Prospect relishes another slice
of success vs. Hoffman Estates
Man of the Match Morris strikes for a brace in 3-1 victory
By Bill McLean
MOUNT PROSPECT — Prospect devoured free pizza after Tuesday night’s Mid-Suburban League match against visiting Hoffman Estates.
They certainly deserved the treat. It was a very good Senior Night for the Knights, who trailed 1-0 after nearly 55 minutes but struck for three goals in a span of 11 minutes for a 3-1 victory at George Gattas Memorial Stadium.
The result gave Prospect coach Michael Andrews something to savor — minutes before anybody attacked a slice of pie.
“It took us a while to settle,” Andrews said after his club (an honorable mention team in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25) improved to 10-4-2 overall and 6-2-2 in the MSL table to stay alive for in the East Division race and a berth in the league championship game later this month.
“When it mattered,” he added, “my boys came through.”
Knights senior midfielder Shea Morris — a first-year prep player and a Schaumburg-based Sockers FC Academy veteran — netted the last two goals of the night. The first came via a 45-yard free kick in the 74th minute on a ball that flew over and past the fingertips of Hawks senior goalkeeper Mason Trinco (10 saves).
Three minutes later Morris, a playmaker extraordinaire, controlled a sweet back-post feed from senior forward Owen Walsh and poked it to pay dirt from about five yards.
The brace upped Morris’ season goal total to seven.
But both Morris and senior back David Marshall agreed afterward that the pivotal tally of the night came off the foot of talented senior forward Ryan Novak in the 66th minute. Seconds earlier, Trinco burst off his line to double-fist out a point-blank shot. The ball pinballed around before settling near Knights midfielder Christopher Morys.
The junior found Novak, who blasted home a 25-yard shot.
“That,” Morris said, “gave us the momentum we needed.”
“That goal,” Marshall said, “was pretty similar to the big one Ryan scored when we were down 1-0 to Hersey (on Sept. 30, in Arlington Heights, when Prospect notched a 2-1 win).”
Twine at both ends of the pitch during the first half jostled as much as it does when it’s in storage.
Hoffman Estates (5-11-1, 3-7-0) got on the board in thrilling fashion in the 54th minute. Trinco’s booming punt bounced a few times before Hawks senior forward Favour Justice caught up to it. He dribbled for a spell and beat senior keeper Alejandro Rider-Leiner (five saves) from near the middle of the box.
It increased Trinco’s assist total this fall to one.
“Hoffman Estates,” Andrews said, “played very aggressively all night. That team has some speed up-top, high energy.”
That team had lost five 1-0 decisions to fine programs this season, including Barrington and 2019 Class 3A state champion West Chicago. Hawks coach Sean Armstrong, moments before the start of halftime, told one of his assistants, “I liked what I saw.”
What didn’t thrill him the second half: too many Prospect set pieces. Eleven, to be exact. Six of them — an even split between corner kicks and free kicks — occurred in the final 19 minutes.
But Armstrong was encouraged by his club’s overall effort, particularly the collective one he got from senior center back Yaj Patel and his mates Matheus DeCarvalho, Anand Krishnan and Harshit Sharma.
Patel, listed as a midfielder on the roster, had never played the center back position.
“I found out today, at school,” Patel said of where Armstrong would deploy him in the team’s penultimate MSL contest in the regular season. “The news shocked me. But I didn’t mind playing it.
“I liked it.”
Krishnan impressed as a substitute.
The most impactful Hawk in the first half was senior forward Omar Perez, who had to sit out Hoffman Estates’ games in September because he had transferred from Dundee-Crown. Perez booted the first shot on goal, in the fourth minute, from about 10 yards. Rider-Leiner sprinted toward Perez to take away a couple of enviable angle options and recorded the save with his legs.
Perez made lengthy run after lengthy run, keeping the heat on Knights defenders.
Morris and Novak, meanwhile, connected well during several rushes in the first 40 minutes. Morris was marvelous all night, pushing the action with his speed and dribbling skills, looking for, and often finding, cutting teammates and delivering dangerous balls as Prospect’s main set piece man.
“I’m glad Shea decided to play high school soccer this year,” said Marshall, who wasn’t the only one.
Andrews shared a flashback that involved Morris. It was the summer of 2018, right before the start of Morris’ freshman year.
Morris showed up for the Knights’ soccer camp.
He was impossible to miss.
“I noticed him,” Andrews said. “We all did.
“Shea,” the coach added, “draws a lot of defenders. He’s got great vision, and he distributes the ball cleanly and creatively. He’s playing for us now, because he wanted to have fun with his friends and help his school’s team win some games.”
