Eagles finally solve Mustangs in overtime
Toral's OT goal sends Leyden past Downers Grove South
By Gary Larsen
DOWNERS GROVE -- Leyden had no shortage of heroes in Tuesday’s 1-0 overtime win at Downers Grove South.
First there was Francisco Toral, whose low blast from 20 yards out, four minutes into overtime, found its way through a crowd in the box and tore past the near post to give Leyden the West Suburban Conference Gold Division win.
Then there were central midfielders Marco Villalobos, Adrian Flores, and Marcelo Garcia, who elevated their play in the face of the Mustangs’ increased pressure throughout a spirited second half.
But for Leyden coach Mark Valintis, the Eagles’ biggest hero was a no-brainer.
“David Duwal,” Valintis said.
After a scoreless first half, Duwal rose to the occasion for the first time on a Mustangs’ breakaway, just one minute into the second half, when South’s Kurt Bennett broke free behind the Eagles’ backline from midfield and dribbled in on Duwal at the post on the left side.
Duwal charged out and smothered Bennett’s shot, then quickly pounced on the deflection.
“(Duwal) has to be the MVP,” Valintis said. “If we give up that goal, (the Mustangs’) energy goes through the roof at that point.”
With less than 10 minutes left in regulation, Duwal came up big again when the Mustangs’ Joseph Vargas found some space on the right side and blistered a shot on net from 15 yards. Vargas’ laser was headed inside the near post, and was easily the hardest-hit shot put on frame by either side all night.
Duwal was on the spot again, sliding over to snatch Vargas’ offering to keep the game scoreless.
“On the first shot, I saw him coming in, and I knew the ball was going to be played there,” Duwal said. “I was in the right position, I got big, and made the save. The second shot was (knuckling) everywhere, and I was in the right spot.”
His timely heroics set the table for Toral’s game-winner, and for that Duwal was named Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match.
Leyden (8-1-1, 2-0-0), currently ranked 22nd in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, controlled play through 40 minutes, pressuring well and sending shots on goal, good chances high and wide, and free kicks to the Mustangs’ goalmouth.
Luckily for Downers Grove South (4-5-2, 1-1-0), goalkeeper Parker Smith cut off every potentially dangerous ball, stayed aggressive off his line, and made every save required.
“Parker made some nice saves,” Mustangs coach Jon Stapleton said. “He played really, really well. There were a couple instances on both ends of the field where he came up big for us.”
The teams felt each other out before Leyden forward Lalo Hernandez broke free up the right side and centered a pass to forward Mateusz Makowiec at 11 minutes, but Makowiec drove the game’s first good scoring chance just high of net from 10 yards.
Hernandez tested Smith in transition from 20 yards but the keeper dove to the turf and stopped it at 16 minutes. Downers Grove South's first good look on net came when Mauricio Becerra stepped onto a cross and blasted it well high of frame from 20 yards.
Leyden midfielder Oscar Cifuentes took a touch to his right before teeing off on a shot that flew just high from 30 yards at 23 minutes. A free kick off the strong leg of Leyden defender Daniel Kulawiak from near midfield burned its way off an Eagles defender and over the endline, but Cifuentes’ ensuing corner kick went for naught at 25 minutes.
Smith and Leyden’s Alan Alaniz converged on a through-ball near the goalmouth, with Smith again making the stop at 33 minutes. Makowiec sent another blast wide of net at 39 minutes, and Smith left his line and got a hand on a long Kulawiak free kick at 40 minutes, knocking it to the ground before smothering it.
Leyden didn’t have a goal to show for a fine first half of attacking soccer, but they avoided frustration.
“I was happy with the way we were attacking in the first half,” Toral said. “Our forwards did a good job of pressuring them, and we got a couple (shots) that just didn’t go in. They did a good job of handling our pressure and getting it back up to midfield, but I’m happy with the way our forwards are starting to attack. It’s getting better and better.
“At halftime we just told our forwards to keep putting them under pressure and eventually it would come.”
In addition to Smith’s quality play in net, the Mustangs got fine first half efforts from their backline. Max Schmidt-Bailey, Peter Pierropoulos, Michael Beube, and Adam Chaplin also scrapped and clawed in the face of Leyden’s pressure and helped Smith keep the slate clean in the first half.
South’s two middle defenders played particularly well.
“Adam Chaplin at center back has been pretty poised and Peter (Pierropoulos), even as a sophomore — those two really stood out to me,” Stapleton said. “They were real significant in terms of keeping us in that game.”
Stapleton made a second half adjustment that combined with Bennett’s early breakaway to spark the Mustangs to a stronger attack after intermission. Valintis answered by sliding a player back, and his central midfield trio of Villalobos, Flores, and Garcia elevated their play in the second half.
“In the second half, (the Mustangs) switched up some things, which caused us to switch some things, and I’ll give all the credit to our midfielders today,” Valintis said. “They won the game for us, and we’ve been harping on them about winning balls, and keeping pressure on and making good decisions. If I’m going to harp on them when they play bad, I certainly have to give them credit when they play well, and they did that today.”
