Strong 2nd half start pushes
Hinsdale Central past Metea Valley
Davies scores twice in 5-minute in 3-1 nonconference win
By Chris R. Walker
AURORA -- You’ve certainly heard that you can throw out the record books when certain teams play each other.
Whenever Michael Wiggins and his Hinsdale Central club and Josh Robinson and his Metea Valley squad go head-to-head, you may not know what’s going to happen in the end, but chances are that both teams are going to be challenged and be able to use that experience to ultimately get better. And isn’t that the whole purpose of nonconference games anyway?
Behind a pair of Luca Davies goals within the first five minutes of the second half, the Red Devils broke open a 1-1 match and defeated the host Mustangs 3-1 Wednesday night.
“I have a ton of respect for coach Robinson,” Wiggins said. “He’s top-notch. He always gets his team prepared, and that’s why we were excited to have them back on the schedule. It’s an opportunity to play a well-organized team, which is important to us, especially early on in the season. … I’m not surprised that they responded the way they did.”
While sports provide a wonderful way for kids to make friendships, they also afford those same opportunities to coaches and Wiggins and Robinson are a prime example. The pair are great role models for their kids.
“Me and Mike are ridiculously close. I work for his Five Star Soccer Camps,” Robinson said.
"We love playing him. We know we’re going to get that high-intensity level competition, and I think he hopes for the same. They were a little more technically sound than us and that put us in tough spots.”
Hinsdale Central (5-0-1), which made its Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 debut at no. 14 this week, started the game strong. The Red Devils threatened on a pair of corner kicks before junior Martin Montoya found the left post on a shot during the run of play.
His continued effort earned a PK with 25:42 remaining in the opening half.
Montoya buried his try, but the Red Devils didn’t enjoy the lead very long; they were victimized just a few minutes later. Metea Valley senior Erick Mena (Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List) received a cross and after a quick touch he made a pass to Michael Senese. The junior was able to get just enough on his shot for it to escape the grasp of Hinsdale Central sophomore goalkeeper Martin Contreras.
“I have so much trust in (Senese),” Mena said. “He just hit it into the goal. The goalie got unlucky, and it went behind him.”
It was the first goal surrendered by the Red Devils since their season-opening 1-1 tie to Oswego East on Aug. 27. Half a month ago, the Wolves’ DuPablo Parodis-Yu headed the equalizer home after a cross from Caleb Pankiewicz as the Wolves rallied with 2:57 left to play.
Hinsdale Central didn’t like giving up that goal or the one Wednesday.
“The goal was a bit unfortunate, because we had them completely under control the whole game and it was just unlucky,” Hinsdale Central senior defender Kevin Gottschalk said. “We just kept ourselves together, kept the mindset positive.
“We just focused and did our work. We had a game plan and stuck to it, and we felt really good about the result today. We did get scored on and the clean-sheet is gone, but we rebounded and focused on ourselves and came back and got the win today.”
Tied at 1-1 at the half was a victory of sorts for the Mustangs (3-5-0) who hoped to snap a three-game losing streak against a Red Devils team that is surging in the other direction.
Metea Valley has been something of a puzzle in the early season. The Mustangs opened the season ranked as the 49th program in the state in the First 50 poll. They have remained on the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 honorable mention list, in part, because they have played a solid schedule. They beat then no. 17 St. Charles North and Maine South (PKs) to all but guarantee a finals berth in the St. Charles Invitational before falling 1-0 on a late goal to Class A Wheaton Academy. Metea Valley lost big to no. 13 St. Charles East in the invitational's third place game.
After the break in Wednesday's game, things didn’t remain tied for long. Davies scored twice in the opening five minutes and now has three game-winning goals this season (six goals, two assists overall). The effort earned him the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor. Davies is definitely making a name for himself in high school soccer.
“It was a great game,” he said. “After the first half, we talked about how we need to improve. We were dominating the game, but it’s still a very good team. The first half they really challenged us, but we were able to regroup and get back into it. Scoring early on them was good.”
