Only weather can slow down
Plainfield North against Joliet West
Quick 3-goal outburst leads to 5-1 Southwest Prairie home win
By Curt Herron
PLAINFIELD -- After storms delayed play for nearly an hour, Plainfield North hoped to waste little time to establish control when it hosted Joliet West in a Southwest Prairie Conference match Thursday.
While no more inclement weather meant that the match would be played for the full 80 minutes, the hosts used a deluge of scoring in the early going to effectively end the drama and help them claim
a 5-1 home victory.
Plainfield North scored three times within a 3:27-span during the initial 12 minutes to establish control and improved to 11-4-4 overall and 5-1-3 in conference play,
Junior Cooper Allen scored his team's first two goals and added another one shortly after the second half started to give him a hat-trick along with an early assist. His performance earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
"It fired me up and I was ready to play," Alllen said of the delayed start. "I was just sitting, so I couldn't wait to get out on the field. I knew storms might be coming and was scared that it might be cancelled at halftime, so I wanted to come out with an extra
something to get us going. We got a decent lead.
"We have a strong midfield, and they play through-balls a lot. We have some people with pace up-top, so we just like to play through their back line. And we like to build from the back and bring it all the way up the field, that's one of our strong sets. Everybody has good skills, and we can count on everybody. So it's fun to play with this team."
The fun began for the hosts in the ninth minute when Dylan Gustafson found Allen, who connected from about 10 yards. In the 10th minute, Sean Elster sent a pass to Allen, who got past Joliet West keeper Daniel Gudino to score from close range.
In the 12th minute, Allen sent a pass across the front of the net to Ryan Bechtel, who connected on the short try to further demoralize Joliet West (11-7-1, 4-5), which had won five of its last six matches.
"We put a couple in quickly and in a game where you don't know what the weather will do, it's important to get off to a fast start so that it can go in the win column," Elster said. "It was a good game all-around for us. I definitely think that we've been playing for each other a lot.
"I like how we build the ball from the back and how we always trust each other and get each other the ball. We have a strong midfield that builds up to our speed up-top, and that helps us put goals away."
The five-goal performance, which featured five different players getting assists, tied the team's second-highest scoring output. It equaled the scoring in a 5-1 win over Hinsdale South on September 13 and sat behind the season-high effort in a 6-3 victory over Plainfield South a week ago.
Bouncing back from a 2-2 draw with Romeoville two days earlier, Plainfield North is 3-0-2 in its last five matches heading into an Oct. 12 showdown on the road against league-leader Plainfield East. Two days later it celebrates Senior Night against Plainfield Central.
Coach Lukasz Majewski's squad is the eighth-seed in the Class 3A sectional that it will host. They'll play the ninth-seeded hosts of the Bolingbrook Regional on October 19. The winner will likely facing top-seeded Naperville North in the final on October 22.
"We knew that with the weather coming in that it was going to be a challenge to get the game in," Majewski said. "It started with a delay. We wanted to make sure that we came out with intensity and find the back of the net as early as we possibly could.
"That's always the goal for every game, however, that doesn't necessarily work out for us that way. We've been in games all of the time, and sometimes we take scoring goals for granted.
“If we miss one, we think the next one is coming. That's a good attitude to have, but ultimately we have to put the ball in the back of the net.
"We started out (the season) kind of strong and had some injuries and are still missing a couple of guys. But we know what we have, and we have the people in the places that make the most sense for us in terms of formation and personnel on the field. We have the opportunity and the qualities of the players. It's a matter of can we put it all together on important days."
While they were clearly affected by the quick early goals against them, the visitors didn't toss in the towel. They began to create many good scoring opportunities throughout the final hour of the match.
Brian Orozco, Adrian Maldonado, Victor Antomez and A.J. Romero all had threatening attempts in the opening half, but were thwarted by Plainfield North junior keeper Kash Koslowski.
Allen completed his hat-trick in the 44th minute when he received a pass from Aidan Smith and got past defenders for another close-range score.
After Koslowski halted a shot from Tony Kochev and made a diving save on an attempt from Antomez, the visitors finally connected in the 62nd minute when their leading-scorer Kochev fired in a liner from about 25 yards to account for his team's lone goal.
