Lake Park expects big Senior Night test
from stingy Glenbard North
By Dave Owen
The 2022 season has been one of similar records, several strong opponents and generally quality soccer for Glenbard North (6-4-3) and Lake Park (5-5-3).
The two sides square off at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Lake Park each in search of a new accomplishment in their respective seasons – a DuKane Conference win.
The Panthers enter Tuesday with an 0-2-2 league record, but have allowed just three goals in the two defeats (2-0 to no. 15 St. Charles East on Sept. 8 and 1-0 to Wheaton North on Sept. 22).
And in their last five games overall, they have produced a nice 3-1-1 mark. The latest result in that stretch was a 1-0 Glenbard Cup win over Glenbard East on Saturday.
“On Saturday we did a really good job of finding that early goal (by senior Pablo DeLaCruz),” Panthers coach Spero Mandakas said, “and really buying into defending as a unit and limiting the quality chances East got.
“We gave away a little bit in the possession game that we like to play, to try to counter a little quicker. Overall it was a solid team win. The boys really worked at a high rate in the second half to keep the shutout.”
Lake Park’s lone DuKane Conference matches to date have been a 4-1 loss to St. Charles East on Sept. 6 and a 0-0 tie with St. Charles North on Sept. 22.
Click here to see the DuKane conference standings
That draw with a 7-3-3 North squad and a close 2-1 nonconference loss Saturday to unbeaten and new Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 no. 1 Elgin (10-0-3) have been part of a series of close games of late with quality opponents.
“At this point of the season we have shown we can play with the best in the state when we are at our top level,” said Lake Park coach Sean Crosby, who guided the Lancers to the Class 3A state semifinals in 2018. “However we are still searching for a complete 80-minute game.
"Close results against Elgin, York (a 2-2 tie with the defending Class 3A state champions) and St. Charles North along with a win against Glenbard West were definite confidence builders for us. They will be helpful in keeping motivation levels high heading into the remaining conference matches and the postseason.
“In our draws against St. Charles North and York we either held a late lead or gave ourselves chances in the final minutes to go ahead and win, but weren't clinical enough to finish out the match. Even our 2-1 loss to Elgin saw us creating a number of chances through free kicks and corners in the last 10 minutes.
“You always have a chance if you can keep top-level teams to two goals or less and fight 'til the final minute,” Crosby added, “and that was key to our success in those games against big opponents.”
Allowing miniscule goal totals has been a Glenbard North specialty this season, and the Panthers defense has been getting even stingier of late.
Opponents have scored just twice in the last six games, and St. Charles East’s two-goal total was the only multiple total any foe has managed in a game all season.
“Our backline and goalkeeper play has been exceptional all year,” Mandakas said. “We have given up seven goals in 13 matches. Our defensive unit is one that has really kept us in games when we have been unable to get on the scoreboard.
“Seniors Diego Chicas, Mark Skzlarczyk, Tyler Nack and freshman Diego Navarro-Saavedra make up the starting unit, and Ayan Sheikh and Michael Bonsi get quality minutes as well. This group along with our starting goalkeeper Stavros Veremis (seven shutouts) have been key to our early season success.”
The Panthers have played 1-0 decisions in three of their last four games. The other match in that stretch was a 0-0 tie with Batavia.
Lake Park has five players in particular who have excelled this fall according to Crosby.
“(Goalkeeper) Andrew Swacha has three shutout performances on the season and has had some stand-out saves, including a PK save against Elgin,” Crosby said.
“Shane Donnelly is our defensive leader in the midfield, and his physical play and calm presence on the ball have been huge strengths for us all season. Goals against Glenbard West and Elgin show he can score in big matches as well.
“(Midfielder) Rodrigo Diaz is a big creator for us in the attack,” Crosby added. “He has great vision and ball control skills, and his ability to make deep passes with precision and shoot from distance put him at an elite level.
“Anthony Juarez (at forward) has goals against York and Glenbard West as well as an assist against Elgin. He’s a big attacking threat for us, great in the air and handling the ball on the floor.
