Lake Park offense sparks
Senior Night win over Glenbard North
Lancers put a dent in formidable Panthers D with 3-2 victory
By Dave Owen
ROSELLE- Senior Night can often bring out the best in players.
That was certainly the case for Lake Park’s offensive attack Tuesday.
Facing a Glenbard North team that had allowed just seven goals in 13 games, the Lancers (6-5-3, 1-1-1 in the DuKane Conference) finished two nice set pieces and another from the run of play to produce a 3-2 win over the Panthers (6-5-3, 0-3-2).
“We scored off set pieces, a counterattack, and most of our chances came off great defensive plays,” Lake Park senior Alessandro Scalera, whose 18-yard counter strike with 9:36 left proved to be the difference-maker.
“It was a total team effort; and they were team goals. We fought harder than them. That's why we scored three goals, and they didn't.”
Any expectations of a defensive battle went out the window, quickly. Glenbard North struck first.
Off a Panthers corner kick cross in the sixth minute, sophomore Andy Rodriguez’s put-away from in front went under the crossbar gave his team a 1-0 lead.
“They're a good defensive team and a very underrated attacking team,” Lancers coach Sean Crosby said of Glenbard North. “They have a lot of dynamic movement up-front, and on set pieces they're dangerous.
“That goal we let in was off a corner we didn't clean up, and they run to the right spots and make things dangerous. It was a ball put in a good area that makes it tough on us. It takes a good bounce and ends up in the back of the net.”
The Panthers rode a similar early goal to a 1-0 win over Glenbard East on Saturday.
“I feel that usually with our team when we get a lead, we usually like to settle in and relax,” Glenbard North senior Tyler Nack said. “But against this good of a team, Lake Park, and how good their midfield is and how we weren't reacting well, they just countered really well.”
The Lancers had a quick answer to their 1-0 deficit. In the 10th minute, Rodrigo Diaz was fouled near the right edge of the box extended 28 yards out. Diaz proceeded to unleash a perfect free kick strike into the upper left corner of the goal. Suddenly, the score was 1-1.
“Rodrigo's shot, you couldn't put it in a better spot,” Crosby said. “That free kick was something spectacular that he should remember for a long time. It's a phenomenal, elite goal, and a phenomenal set piece.”
Said Glenbard North coach Spero Mandakas: “We talked about limiting set pieces. We gave them one, and that was a great hit that he (Diaz) had.
“A lot of credit to him on that one. But we were trying to not put ourselves in a position for them to have that.”
As well-executed as the set piece goal was, Diaz seemed happiest after the game about the timing of his perfect strike.
“I think their goal was one we could have definitely prevented,” Diaz said. “I think that goal (to tie) gave us life. Then it gave us momentum to keep going forward. And after that goal, we kept going forward and didn't look back.”
Making a huge momentum-turning play shortly after Senior Night pregame festivities made it even sweeter.
“It was nice to have my mom here,” Diaz said. “My dad was a little late, but that's alright. He got here in time to see (the goal).
“It was nice to recognize the seniors. We've put in a lot of work for this team and tried to lead by example for the underclassmen. It was a nice little ceremony for us.”
The best chances in 12 minutes after Diaz’s tying goal were produced by Lake Park’s Nick Gironda (a chip just over the net at the right post off a free kick 13 minutes in) and Christian Escobedo (a left-side run and shot saved by Lancers first half goalkeeper Andrew Swacha).
The Lancers began a great stretch of chances with 18:05 until halftime when Gironda launched a left side 20-yard rocket that Panthers goalkeeper Stavros Veremis leaped high to just deflect over the crossbar.
Veremis later made a fine catch of a Diaz low 18-yard shot in the 26th minute. Then two minutes later, a nice Devin Czeremuga delivery to the crease produced a solidly struck header just over the crossbar by Anthony Juarez.
Down early, the Lake Park had seized the advantage in play.