Romero, Antomez and Richard Pacheco all tried to follow up on their team's goal, but Koslowski continued to frustrate them. The junior keeper was quick to credit the work of his backline of Brady Harwood, Mathew Hipolito, Noah Horner and Smith for helping to keep Joliet West from closing the gap.
"It was great to go up early and to go up big. It puts the other team down," Koslowski said. "Our defense really steps up. I'm not seeing too many shots, and the ones that I am seeing, I can handle them.
"Our problem early in the season was that we weren't scoring, but now we're kind of putting it on some teams. We want to keep that going. If we can score, it's a very good chance that we're going to win the game. I like how we all play together, and we don't go down without a fight."
Plainfield North connected for the final time in the 75th minute when Justin Williams sent a pass in front of the net, and Harwood was there for the goal. Joliet West had two more good chances in the late going but attempts by Maldonado and Michael O'Shea were turned away by Koslowski shortly before the final whistle blew.
Joliet West is the top-seed in its sub-sectional of the Collinsville Sectional. The sectional host is the top seed in the companion bracket.
Coach Mike O'Shea's team hosts its regional and would face the Normal Regional champion in the sectional semifinals if it advances.
Starting lineups
Joliet West
G Daniel Gudino
D Erick Guzman
D Richard Pacheco
D Ethan Podmolik
D Collin McIntyre
M Joseph Karnezis
M Caden Halla
M Michael O'Shea
M Tony Kochev
F Adrian Maldonado
F Victor Antomez
Plainfield North
G Kash Koslowski
D Brady Harwood
D Noah Horner
D Aidan Smith
D Mathew Hipolito
M Sean Elster
M Justin Williams
M Ryan Mauder
M Dylan Gustafson
F Ryan Bechtel
F Cooper Allen
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Cooper Allen, jr., F, Plainfield North
Scoring summary
First half
PN: Allen (Gustafson), 9th minute
PN: Allen (Elster), 10th minute
PN: Bechtel (Allen), 12th minute
Second half
PN: Allen (Smith), 44th minute
JW: Kochev, 62nd minute
PN: Harwood (Williams), 75th minute
Plainfield North against Joliet West
Quick 3-goal outburst leads to 5-1 Southwest Prairie home win
By Curt Herron
PLAINFIELD -- After storms delayed play for nearly an hour, Plainfield North hoped to waste little time to establish control when it hosted Joliet West in a Southwest Prairie Conference match Thursday.
While no more inclement weather meant that the match would be played for the full 80 minutes, the hosts used a deluge of scoring in the early going to effectively end the drama and help them claim
a 5-1 home victory.
Plainfield North scored three times within a 3:27-span during the initial 12 minutes to establish control and improved to 11-4-4 overall and 5-1-3 in conference play,
Junior Cooper Allen scored his team's first two goals and added another one shortly after the second half started to give him a hat-trick along with an early assist. His performance earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
"It fired me up and I was ready to play," Alllen said of the delayed start. "I was just sitting, so I couldn't wait to get out on the field. I knew storms might be coming and was scared that it might be cancelled at halftime, so I wanted to come out with an extra
something to get us going. We got a decent lead.
"We have a strong midfield, and they play through-balls a lot. We have some people with pace up-top, so we just like to play through their back line. And we like to build from the back and bring it all the way up the field, that's one of our strong sets. Everybody has good skills, and we can count on everybody. So it's fun to play with this team."
The fun began for the hosts in the ninth minute when Dylan Gustafson found Allen, who connected from about 10 yards. In the 10th minute, Sean Elster sent a pass to Allen, who got past Joliet West keeper Daniel Gudino to score from close range.
In the 12th minute, Allen sent a pass across the front of the net to Ryan Bechtel, who connected on the short try to further demoralize Joliet West (11-7-1, 4-5), which had won five of its last six matches.
"We put a couple in quickly and in a game where you don't know what the weather will do, it's important to get off to a fast start so that it can go in the win column," Elster said. "It was a good game all-around for us. I definitely think that we've been playing for each other a lot.
"I like how we build the ball from the back and how we always trust each other and get each other the ball. We have a strong midfield that builds up to our speed up-top, and that helps us put goals away."