Next up for Prospect is a visit to Schaumburg on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.; Hoffman Estates hosts Palatine on the same evening at 7:30 p.m.
Footnotes
Prospect received a no. 9 seed in the Class 3A Fremd Sectional and will face host and eighth-seeded Hersey in a regional semifinal on Oct. 19. The clubs clashed at Hersey on Sept. 30, with Prospect winning 2-1. “Makes it more exciting,” Andrews said of the rematch against a squad from the highly competitive MSL so early in the postseason. … Hoffman Estates, seeded 10th in the Class 3A Addison Trail Sectional, opens the “second season” against seventh-seeded Glenbard West in a regional semifinal at Schaumburg on Oct. 19. “I expected a ninth, 10th or 11th seed,” Armstrong said. … West Chicago, seeded no. 4 in the AT Sectional, visited Hoffman Estates on Sept. 24 and edged the Hawks 1-0, nearly two years after the Wildcats captured the 3A state title at the same stadium. … Thinking out loud: How cool is Hoffman Estates senior forward Favour Justice’s name? … A whopping 17 Prospect seniors graduated after the Knights’ truncated spring season. Fourteen Knights were recognized Tuesday on Senior Night. “A lot of former JV 1 players are competing and doing well in high-pressure varsity roles for us,” Andrews said. “This entire senior group — so much dedication and effort. They’ve been great; I’m proud of all of them.”
Starting lineups
Hoffman Estates
GK Mason Trinco
D Yaj Patel
D Bryan Flores
D Matheus DeCarvalho
D Anand Krishnan
MF Peter Guzman
MF Elvis Varga
MF Connor Kurzynski
F Omar Perez
F Ethan Knapp
F Logan Garcia
Prospect
GK Alejandro Rider-Leiner
D Ari Kemperas
D David Marshall
D Sam Heintz
MF Steven Lopez
MF Shea Morris
MF Daniel Barbaric
F Owen Walsh
F Khalid Farah
F Ryan Novak
F Massimo Mho
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Shea Morris, sr., MF, Prospect
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Hoffman Estates — Favour Justice (Trinco), 54’
Prospect — Novak (Morys), 66’
Prospect — Morris (free kick), 74’
Prospect — Morris (Walsh), 77’
of success vs. Hoffman Estates
Man of the Match Morris strikes for a brace in 3-1 victory
By Bill McLean
MOUNT PROSPECT — Prospect devoured free pizza after Tuesday night’s Mid-Suburban League match against visiting Hoffman Estates.
They certainly deserved the treat. It was a very good Senior Night for the Knights, who trailed 1-0 after nearly 55 minutes but struck for three goals in a span of 11 minutes for a 3-1 victory at George Gattas Memorial Stadium.
The result gave Prospect coach Michael Andrews something to savor — minutes before anybody attacked a slice of pie.
“It took us a while to settle,” Andrews said after his club (an honorable mention team in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25) improved to 10-4-2 overall and 6-2-2 in the MSL table to stay alive for in the East Division race and a berth in the league championship game later this month.
“When it mattered,” he added, “my boys came through.”
Knights senior midfielder Shea Morris — a first-year prep player and a Schaumburg-based Sockers FC Academy veteran — netted the last two goals of the night. The first came via a 45-yard free kick in the 74th minute on a ball that flew over and past the fingertips of Hawks senior goalkeeper Mason Trinco (10 saves).
Three minutes later Morris, a playmaker extraordinaire, controlled a sweet back-post feed from senior forward Owen Walsh and poked it to pay dirt from about five yards.
The brace upped Morris’ season goal total to seven.
But both Morris and senior back David Marshall agreed afterward that the pivotal tally of the night came off the foot of talented senior forward Ryan Novak in the 66th minute. Seconds earlier, Trinco burst off his line to double-fist out a point-blank shot. The ball pinballed around before settling near Knights midfielder Christopher Morys.
The junior found Novak, who blasted home a 25-yard shot.
“That,” Morris said, “gave us the momentum we needed.”
“That goal,” Marshall said, “was pretty similar to the big one Ryan scored when we were down 1-0 to Hersey (on Sept. 30, in Arlington Heights, when Prospect notched a 2-1 win).”
Twine at both ends of the pitch during the first half jostled as much as it does when it’s in storage.
Hoffman Estates (5-11-1, 3-7-0) got on the board in thrilling fashion in the 54th minute. Trinco’s booming punt bounced a few times before Hawks senior forward Favour Justice caught up to it. He dribbled for a spell and beat senior keeper Alejandro Rider-Leiner (five saves) from near the middle of the box.