“We knew they (Glenbard North) would come out on Senior Night wanting to spoil it,” Scalera said of his team’s early 1-0 deficit. “But we knew if we stuck to our game, we can compete with anybody.”
Glenbard North’s defense continued to stand tall in a 33rd minute sequence. First was a nice clear of the box by Michael Carillo, and then a steal 25 yards out by Mark Szklarczyk.
The Panthers’ offense then closed the half with an advantage. Escobedo curled a left-side 20-yarder just over the net in the 36th minute, and a 39th-minute send by Pablo DeLaCruz sprung Adan Solorio in left. Swacha came off his line to force Solorio to send a cross that was briefly cleared, then Swacha raced back to his line in time to make a diving deflection wide of Solorio’s rebound.
The ensuing Panthers corner kick was cleared, and a half of rapid-fire chances at both ends concluded in a 1-1 halftime tie.
“I thought we responded well (after the free kick goal),” Mandakas said. “We had a quality last 10 minutes of the half, but then we came out (of the half) too flat against a good attacking team like Lake Park.”
First impressions of the second half were pro-Glenbard North: a DeLaCruz 50/50 win and shot deflected wide for a corner kick 45 seconds in; a suggestive cross off the corner headed away from dange by Lake Park’s Shane Donnelly.
Then Lake Park was back on the offensive. A Diaz 40-yard free kick with 38:10 left was grabbed by Veremis, and a Donnelly header on goal off a throw-in three minutes later was also snagged by the Panthers netminder.
“I think we have the talent up-top to break teams down,” Diaz said, “and that's exactly what we took advantage of, our talent up-top. All we did all game was show who the better attackers were.”
The list of quality chances continued to bear out Diaz’s assessment, as Veremis again faced big tests with 33:10 to play (sliding on his knees to make a back-post save of a Diaz 20-yard free kick left side) and 28:15 left (making a nice high grab of Gironda’s sliding shot near the end line off a Diaz cross).
Then with the score still tied 1-1, another Lake Park set piece tilted the Senior Night score toward the Lancers’ for good.
Francesco Cardone’s corner kick went short to Czeremuga right of the net. Czeremuga then sent a perfect cross to the crease, where Juarez was at the doorstep for a point-blank put-away and a 2-1 lead.
“Devin made a great turn on the ball and put it in a great spot,” Crosby said, “and Anthony taps it in and just has a nose for goals. Both of them have been real good targets for us and have also been really good through the run of play. I'm happy for their hard work to be put into results.”
Glenbard North’s next two bids to answer in the ensuing minutes were both from distance: a 45-yard Nack free kick wide left with 15:10 to go, and a 30-yard Solorio one-timer over frame one minute later.
Rijad Kadiric followed with a nice dribble-drive into the left side of the box with 13:30 left, but Jack Tucci nicely defended the foray to deny a shot.
Then with 9:36 left, a Lake Park counterattack chance became a 3-1 lead when Scalera skipped a low 18-yard liner from atop the box. Veremis dove to his right to get a hand on it, but couldn’t prevent the ball from bounding inside the left post.
“It was a counterattack,” Scalera said. “Frenchy (Cardone) cut it back for me, and it was a good pass. I just wanted to cut it back to my right foot and test the goalie. I put it low to the corner, and it ended up going in.”
Scalera’s familarity with Veremis helped on the finish.
“I used to play club with him,” Scalera said. “He’s good. I knew keeping it low was the best way to score off of him.”
For Lake Park, the game was shaping up as the best way to celebrate a Senior Night.
“All our goals came from seniors,” Crosby said. “Rodrigo's was one of a kind. It may be the one of the season right now for us. Devin, our senior, creates the opportunity off the corner to get the ball to Anthony, then Alessandro.
“But it's not just those guys. Shane (Donnelly) is a holding mid, Oscar (Sagan) is a center back, and Jack (Tucci) and Elijah (Matas) are outsides. We started almost a full lineup of seniors, and Andrew (Swacha) and Connell (Travis) split time, our two senior goalkeepers.”