“And (defender) Jakub Tourillott’s speed and defensive IQ have been huge strengths for him to keep top level forwards struggling against us.
“It is our Senior Night,” Crosby concluded, “so we will be recognizing some of those players (seniors Swacha, Donnelly and Diaz) in a big way before and during the match tomorrow.”
The Lancers also hope for a win to celebrate, although the Panthers figure to be a handful.
Glenbard North won last fall’s showdown 3-0, and eight current Panthers were on varsity in the 1-1 tie between the two squads in the COVID mini-season in the spring of 2021.
Past matches aside, Mandakas has one big focus this time.
“We need to be better in the final third,” he said. “It has been something we’ve devoted a lot of time in training to, and the boys have been buying into the ideas and concepts that we are looking for.
“At this point we are just waiting for a game where everything clicks, as we've seen in a few matches early in the season (5-0 wins over Proviso West and Fenton).”
On the Lake Park side, Crosby is preparing for a defensive battle.
“Keys to success for us will be a defensive presence in the midfield and on our backline,” he said. “Being organized as a defensive unit will give us an advantage in the game, and hopefully allow us to attack from a more advanced position if we can force turnovers in midfield.
“Another key to our success will be capitalizing on counter attacks, set pieces and corners. We feel we have strength in attack when we can counter on our opponents and use our ball movement to draw corners and set pieces.
“Goals are very hard to come by in our competitive conference,” Crosby added, “so we are looking to take more risks and get aggressive in the attack to continue to build our nose for the goal.”
Glenbard North will provide a big challenge.
“They are well-coached, very organized in defense and have creative and dynamic movement in the attack,” Crosby said of the Panthers. “We will need to keep our communication high and stay disciplined when marking midfielders and forwards that interchange positions.”
Lake Park has already matched its win total of last season (5-10-4), and Mandakas (whose team is also already closing in on its eight-win total of 2021) expects a battle on the Lancers’ Senior Night.
“We know that Lake Park is a very talented team in the midfield,” Mandakas said, “and we will definitely have to be prepared for that.
“They have had some quality results and are playing some good soccer, so we look forward to another good match with them.”
from stingy Glenbard North
By Dave Owen
The 2022 season has been one of similar records, several strong opponents and generally quality soccer for Glenbard North (6-4-3) and Lake Park (5-5-3).
The two sides square off at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Lake Park each in search of a new accomplishment in their respective seasons – a DuKane Conference win.
The Panthers enter Tuesday with an 0-2-2 league record, but have allowed just three goals in the two defeats (2-0 to no. 15 St. Charles East on Sept. 8 and 1-0 to Wheaton North on Sept. 22).
And in their last five games overall, they have produced a nice 3-1-1 mark. The latest result in that stretch was a 1-0 Glenbard Cup win over Glenbard East on Saturday.
“On Saturday we did a really good job of finding that early goal (by senior Pablo DeLaCruz),” Panthers coach Spero Mandakas said, “and really buying into defending as a unit and limiting the quality chances East got.
“We gave away a little bit in the possession game that we like to play, to try to counter a little quicker. Overall it was a solid team win. The boys really worked at a high rate in the second half to keep the shutout.”
Lake Park’s lone DuKane Conference matches to date have been a 4-1 loss to St. Charles East on Sept. 6 and a 0-0 tie with St. Charles North on Sept. 22.
Click here to see the DuKane conference standings
That draw with a 7-3-3 North squad and a close 2-1 nonconference loss Saturday to unbeaten and new Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 no. 1 Elgin (10-0-3) have been part of a series of close games of late with quality opponents.
“At this point of the season we have shown we can play with the best in the state when we are at our top level,” said Lake Park coach Sean Crosby, who guided the Lancers to the Class 3A state semifinals in 2018. “However we are still searching for a complete 80-minute game.
"Close results against Elgin, York (a 2-2 tie with the defending Class 3A state champions) and St. Charles North along with a win against Glenbard West were definite confidence builders for us. They will be helpful in keeping motivation levels high heading into the remaining conference matches and the postseason.