Leyden’s Garcia forced a save at the post from Smith at 46 minutes, and four minutes later a free kick driven in by South’s Becerra from 45 yards went off a defender and Duwal left his feet to snare the spinning deflection.
Shots on and off frame from Leyden’s Hernandez and South’s Bennett, respectively, came at 51 minutes, and the teams traded attacking punches for the remainder of the game.
Hernandez posted up on the right side up on a deep Leyden throw-in, whirled and fired past the far post from from 25 yards at 63 minutes, and Smith left his line to stuff a shot off the foot of Toral at 65 minutes.
Vargas’ blast and Duwal’s save came next at 71 minutes and the teams countered back-and-forth to the final buzzer.
Hernandez set up the game winner at 84 minutes from the left side with a centering pass to Toral.
“(Hernandez) laid it off to me at the top of the box, I took a touch, and shot it,” Toral said. “I was trying to put it in the bottom left. That’s where I’ve been shooting lately and it’s been working.”
For Valintis, the game-winner was sort of déjà vu in reverse.
“The last time we were here, we got beat the same way,” Valintis said. “They got the goal in overtime. They bent but didn’t break and they beat us on a counterattack.”
In upcoming action, Leyden next hosts Maine West on Saturday; while Downers Grove South hosts no. 6 Morton on Thursday and then Fenton on Saturday.
“I was proud of the way our kids responded tonight with that (second half) adjustment,” Stapleton said. “Ultimately, I think our kids played hard and put themselves in a position to win.
“We haven’t been in a lot of close games like that. A lot of our wins and losses have been lopsided so we hope we can learn from an overtime experience like that.”
Starting lineups
Leyden
GK David Duwal
D Abel Estrada
D Daniel Kulawiak
D Moises Perez
M Andres Moreno
M Marcelo Garcia
M Diego Peralta
M Oscar Cifuentes
M Francisco Toral
F Lalo Hernandez
F Mateusz Makowiec
Downers Grove South
GK Parker Smith
D Adam Chaplin
D Peter Pierropoulos
D Max Schmidt-Bailey
D Michael Beube
M James David
M Alex Flores
M Jack Daly
M Eric Torres
F Hristijan Veceski
F Enrique Gonzalez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: David Duwal, jr., GK, Leyden
Scoring summary
OT
Leyden -- Toral (Hernandez)
Toral's OT goal sends Leyden past Downers Grove South
By Gary Larsen
DOWNERS GROVE -- Leyden had no shortage of heroes in Tuesday’s 1-0 overtime win at Downers Grove South.
First there was Francisco Toral, whose low blast from 20 yards out, four minutes into overtime, found its way through a crowd in the box and tore past the near post to give Leyden the West Suburban Conference Gold Division win.
Then there were central midfielders Marco Villalobos, Adrian Flores, and Marcelo Garcia, who elevated their play in the face of the Mustangs’ increased pressure throughout a spirited second half.
But for Leyden coach Mark Valintis, the Eagles’ biggest hero was a no-brainer.
“David Duwal,” Valintis said.
After a scoreless first half, Duwal rose to the occasion for the first time on a Mustangs’ breakaway, just one minute into the second half, when South’s Kurt Bennett broke free behind the Eagles’ backline from midfield and dribbled in on Duwal at the post on the left side.
Duwal charged out and smothered Bennett’s shot, then quickly pounced on the deflection.
“(Duwal) has to be the MVP,” Valintis said. “If we give up that goal, (the Mustangs’) energy goes through the roof at that point.”
With less than 10 minutes left in regulation, Duwal came up big again when the Mustangs’ Joseph Vargas found some space on the right side and blistered a shot on net from 15 yards. Vargas’ laser was headed inside the near post, and was easily the hardest-hit shot put on frame by either side all night.
Duwal was on the spot again, sliding over to snatch Vargas’ offering to keep the game scoreless.
“On the first shot, I saw him coming in, and I knew the ball was going to be played there,” Duwal said. “I was in the right position, I got big, and made the save. The second shot was (knuckling) everywhere, and I was in the right spot.”
His timely heroics set the table for Toral’s game-winner, and for that Duwal was named Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match.
Leyden (8-1-1, 2-0-0), currently ranked 22nd in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, controlled play through 40 minutes, pressuring well and sending shots on goal, good chances high and wide, and free kicks to the Mustangs’ goalmouth.
Luckily for Downers Grove South (4-5-2, 1-1-0), goalkeeper Parker Smith cut off every potentially dangerous ball, stayed aggressive off his line, and made every save required.
“Parker made some nice saves,” Mustangs coach Jon Stapleton said. “He played really, really well. There were a couple instances on both ends of the field where he came up big for us.”