Swacha had six saves in the first half, and Travis played the second half and made four.
“The strength of this team is in the senior corps,” Crosby said. “We have 14 of them, and they're not just phenomenal soccer players but great kids that you wish you had more time with. We're bummed it's their senior years, but we're happy they've performed really well the last couple weeks against some tough opponents.”
Tuesday’s opponent was about to make things very tough on the Lancers in the final minutes of the game.
The Panthers endured another big threat with 7:10 left when Cardone drove into the box on two defenders, before Veremis came off his line to smother his dribble six yards out.
Then, Glenbard North put on a furious push that nearly turned a 3-1 deficit into a tie.
It began with a nice Escobedo block of a Lake Park shot with under six minutes left. That triggered a counterattack, a Solorio cross that forced a Jakub Tourillott clear-out on the side.
A Szklarczyk 28-yard liner caught by Travis with 5:05 to go capped that sequence. But Glenbard North dialed up the heat again with an extra effort play on Ayan Sheikh long ball to the box at the 4:26 mark.
Chasing the send/shot, Nack hustled and muscled his way in deep. He won control from Travis of a loose ball left of the net and powered in a point-blank goal an instant before a defender arrived.
“Honestly the score to me never really matters until the clock hits zero,” Nack said. “Coach switched the formation and put me up-top. And I just knew with the guys I had around me, we can at least put one away and then hopefully go for two.
“Unfortunately we didn't get the second one, but I was happy I finished off my teammate Ayan’s shot. I got the rebound, hard fought. It took me a couple tries, but I got it done.”
The never-surrender attitude impressed Mandakas.
“We put some guys in, switched some things up, and they brought a lot of energy,” he said. “We were able to create a turnover, and Tyler's able to create just a muscle goal right there. That was good to see, the resilience of the boys to keep going.”
Now down just 3-2, the Panthers weren’t done.
A Glenbard North throw-in from 25 yards with 3:25 to go was cleared by Lake Park’s Cardone.
Then with 2:30 left, a 70-second sequence of high pressure began. Donnelly made a block, followed by Travis’ high catch of an Escobedo 35-yard free kick at 2:15. Solorio’s one-hop throw-in at 1:20 made Travis came off his line to beat two Panthers to the ball eight yards out.
One last Glenbard North rush in the final 20 seconds began with a Tucci partial clear of a send. Solorio retrieved the ball and raced toward the box, but his cross to the front was denied on Tucci’s sliding clear to the side as time expired.
“We tried to get one at the end, and it didn't work,” Nack said, “but I'm happy to be around guys who were willing to put all that work in in the last 10 minutes.
“If we just keep working hard as a unit once we get one goal in, just keep working and working and keep putting (goals) on the scoreboard, we won't have this problem (a 3-2 loss) ever again.”
Tuesday’s loss aside, Nack has been impressed by the Panthers’ depth.
“When certain guys can't get the job done, there's other guys on the bench willing to get in and do the job,” Nack said. “We put them in, and they do it. I just feel our rotation opens new players’ eyes to the game.”
Crosby saw the Lake Park’s special night nearly altered by the Panthers’ rally.
“They definitely gave us all we could handle to the final whistle, even making it close the last couple of minutes,” Crosby said. “And for us to get three on a good defensive team gives us a lot of motivation going forward. For us also to defend them the way we did in tight, tough moments was good.
“We made it tough on ourselves at moments, but they also kept coming at us.”
Mandakas was impressed by Glenbard North’s finishing flurry, but frustrated by earlier struggles.
“We have to come out better, and again in the final third we're not generating quality until that last 10-minute push,” Mandakas said. “But it's too late at that point.
“This is the first time we've kind of lapsed like this,” Mandakas added of the season high three goals allowed. “I felt like we did a good job of limiting their midfield in possession, but the quality (on offense) wasn't there.
“They beat us on two set pieces, and then the third was kind of a counter. We know when we go play these guys again, that we have to do better in the attack, generate more quality and limit the set pieces that we give them.”