“In our draws against St. Charles North and York we either held a late lead or gave ourselves chances in the final minutes to go ahead and win, but weren't clinical enough to finish out the match. Even our 2-1 loss to Elgin saw us creating a number of chances through free kicks and corners in the last 10 minutes.
“You always have a chance if you can keep top-level teams to two goals or less and fight 'til the final minute,” Crosby added, “and that was key to our success in those games against big opponents.”
Allowing miniscule goal totals has been a Glenbard North specialty this season, and the Panthers defense has been getting even stingier of late.
Opponents have scored just twice in the last six games, and St. Charles East’s two-goal total was the only multiple total any foe has managed in a game all season.
“Our backline and goalkeeper play has been exceptional all year,” Mandakas said. “We have given up seven goals in 13 matches. Our defensive unit is one that has really kept us in games when we have been unable to get on the scoreboard.
“Seniors Diego Chicas, Mark Skzlarczyk, Tyler Nack and freshman Diego Navarro-Saavedra make up the starting unit, and Ayan Sheikh and Michael Bonsi get quality minutes as well. This group along with our starting goalkeeper Stavros Veremis (seven shutouts) have been key to our early season success.”
The Panthers have played 1-0 decisions in three of their last four games. The other match in that stretch was a 0-0 tie with Batavia.
Lake Park has five players in particular who have excelled this fall according to Crosby.
“(Goalkeeper) Andrew Swacha has three shutout performances on the season and has had some stand-out saves, including a PK save against Elgin,” Crosby said.
“Shane Donnelly is our defensive leader in the midfield, and his physical play and calm presence on the ball have been huge strengths for us all season. Goals against Glenbard West and Elgin show he can score in big matches as well.
“(Midfielder) Rodrigo Diaz is a big creator for us in the attack,” Crosby added. “He has great vision and ball control skills, and his ability to make deep passes with precision and shoot from distance put him at an elite level.
“Anthony Juarez (at forward) has goals against York and Glenbard West as well as an assist against Elgin. He’s a big attacking threat for us, great in the air and handling the ball on the floor.
“And (defender) Jakub Tourillott’s speed and defensive IQ have been huge strengths for him to keep top level forwards struggling against us.
“It is our Senior Night,” Crosby concluded, “so we will be recognizing some of those players (seniors Swacha, Donnelly and Diaz) in a big way before and during the match tomorrow.”
The Lancers also hope for a win to celebrate, although the Panthers figure to be a handful.
Glenbard North won last fall’s showdown 3-0, and eight current Panthers were on varsity in the 1-1 tie between the two squads in the COVID mini-season in the spring of 2021.
Past matches aside, Mandakas has one big focus this time.
“We need to be better in the final third,” he said. “It has been something we’ve devoted a lot of time in training to, and the boys have been buying into the ideas and concepts that we are looking for.
“At this point we are just waiting for a game where everything clicks, as we've seen in a few matches early in the season (5-0 wins over Proviso West and Fenton).”
On the Lake Park side, Crosby is preparing for a defensive battle.
“Keys to success for us will be a defensive presence in the midfield and on our backline,” he said. “Being organized as a defensive unit will give us an advantage in the game, and hopefully allow us to attack from a more advanced position if we can force turnovers in midfield.
“Another key to our success will be capitalizing on counter attacks, set pieces and corners. We feel we have strength in attack when we can counter on our opponents and use our ball movement to draw corners and set pieces.
“Goals are very hard to come by in our competitive conference,” Crosby added, “so we are looking to take more risks and get aggressive in the attack to continue to build our nose for the goal.”
Glenbard North will provide a big challenge.
“They are well-coached, very organized in defense and have creative and dynamic movement in the attack,” Crosby said of the Panthers. “We will need to keep our communication high and stay disciplined when marking midfielders and forwards that interchange positions.”
Lake Park has already matched its win total of last season (5-10-4), and Mandakas (whose team is also already closing in on its eight-win total of 2021) expects a battle on the Lancers’ Senior Night.
“We know that Lake Park is a very talented team in the midfield,” Mandakas said, “and we will definitely have to be prepared for that.
“They have had some quality results and are playing some good soccer, so we look forward to another good match with them.”