against some of the best teams in the state. We’ve been doing really well. I think we do have a really good chance to make it to the finals.
“We definitely have to be consistent on offense, finishing our chances and winning 50/50 tackles and not letting teams score off set pieces or even get set pieces. We have to play well through the middle, finding open passes.”
Starting lineups
Benet
GK Evan Lucas
D Jared Plummer
D Evan Frazier
D Nick Roe
D Dan Boyle
M Nico Picha
M Brendan Forsythe
M Daniel Pepping
F John Kolb
F Andy Nash
F T.J. McVey
Saint Viator
GK Geovanny Andino
D Riley DiMarco
D Quentin Perry
D Rowan McDonnell
D Patrick Hartman
M Anthony Anderson
M Brendan Oleksak
M Michael McManaman
M Josh Bottarini
F Jack Glasstetter
F Connor Giroux
Chicagoland Man of the Match: T.J. McVey, sr., F, Benet
Scoring summary
First half
Benet — Nico Picha (Andy Nash), 10th minute
St. Viator — Jack Glasstetter (unassisted) 27th minute
Second half
Benet — T.J. McVey (penalty kick), 70th minute