For Lake Park, there was no limit to the postgame joy over the Senior Night win.
“This does a lot for us,” Diaz said. “It helps us with our sectional seeding, and it gives us a lot of momentum going into Thursday and this weekend. And it sends out a statement.
“We were practicing a new formation which made me and Shane Donnelly more defensive (midfielders), which also helped us with them not scoring goals, so we could keep a lot out of our back.
“And in the attack we had a lot of numbers, so it gave us opportunities. That's why we were up on the scoreboard.”
Coming off recent ties with defending Class 3A champ York and St. Charles North and a 2-1 loss Saturday to no. 1 Elgin, the win was a nice reward on Lake Park’s tough schedule.
“We play top dogs,” Scalera said, “and it helps us for conference play and helps us for sectionals and getting ready for playoffs. We want the play the best teams. That's the way we test ourselves.
“We have 14 seniors on the team, and we all wanted to end Senior Night with a big win. And luckily it worked out for us.”
Starting lineups
Glenbard North
GK: Stavros Veremis
D: Tyler Nack
D: Diego Chicas
D: Mark Szklarczyk
D: Diego Navarro
M: Christian Escobido
M: Luis Roman
M: Andy Pena
M: Jorge Roman
F: Adan Solorio
F: Pablo DeLaCruz
Lake Park
GK: Andrew Swacha
D: Oscar Sagan
D: Jack Tucci
D: Jakub Tourillott
D: Elijah Matas
M: Luca Solarz
M: Devin Czeremuga
M: Shane Donnelly
M: Nick Gironda
M: Rodrigo Diaz
F: Alessandro Scalera
Scoring summary
First half
GN- Andy Rodriguez, 6’
LP- Rodrigo Diaz (free kick), 10’
Second half
LP- Anthony Juarez (Devin Czeremuga assist), 61’
LP- Alessandro Scalera (Francesco Cardone), 71’
GN- Tyler Nack (Ayan Sheikh), 76’
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Rodrigo Diaz, sr., MF, Lake Park
Senior Night win over Glenbard North
Lancers put a dent in formidable Panthers D with 3-2 victory
By Dave Owen
ROSELLE- Senior Night can often bring out the best in players.
That was certainly the case for Lake Park’s offensive attack Tuesday.
Facing a Glenbard North team that had allowed just seven goals in 13 games, the Lancers (6-5-3, 1-1-1 in the DuKane Conference) finished two nice set pieces and another from the run of play to produce a 3-2 win over the Panthers (6-5-3, 0-3-2).
“We scored off set pieces, a counterattack, and most of our chances came off great defensive plays,” Lake Park senior Alessandro Scalera, whose 18-yard counter strike with 9:36 left proved to be the difference-maker.
“It was a total team effort; and they were team goals. We fought harder than them. That's why we scored three goals, and they didn't.”
Any expectations of a defensive battle went out the window, quickly. Glenbard North struck first.
Off a Panthers corner kick cross in the sixth minute, sophomore Andy Rodriguez’s put-away from in front went under the crossbar gave his team a 1-0 lead.
“They're a good defensive team and a very underrated attacking team,” Lancers coach Sean Crosby said of Glenbard North. “They have a lot of dynamic movement up-front, and on set pieces they're dangerous.
“That goal we let in was off a corner we didn't clean up, and they run to the right spots and make things dangerous. It was a ball put in a good area that makes it tough on us. It takes a good bounce and ends up in the back of the net.”
The Panthers rode a similar early goal to a 1-0 win over Glenbard East on Saturday.
“I feel that usually with our team when we get a lead, we usually like to settle in and relax,” Glenbard North senior Tyler Nack said. “But against this good of a team, Lake Park, and how good their midfield is and how we weren't reacting well, they just countered really well.”
The Lancers had a quick answer to their 1-0 deficit. In the 10th minute, Rodrigo Diaz was fouled near the right edge of the box extended 28 yards out. Diaz proceeded to unleash a perfect free kick strike into the upper left corner of the goal. Suddenly, the score was 1-1.