The teams felt each other out before Leyden forward Lalo Hernandez broke free up the right side and centered a pass to forward Mateusz Makowiec at 11 minutes, but Makowiec drove the game’s first good scoring chance just high of net from 10 yards.
Hernandez tested Smith in transition from 20 yards but the keeper dove to the turf and stopped it at 16 minutes. Downers Grove South's first good look on net came when Mauricio Becerra stepped onto a cross and blasted it well high of frame from 20 yards.
Leyden midfielder Oscar Cifuentes took a touch to his right before teeing off on a shot that flew just high from 30 yards at 23 minutes. A free kick off the strong leg of Leyden defender Daniel Kulawiak from near midfield burned its way off an Eagles defender and over the endline, but Cifuentes’ ensuing corner kick went for naught at 25 minutes.
Smith and Leyden’s Alan Alaniz converged on a through-ball near the goalmouth, with Smith again making the stop at 33 minutes. Makowiec sent another blast wide of net at 39 minutes, and Smith left his line and got a hand on a long Kulawiak free kick at 40 minutes, knocking it to the ground before smothering it.
Leyden didn’t have a goal to show for a fine first half of attacking soccer, but they avoided frustration.
“I was happy with the way we were attacking in the first half,” Toral said. “Our forwards did a good job of pressuring them, and we got a couple (shots) that just didn’t go in. They did a good job of handling our pressure and getting it back up to midfield, but I’m happy with the way our forwards are starting to attack. It’s getting better and better.
“At halftime we just told our forwards to keep putting them under pressure and eventually it would come.”
In addition to Smith’s quality play in net, the Mustangs got fine first half efforts from their backline. Max Schmidt-Bailey, Peter Pierropoulos, Michael Beube, and Adam Chaplin also scrapped and clawed in the face of Leyden’s pressure and helped Smith keep the slate clean in the first half.
South’s two middle defenders played particularly well.
“Adam Chaplin at center back has been pretty poised and Peter (Pierropoulos), even as a sophomore — those two really stood out to me,” Stapleton said. “They were real significant in terms of keeping us in that game.”
Stapleton made a second half adjustment that combined with Bennett’s early breakaway to spark the Mustangs to a stronger attack after intermission. Valintis answered by sliding a player back, and his central midfield trio of Villalobos, Flores, and Garcia elevated their play in the second half.
“In the second half, (the Mustangs) switched up some things, which caused us to switch some things, and I’ll give all the credit to our midfielders today,” Valintis said. “They won the game for us, and we’ve been harping on them about winning balls, and keeping pressure on and making good decisions. If I’m going to harp on them when they play bad, I certainly have to give them credit when they play well, and they did that today.”
Leyden’s Garcia forced a save at the post from Smith at 46 minutes, and four minutes later a free kick driven in by South’s Becerra from 45 yards went off a defender and Duwal left his feet to snare the spinning deflection.
Shots on and off frame from Leyden’s Hernandez and South’s Bennett, respectively, came at 51 minutes, and the teams traded attacking punches for the remainder of the game.
Hernandez posted up on the right side up on a deep Leyden throw-in, whirled and fired past the far post from from 25 yards at 63 minutes, and Smith left his line to stuff a shot off the foot of Toral at 65 minutes.
Vargas’ blast and Duwal’s save came next at 71 minutes and the teams countered back-and-forth to the final buzzer.
Hernandez set up the game winner at 84 minutes from the left side with a centering pass to Toral.
“(Hernandez) laid it off to me at the top of the box, I took a touch, and shot it,” Toral said. “I was trying to put it in the bottom left. That’s where I’ve been shooting lately and it’s been working.”
For Valintis, the game-winner was sort of déjà vu in reverse.
“The last time we were here, we got beat the same way,” Valintis said. “They got the goal in overtime. They bent but didn’t break and they beat us on a counterattack.”
In upcoming action, Leyden next hosts Maine West on Saturday; while Downers Grove South hosts no. 6 Morton on Thursday and then Fenton on Saturday.
“I was proud of the way our kids responded tonight with that (second half) adjustment,” Stapleton said. “Ultimately, I think our kids played hard and put themselves in a position to win.
“We haven’t been in a lot of close games like that. A lot of our wins and losses have been lopsided so we hope we can learn from an overtime experience like that.”
Starting lineups
Leyden
GK David Duwal
D Abel Estrada
D Daniel Kulawiak
D Moises Perez
M Andres Moreno
M Marcelo Garcia
M Diego Peralta
M Oscar Cifuentes
M Francisco Toral
F Lalo Hernandez
F Mateusz Makowiec
Downers Grove South
GK Parker Smith
D Adam Chaplin
D Peter Pierropoulos
D Max Schmidt-Bailey
D Michael Beube
M James David
M Alex Flores
M Jack Daly
M Eric Torres
F Hristijan Veceski
F Enrique Gonzalez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: David Duwal, jr., GK, Leyden
Scoring summary
OT
Leyden -- Toral (Hernandez)