The scoreboard operator didn’t start the clock to open the second half so when Davies took a few touches after getting a ball from Montoya, his go-ahead score came with 40:00 on the clock. The official time of his goal was 37 seconds into the second half.
“That’s what we wanted off the start,” Davies said. “We talked about a quick one and finishing the game off quickly. We know we have the talent to score these goals, so it was good.”
While only in his first year on varsity, Davies is making a huge impact and having a blast so far.
“I’m loving it,” he said. “I’m trying to take it all in and have the most fun I can.”
Leadership from the veterans, including 16 seniors, has certainly helped the newcomers fit in quickly.
“We’ve done a lot to get the new guys into the old culture of the team,” Gottschalk said. “We are just clicking now in the locker room, and everyone is just really connected. It’s all really good.”
And the Red Devils have more opportunities to improve ahead.
“We have great team chemistry, and we’re doing amazing in practice,” Gottschalk said. “The locker room is nice and level-headed. We’re feeling really good right now. We’re on a roll. Our touches are always coming across perfect almost every time. We’re feeling amazing about what we’re doing.”
The 2-0 victory over Marquette continues to make a lasting impression on the Red Devils, and deservedly so. That program has won numerous Wisconsin state titles.
“Our guys are playing well right now, and I think the Marquette game gave us a confidence we didn’t realize we had,” Wiggins said. “We know we have guys playing at a high level now, and we have some guys exceeding where we thought they’d be. ... For us to be at where we are right now it’s encouraging.”
Of course, things can change so quickly. Coaching student-athletes at the high school level, who are dealing with school work, home life and pretty much everything under the sun, can become a great mystery. Someone who has coached for as long as Wiggins has understands the lengthy and often unpredictable road of a prep soccer season.
“You can go through a high school season, and it has different peaks and valleys. If you don’t come to compete, it can change things,” he said. “So, we’re very aware of not only where are at in the season right now, but what we have on the schedule and who we’re playing. We respect every team that we play and take every game as an opportunity to be better. And I feel like we’re doing that.”
Metea Valley senior goalkeeper Orlando Velazquez, donned brightly colored attire for the match.
“I want to pop out. I want our school to pop out because of my uniform,” he said. “I just want to be different.”
He remains hopeful that the Mustangs can return to their winning ways.
Velazquez certainly made a difference, keeping the Mustangs close despite being attacked regularly. The team denied five corner kick opportunities in the first half alone.
“They (Hinsdale Central) were working really well together, and they were talking to each other throughout the field,” he said. “They were opening up. It’s just unfortunate that I couldn’t grab one other ball (the go-ahead goal), but they played very good.
“We went down 3-1 but we still didn’t give up. We kept pushing. Maybe the goals weren’t there, but we kept working for it. I think the guys are pushing each other to the max to help them become better players.”
Going from a 1-1 tie to suddenly trailing 3-1 in a five-minute span would crush a lot of teams. That didn’t happen Wednesday, but it did occur to Metea Valley when it fell apart after a 1-0 lead and surrendered to St. Charles East.
“Where we were at four or five days ago when a similar thing happened, we self destructed,” Robinson said. “I’m proud that they stayed with it and kept battling. They fought, and they stayed in the game and were creating opportunities still and battling a team that I think is going to, at the end of the day, be something special.”
The Mustangs also were responding to a disappointing 2-0 loss at DeKalb the night before.
“We didn’t necessarily have the energy against St. Charles East, and I thought we moved the ball well and didn’t get the goals against DeKalb,” Robinson said. “We’re in a little bit of a tough run right now, but the kids are good kids. We love them, and we enjoy working with them.”
Mena pointed toward the TraceCam technology near the 50-yard line on the opposite sideline that was used by Robinson to record the Mustangs’ action during the loss as one of the ways the team will improve.