“Rodrigo's shot, you couldn't put it in a better spot,” Crosby said. “That free kick was something spectacular that he should remember for a long time. It's a phenomenal, elite goal, and a phenomenal set piece.”
Said Glenbard North coach Spero Mandakas: “We talked about limiting set pieces. We gave them one, and that was a great hit that he (Diaz) had.
“A lot of credit to him on that one. But we were trying to not put ourselves in a position for them to have that.”
As well-executed as the set piece goal was, Diaz seemed happiest after the game about the timing of his perfect strike.
“I think their goal was one we could have definitely prevented,” Diaz said. “I think that goal (to tie) gave us life. Then it gave us momentum to keep going forward. And after that goal, we kept going forward and didn't look back.”
Making a huge momentum-turning play shortly after Senior Night pregame festivities made it even sweeter.
“It was nice to have my mom here,” Diaz said. “My dad was a little late, but that's alright. He got here in time to see (the goal).
“It was nice to recognize the seniors. We've put in a lot of work for this team and tried to lead by example for the underclassmen. It was a nice little ceremony for us.”
The best chances in 12 minutes after Diaz’s tying goal were produced by Lake Park’s Nick Gironda (a chip just over the net at the right post off a free kick 13 minutes in) and Christian Escobedo (a left-side run and shot saved by Lancers first half goalkeeper Andrew Swacha).
The Lancers began a great stretch of chances with 18:05 until halftime when Gironda launched a left side 20-yard rocket that Panthers goalkeeper Stavros Veremis leaped high to just deflect over the crossbar.
Veremis later made a fine catch of a Diaz low 18-yard shot in the 26th minute. Then two minutes later, a nice Devin Czeremuga delivery to the crease produced a solidly struck header just over the crossbar by Anthony Juarez.
Down early, the Lake Park had seized the advantage in play.
“We knew they (Glenbard North) would come out on Senior Night wanting to spoil it,” Scalera said of his team’s early 1-0 deficit. “But we knew if we stuck to our game, we can compete with anybody.”
Glenbard North’s defense continued to stand tall in a 33rd minute sequence. First was a nice clear of the box by Michael Carillo, and then a steal 25 yards out by Mark Szklarczyk.
The Panthers’ offense then closed the half with an advantage. Escobedo curled a left-side 20-yarder just over the net in the 36th minute, and a 39th-minute send by Pablo DeLaCruz sprung Adan Solorio in left. Swacha came off his line to force Solorio to send a cross that was briefly cleared, then Swacha raced back to his line in time to make a diving deflection wide of Solorio’s rebound.
The ensuing Panthers corner kick was cleared, and a half of rapid-fire chances at both ends concluded in a 1-1 halftime tie.
“I thought we responded well (after the free kick goal),” Mandakas said. “We had a quality last 10 minutes of the half, but then we came out (of the half) too flat against a good attacking team like Lake Park.”
First impressions of the second half were pro-Glenbard North: a DeLaCruz 50/50 win and shot deflected wide for a corner kick 45 seconds in; a suggestive cross off the corner headed away from dange by Lake Park’s Shane Donnelly.
Then Lake Park was back on the offensive. A Diaz 40-yard free kick with 38:10 left was grabbed by Veremis, and a Donnelly header on goal off a throw-in three minutes later was also snagged by the Panthers netminder.
“I think we have the talent up-top to break teams down,” Diaz said, “and that's exactly what we took advantage of, our talent up-top. All we did all game was show who the better attackers were.”
The list of quality chances continued to bear out Diaz’s assessment, as Veremis again faced big tests with 33:10 to play (sliding on his knees to make a back-post save of a Diaz 20-yard free kick left side) and 28:15 left (making a nice high grab of Gironda’s sliding shot near the end line off a Diaz cross).
Then with the score still tied 1-1, another Lake Park set piece tilted the Senior Night score toward the Lancers’ for good.