The five-goal performance, which featured five different players getting assists, tied the team's second-highest scoring output. It equaled the scoring in a 5-1 win over Hinsdale South on September 13 and sat behind the season-high effort in a 6-3 victory over Plainfield South a week ago.
Bouncing back from a 2-2 draw with Romeoville two days earlier, Plainfield North is 3-0-2 in its last five matches heading into an Oct. 12 showdown on the road against league-leader Plainfield East. Two days later it celebrates Senior Night against Plainfield Central.
Coach Lukasz Majewski's squad is the eighth-seed in the Class 3A sectional that it will host. They'll play the ninth-seeded hosts of the Bolingbrook Regional on October 19. The winner will likely facing top-seeded Naperville North in the final on October 22.
"We knew that with the weather coming in that it was going to be a challenge to get the game in," Majewski said. "It started with a delay. We wanted to make sure that we came out with intensity and find the back of the net as early as we possibly could.
"That's always the goal for every game, however, that doesn't necessarily work out for us that way. We've been in games all of the time, and sometimes we take scoring goals for granted.
“If we miss one, we think the next one is coming. That's a good attitude to have, but ultimately we have to put the ball in the back of the net.
"We started out (the season) kind of strong and had some injuries and are still missing a couple of guys. But we know what we have, and we have the people in the places that make the most sense for us in terms of formation and personnel on the field. We have the opportunity and the qualities of the players. It's a matter of can we put it all together on important days."
While they were clearly affected by the quick early goals against them, the visitors didn't toss in the towel. They began to create many good scoring opportunities throughout the final hour of the match.
Brian Orozco, Adrian Maldonado, Victor Antomez and A.J. Romero all had threatening attempts in the opening half, but were thwarted by Plainfield North junior keeper Kash Koslowski.
Allen completed his hat-trick in the 44th minute when he received a pass from Aidan Smith and got past defenders for another close-range score.
After Koslowski halted a shot from Tony Kochev and made a diving save on an attempt from Antomez, the visitors finally connected in the 62nd minute when their leading-scorer Kochev fired in a liner from about 25 yards to account for his team's lone goal.
Romero, Antomez and Richard Pacheco all tried to follow up on their team's goal, but Koslowski continued to frustrate them. The junior keeper was quick to credit the work of his backline of Brady Harwood, Mathew Hipolito, Noah Horner and Smith for helping to keep Joliet West from closing the gap.
"It was great to go up early and to go up big. It puts the other team down," Koslowski said. "Our defense really steps up. I'm not seeing too many shots, and the ones that I am seeing, I can handle them.
"Our problem early in the season was that we weren't scoring, but now we're kind of putting it on some teams. We want to keep that going. If we can score, it's a very good chance that we're going to win the game. I like how we all play together, and we don't go down without a fight."
Plainfield North connected for the final time in the 75th minute when Justin Williams sent a pass in front of the net, and Harwood was there for the goal. Joliet West had two more good chances in the late going but attempts by Maldonado and Michael O'Shea were turned away by Koslowski shortly before the final whistle blew.
Joliet West is the top-seed in its sub-sectional of the Collinsville Sectional. The sectional host is the top seed in the companion bracket.
Coach Mike O'Shea's team hosts its regional and would face the Normal Regional champion in the sectional semifinals if it advances.
Starting lineups
Joliet West
G Daniel Gudino
D Erick Guzman
D Richard Pacheco
D Ethan Podmolik
D Collin McIntyre
M Joseph Karnezis
M Caden Halla
M Michael O'Shea
M Tony Kochev
F Adrian Maldonado
F Victor Antomez
Plainfield North
G Kash Koslowski
D Brady Harwood
D Noah Horner
D Aidan Smith
D Mathew Hipolito
M Sean Elster
M Justin Williams
M Ryan Mauder
M Dylan Gustafson
F Ryan Bechtel
F Cooper Allen
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Cooper Allen, jr., F, Plainfield North
Scoring summary
First half
PN: Allen (Gustafson), 9th minute
PN: Allen (Elster), 10th minute
PN: Bechtel (Allen), 12th minute
Second half
PN: Allen (Smith), 44th minute
JW: Kochev, 62nd minute
PN: Harwood (Williams), 75th minute