“This was another learning experience,” Mena said. “We’ve got the video camera to see our game film, and each person can get better at their own position. This game was tough, obviously, and we had a bunch of chances. We just got to keep working hard. We got better in the last 25 minutes, but we didn’t get the result we wanted. We played way better than (Tuesday).”
One particular area for growth that could really impact the Mustangs is with their attack. Outside of a score off a set piece from senior Tony Cuautle, all of Metea Valley’s goals this fall have come from Senese and Mena.
“We’re looking for other kids to contribute,” Robinson said. “We need to get production from other kids. There are kids that can do it. We have talented kids that can do good things, so it’s just trying to get them to will their way into it, to crash the net and get one.
“They all count the same. They can be ugly and hopefully create a catalyst for themselves to feel confident in themselves, because I think there’s a lack of confidence. We keep trying to build it in them and tell them that, but they’ve got to see it for themselves and believe in themselves a little bit.”
Starting lineups
Hinsdale Central
GK: Martin Contreras
D: Greg Theotikos
D: Kevin Gottschalk
D: Dayton DiTomasso
D: Oliver Pohlenz
D: Cody Jurgenson
MF: Austin Szurgot
MF: Martin Montoya
F: Braden Henry
F: Luca Davies
F: Owen Peterson
Metea Valley
GK: Orland Velazquez
D: Arjo Basu
D: Aiden Pufundt
D: Tony Cuautle
D: Cameron Leys
D: Julian Ordaz
MF: Christian Tai
MF: Daniel Wilkinson
MF: Michael Senese
MF: Anthony Hildreth
F: Erick Mena
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Luca Davies, jr., F, Hinsdale Central
Scoring summary
First half
Hinsdale Central – Martin Montoya (penalty kick), 14:18
Metea Valley – Michael Senese (Erick Mena), 18:11
Second half
Hinsdale Central – Luca Davies (Martin Montoya), 40:37
Hinsdale Central – Luca Davies (Ardit Abdullai), 44:38
Hinsdale Central past Metea Valley
Davies scores twice in 5-minute in 3-1 nonconference win
By Chris R. Walker
AURORA -- You’ve certainly heard that you can throw out the record books when certain teams play each other.
Whenever Michael Wiggins and his Hinsdale Central club and Josh Robinson and his Metea Valley squad go head-to-head, you may not know what’s going to happen in the end, but chances are that both teams are going to be challenged and be able to use that experience to ultimately get better. And isn’t that the whole purpose of nonconference games anyway?
Behind a pair of Luca Davies goals within the first five minutes of the second half, the Red Devils broke open a 1-1 match and defeated the host Mustangs 3-1 Wednesday night.
“I have a ton of respect for coach Robinson,” Wiggins said. “He’s top-notch. He always gets his team prepared, and that’s why we were excited to have them back on the schedule. It’s an opportunity to play a well-organized team, which is important to us, especially early on in the season. … I’m not surprised that they responded the way they did.”
While sports provide a wonderful way for kids to make friendships, they also afford those same opportunities to coaches and Wiggins and Robinson are a prime example. The pair are great role models for their kids.
“Me and Mike are ridiculously close. I work for his Five Star Soccer Camps,” Robinson said.
"We love playing him. We know we’re going to get that high-intensity level competition, and I think he hopes for the same. They were a little more technically sound than us and that put us in tough spots.”
Hinsdale Central (5-0-1), which made its Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 debut at no. 14 this week, started the game strong. The Red Devils threatened on a pair of corner kicks before junior Martin Montoya found the left post on a shot during the run of play.
His continued effort earned a PK with 25:42 remaining in the opening half.
Montoya buried his try, but the Red Devils didn’t enjoy the lead very long; they were victimized just a few minutes later. Metea Valley senior Erick Mena (Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List) received a cross and after a quick touch he made a pass to Michael Senese. The junior was able to get just enough on his shot for it to escape the grasp of Hinsdale Central sophomore goalkeeper Martin Contreras.