Francesco Cardone’s corner kick went short to Czeremuga right of the net. Czeremuga then sent a perfect cross to the crease, where Juarez was at the doorstep for a point-blank put-away and a 2-1 lead.
“Devin made a great turn on the ball and put it in a great spot,” Crosby said, “and Anthony taps it in and just has a nose for goals. Both of them have been real good targets for us and have also been really good through the run of play. I'm happy for their hard work to be put into results.”
Glenbard North’s next two bids to answer in the ensuing minutes were both from distance: a 45-yard Nack free kick wide left with 15:10 to go, and a 30-yard Solorio one-timer over frame one minute later.
Rijad Kadiric followed with a nice dribble-drive into the left side of the box with 13:30 left, but Jack Tucci nicely defended the foray to deny a shot.
Then with 9:36 left, a Lake Park counterattack chance became a 3-1 lead when Scalera skipped a low 18-yard liner from atop the box. Veremis dove to his right to get a hand on it, but couldn’t prevent the ball from bounding inside the left post.
“It was a counterattack,” Scalera said. “Frenchy (Cardone) cut it back for me, and it was a good pass. I just wanted to cut it back to my right foot and test the goalie. I put it low to the corner, and it ended up going in.”
Scalera’s familarity with Veremis helped on the finish.
“I used to play club with him,” Scalera said. “He’s good. I knew keeping it low was the best way to score off of him.”
For Lake Park, the game was shaping up as the best way to celebrate a Senior Night.
“All our goals came from seniors,” Crosby said. “Rodrigo's was one of a kind. It may be the one of the season right now for us. Devin, our senior, creates the opportunity off the corner to get the ball to Anthony, then Alessandro.
“But it's not just those guys. Shane (Donnelly) is a holding mid, Oscar (Sagan) is a center back, and Jack (Tucci) and Elijah (Matas) are outsides. We started almost a full lineup of seniors, and Andrew (Swacha) and Connell (Travis) split time, our two senior goalkeepers.”
Swacha had six saves in the first half, and Travis played the second half and made four.
“The strength of this team is in the senior corps,” Crosby said. “We have 14 of them, and they're not just phenomenal soccer players but great kids that you wish you had more time with. We're bummed it's their senior years, but we're happy they've performed really well the last couple weeks against some tough opponents.”
Tuesday’s opponent was about to make things very tough on the Lancers in the final minutes of the game.
The Panthers endured another big threat with 7:10 left when Cardone drove into the box on two defenders, before Veremis came off his line to smother his dribble six yards out.
Then, Glenbard North put on a furious push that nearly turned a 3-1 deficit into a tie.
It began with a nice Escobedo block of a Lake Park shot with under six minutes left. That triggered a counterattack, a Solorio cross that forced a Jakub Tourillott clear-out on the side.
A Szklarczyk 28-yard liner caught by Travis with 5:05 to go capped that sequence. But Glenbard North dialed up the heat again with an extra effort play on Ayan Sheikh long ball to the box at the 4:26 mark.
Chasing the send/shot, Nack hustled and muscled his way in deep. He won control from Travis of a loose ball left of the net and powered in a point-blank goal an instant before a defender arrived.
“Honestly the score to me never really matters until the clock hits zero,” Nack said. “Coach switched the formation and put me up-top. And I just knew with the guys I had around me, we can at least put one away and then hopefully go for two.
“Unfortunately we didn't get the second one, but I was happy I finished off my teammate Ayan’s shot. I got the rebound, hard fought. It took me a couple tries, but I got it done.”
The never-surrender attitude impressed Mandakas.
“We put some guys in, switched some things up, and they brought a lot of energy,” he said. “We were able to create a turnover, and Tyler's able to create just a muscle goal right there. That was good to see, the resilience of the boys to keep going.”
Now down just 3-2, the Panthers weren’t done.
A Glenbard North throw-in from 25 yards with 3:25 to go was cleared by Lake Park’s Cardone.