It increased Trinco’s assist total this fall to one.
“Hoffman Estates,” Andrews said, “played very aggressively all night. That team has some speed up-top, high energy.”
That team had lost five 1-0 decisions to fine programs this season, including Barrington and 2019 Class 3A state champion West Chicago. Hawks coach Sean Armstrong, moments before the start of halftime, told one of his assistants, “I liked what I saw.”
What didn’t thrill him the second half: too many Prospect set pieces. Eleven, to be exact. Six of them — an even split between corner kicks and free kicks — occurred in the final 19 minutes.
But Armstrong was encouraged by his club’s overall effort, particularly the collective one he got from senior center back Yaj Patel and his mates Matheus DeCarvalho, Anand Krishnan and Harshit Sharma.
Patel, listed as a midfielder on the roster, had never played the center back position.
“I found out today, at school,” Patel said of where Armstrong would deploy him in the team’s penultimate MSL contest in the regular season. “The news shocked me. But I didn’t mind playing it.
“I liked it.”
Krishnan impressed as a substitute.
The most impactful Hawk in the first half was senior forward Omar Perez, who had to sit out Hoffman Estates’ games in September because he had transferred from Dundee-Crown. Perez booted the first shot on goal, in the fourth minute, from about 10 yards. Rider-Leiner sprinted toward Perez to take away a couple of enviable angle options and recorded the save with his legs.
Perez made lengthy run after lengthy run, keeping the heat on Knights defenders.
Morris and Novak, meanwhile, connected well during several rushes in the first 40 minutes. Morris was marvelous all night, pushing the action with his speed and dribbling skills, looking for, and often finding, cutting teammates and delivering dangerous balls as Prospect’s main set piece man.
“I’m glad Shea decided to play high school soccer this year,” said Marshall, who wasn’t the only one.
Andrews shared a flashback that involved Morris. It was the summer of 2018, right before the start of Morris’ freshman year.
Morris showed up for the Knights’ soccer camp.
He was impossible to miss.
“I noticed him,” Andrews said. “We all did.
“Shea,” the coach added, “draws a lot of defenders. He’s got great vision, and he distributes the ball cleanly and creatively. He’s playing for us now, because he wanted to have fun with his friends and help his school’s team win some games.”
Next up for Prospect is a visit to Schaumburg on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.; Hoffman Estates hosts Palatine on the same evening at 7:30 p.m.
Footnotes
Prospect received a no. 9 seed in the Class 3A Fremd Sectional and will face host and eighth-seeded Hersey in a regional semifinal on Oct. 19. The clubs clashed at Hersey on Sept. 30, with Prospect winning 2-1. “Makes it more exciting,” Andrews said of the rematch against a squad from the highly competitive MSL so early in the postseason. … Hoffman Estates, seeded 10th in the Class 3A Addison Trail Sectional, opens the “second season” against seventh-seeded Glenbard West in a regional semifinal at Schaumburg on Oct. 19. “I expected a ninth, 10th or 11th seed,” Armstrong said. … West Chicago, seeded no. 4 in the AT Sectional, visited Hoffman Estates on Sept. 24 and edged the Hawks 1-0, nearly two years after the Wildcats captured the 3A state title at the same stadium. … Thinking out loud: How cool is Hoffman Estates senior forward Favour Justice’s name? … A whopping 17 Prospect seniors graduated after the Knights’ truncated spring season. Fourteen Knights were recognized Tuesday on Senior Night. “A lot of former JV 1 players are competing and doing well in high-pressure varsity roles for us,” Andrews said. “This entire senior group — so much dedication and effort. They’ve been great; I’m proud of all of them.”
Starting lineups
Hoffman Estates
GK Mason Trinco
D Yaj Patel
D Bryan Flores
D Matheus DeCarvalho
D Anand Krishnan
MF Peter Guzman
MF Elvis Varga
MF Connor Kurzynski
F Omar Perez
F Ethan Knapp
F Logan Garcia
Prospect
GK Alejandro Rider-Leiner
D Ari Kemperas
D David Marshall
D Sam Heintz
MF Steven Lopez
MF Shea Morris
MF Daniel Barbaric
F Owen Walsh
F Khalid Farah
F Ryan Novak
F Massimo Mho
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Shea Morris, sr., MF, Prospect
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Hoffman Estates — Favour Justice (Trinco), 54’
Prospect — Novak (Morys), 66’
Prospect — Morris (free kick), 74’
Prospect — Morris (Walsh), 77’