“I have so much trust in (Senese),” Mena said. “He just hit it into the goal. The goalie got unlucky, and it went behind him.”
It was the first goal surrendered by the Red Devils since their season-opening 1-1 tie to Oswego East on Aug. 27. Half a month ago, the Wolves’ DuPablo Parodis-Yu headed the equalizer home after a cross from Caleb Pankiewicz as the Wolves rallied with 2:57 left to play.
Hinsdale Central didn’t like giving up that goal or the one Wednesday.
“The goal was a bit unfortunate, because we had them completely under control the whole game and it was just unlucky,” Hinsdale Central senior defender Kevin Gottschalk said. “We just kept ourselves together, kept the mindset positive.
“We just focused and did our work. We had a game plan and stuck to it, and we felt really good about the result today. We did get scored on and the clean-sheet is gone, but we rebounded and focused on ourselves and came back and got the win today.”
Tied at 1-1 at the half was a victory of sorts for the Mustangs (3-5-0) who hoped to snap a three-game losing streak against a Red Devils team that is surging in the other direction.
Metea Valley has been something of a puzzle in the early season. The Mustangs opened the season ranked as the 49th program in the state in the First 50 poll. They have remained on the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 honorable mention list, in part, because they have played a solid schedule. They beat then no. 17 St. Charles North and Maine South (PKs) to all but guarantee a finals berth in the St. Charles Invitational before falling 1-0 on a late goal to Class A Wheaton Academy. Metea Valley lost big to no. 13 St. Charles East in the invitational's third place game.
After the break in Wednesday's game, things didn’t remain tied for long. Davies scored twice in the opening five minutes and now has three game-winning goals this season (six goals, two assists overall). The effort earned him the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor. Davies is definitely making a name for himself in high school soccer.
“It was a great game,” he said. “After the first half, we talked about how we need to improve. We were dominating the game, but it’s still a very good team. The first half they really challenged us, but we were able to regroup and get back into it. Scoring early on them was good.”
The scoreboard operator didn’t start the clock to open the second half so when Davies took a few touches after getting a ball from Montoya, his go-ahead score came with 40:00 on the clock. The official time of his goal was 37 seconds into the second half.
“That’s what we wanted off the start,” Davies said. “We talked about a quick one and finishing the game off quickly. We know we have the talent to score these goals, so it was good.”
While only in his first year on varsity, Davies is making a huge impact and having a blast so far.
“I’m loving it,” he said. “I’m trying to take it all in and have the most fun I can.”
Leadership from the veterans, including 16 seniors, has certainly helped the newcomers fit in quickly.
“We’ve done a lot to get the new guys into the old culture of the team,” Gottschalk said. “We are just clicking now in the locker room, and everyone is just really connected. It’s all really good.”
And the Red Devils have more opportunities to improve ahead.
“We have great team chemistry, and we’re doing amazing in practice,” Gottschalk said. “The locker room is nice and level-headed. We’re feeling really good right now. We’re on a roll. Our touches are always coming across perfect almost every time. We’re feeling amazing about what we’re doing.”
The 2-0 victory over Marquette continues to make a lasting impression on the Red Devils, and deservedly so. That program has won numerous Wisconsin state titles.
“Our guys are playing well right now, and I think the Marquette game gave us a confidence we didn’t realize we had,” Wiggins said. “We know we have guys playing at a high level now, and we have some guys exceeding where we thought they’d be. ... For us to be at where we are right now it’s encouraging.”
Of course, things can change so quickly. Coaching student-athletes at the high school level, who are dealing with school work, home life and pretty much everything under the sun, can become a great mystery. Someone who has coached for as long as Wiggins has understands the lengthy and often unpredictable road of a prep soccer season.