Then with 2:30 left, a 70-second sequence of high pressure began. Donnelly made a block, followed by Travis’ high catch of an Escobedo 35-yard free kick at 2:15. Solorio’s one-hop throw-in at 1:20 made Travis came off his line to beat two Panthers to the ball eight yards out.
One last Glenbard North rush in the final 20 seconds began with a Tucci partial clear of a send. Solorio retrieved the ball and raced toward the box, but his cross to the front was denied on Tucci’s sliding clear to the side as time expired.
“We tried to get one at the end, and it didn't work,” Nack said, “but I'm happy to be around guys who were willing to put all that work in in the last 10 minutes.
“If we just keep working hard as a unit once we get one goal in, just keep working and working and keep putting (goals) on the scoreboard, we won't have this problem (a 3-2 loss) ever again.”
Tuesday’s loss aside, Nack has been impressed by the Panthers’ depth.
“When certain guys can't get the job done, there's other guys on the bench willing to get in and do the job,” Nack said. “We put them in, and they do it. I just feel our rotation opens new players’ eyes to the game.”
Crosby saw the Lake Park’s special night nearly altered by the Panthers’ rally.
“They definitely gave us all we could handle to the final whistle, even making it close the last couple of minutes,” Crosby said. “And for us to get three on a good defensive team gives us a lot of motivation going forward. For us also to defend them the way we did in tight, tough moments was good.
“We made it tough on ourselves at moments, but they also kept coming at us.”
Mandakas was impressed by Glenbard North’s finishing flurry, but frustrated by earlier struggles.
“We have to come out better, and again in the final third we're not generating quality until that last 10-minute push,” Mandakas said. “But it's too late at that point.
“This is the first time we've kind of lapsed like this,” Mandakas added of the season high three goals allowed. “I felt like we did a good job of limiting their midfield in possession, but the quality (on offense) wasn't there.
“They beat us on two set pieces, and then the third was kind of a counter. We know when we go play these guys again, that we have to do better in the attack, generate more quality and limit the set pieces that we give them.”
For Lake Park, there was no limit to the postgame joy over the Senior Night win.
“This does a lot for us,” Diaz said. “It helps us with our sectional seeding, and it gives us a lot of momentum going into Thursday and this weekend. And it sends out a statement.
“We were practicing a new formation which made me and Shane Donnelly more defensive (midfielders), which also helped us with them not scoring goals, so we could keep a lot out of our back.
“And in the attack we had a lot of numbers, so it gave us opportunities. That's why we were up on the scoreboard.”
Coming off recent ties with defending Class 3A champ York and St. Charles North and a 2-1 loss Saturday to no. 1 Elgin, the win was a nice reward on Lake Park’s tough schedule.
“We play top dogs,” Scalera said, “and it helps us for conference play and helps us for sectionals and getting ready for playoffs. We want the play the best teams. That's the way we test ourselves.
“We have 14 seniors on the team, and we all wanted to end Senior Night with a big win. And luckily it worked out for us.”
Starting lineups
Glenbard North
GK: Stavros Veremis
D: Tyler Nack
D: Diego Chicas
D: Mark Szklarczyk
D: Diego Navarro
M: Christian Escobido
M: Luis Roman
M: Andy Pena
M: Jorge Roman
F: Adan Solorio
F: Pablo DeLaCruz
Lake Park
GK: Andrew Swacha
D: Oscar Sagan
D: Jack Tucci
D: Jakub Tourillott
D: Elijah Matas
M: Luca Solarz
M: Devin Czeremuga
M: Shane Donnelly
M: Nick Gironda
M: Rodrigo Diaz
F: Alessandro Scalera
Scoring summary
First half
GN- Andy Rodriguez, 6’
LP- Rodrigo Diaz (free kick), 10’
Second half
LP- Anthony Juarez (Devin Czeremuga assist), 61’
LP- Alessandro Scalera (Francesco Cardone), 71’
GN- Tyler Nack (Ayan Sheikh), 76’
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Rodrigo Diaz, sr., MF, Lake Park