“You can go through a high school season, and it has different peaks and valleys. If you don’t come to compete, it can change things,” he said. “So, we’re very aware of not only where are at in the season right now, but what we have on the schedule and who we’re playing. We respect every team that we play and take every game as an opportunity to be better. And I feel like we’re doing that.”
Metea Valley senior goalkeeper Orlando Velazquez, donned brightly colored attire for the match.
“I want to pop out. I want our school to pop out because of my uniform,” he said. “I just want to be different.”
He remains hopeful that the Mustangs can return to their winning ways.
Velazquez certainly made a difference, keeping the Mustangs close despite being attacked regularly. The team denied five corner kick opportunities in the first half alone.
“They (Hinsdale Central) were working really well together, and they were talking to each other throughout the field,” he said. “They were opening up. It’s just unfortunate that I couldn’t grab one other ball (the go-ahead goal), but they played very good.
“We went down 3-1 but we still didn’t give up. We kept pushing. Maybe the goals weren’t there, but we kept working for it. I think the guys are pushing each other to the max to help them become better players.”
Going from a 1-1 tie to suddenly trailing 3-1 in a five-minute span would crush a lot of teams. That didn’t happen Wednesday, but it did occur to Metea Valley when it fell apart after a 1-0 lead and surrendered to St. Charles East.
“Where we were at four or five days ago when a similar thing happened, we self destructed,” Robinson said. “I’m proud that they stayed with it and kept battling. They fought, and they stayed in the game and were creating opportunities still and battling a team that I think is going to, at the end of the day, be something special.”
The Mustangs also were responding to a disappointing 2-0 loss at DeKalb the night before.
“We didn’t necessarily have the energy against St. Charles East, and I thought we moved the ball well and didn’t get the goals against DeKalb,” Robinson said. “We’re in a little bit of a tough run right now, but the kids are good kids. We love them, and we enjoy working with them.”
Mena pointed toward the TraceCam technology near the 50-yard line on the opposite sideline that was used by Robinson to record the Mustangs’ action during the loss as one of the ways the team will improve.
“This was another learning experience,” Mena said. “We’ve got the video camera to see our game film, and each person can get better at their own position. This game was tough, obviously, and we had a bunch of chances. We just got to keep working hard. We got better in the last 25 minutes, but we didn’t get the result we wanted. We played way better than (Tuesday).”
One particular area for growth that could really impact the Mustangs is with their attack. Outside of a score off a set piece from senior Tony Cuautle, all of Metea Valley’s goals this fall have come from Senese and Mena.
“We’re looking for other kids to contribute,” Robinson said. “We need to get production from other kids. There are kids that can do it. We have talented kids that can do good things, so it’s just trying to get them to will their way into it, to crash the net and get one.
“They all count the same. They can be ugly and hopefully create a catalyst for themselves to feel confident in themselves, because I think there’s a lack of confidence. We keep trying to build it in them and tell them that, but they’ve got to see it for themselves and believe in themselves a little bit.”
Starting lineups
Hinsdale Central
GK: Martin Contreras
D: Greg Theotikos
D: Kevin Gottschalk
D: Dayton DiTomasso
D: Oliver Pohlenz
D: Cody Jurgenson
MF: Austin Szurgot
MF: Martin Montoya
F: Braden Henry
F: Luca Davies
F: Owen Peterson
Metea Valley
GK: Orland Velazquez
D: Arjo Basu
D: Aiden Pufundt
D: Tony Cuautle
D: Cameron Leys
D: Julian Ordaz
MF: Christian Tai
MF: Daniel Wilkinson
MF: Michael Senese
MF: Anthony Hildreth
F: Erick Mena
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Luca Davies, jr., F, Hinsdale Central
Scoring summary
First half
Hinsdale Central – Martin Montoya (penalty kick), 14:18
Metea Valley – Michael Senese (Erick Mena), 18:11
Second half
Hinsdale Central – Luca Davies (Martin Montoya), 40:37
Hinsdale Central – Luca Davies (Ardit Abdullai), 44:38