Aguirre, Morton make
Senior Night splash over Leyden
Class of '22 scores 4 on their night, win 5-0
By Dave Owen
BERWYN -- If it’s better to be lucky than good, what is it to be both?
Morton’s Andrea Aguirre had the whole package on her side Thursday against Leyden.
The senior hustled to intercept a Leyden goal kick and scored to give the host Mustangs a 1-0 lead 9:41 into the West Suburban Conference Gold Division home match Thursday.
“As I received the ball (on the steal) I turned around and viewed my space as I took a shot,” Aguirre said. “It deflected (off a defender), and it went in the goal.”
That was the good part of her scoring night.
Both lucky and good summed up her play 2:42 before halftime, when Aguirre lined a low 35-yard shot that skidded on the rain-soaked turf.
The soccer ball acted like a giant white and black watermelon seed coated in Crisco and skidded through the Leyden goalkeeper’s hands and into the net.
“We all know that the ball’s going to take an awkward bounce (in the rain),” Aguirre said. “Thats what we look to sometimes. I took my opportunity, and it worked.”
That second strike put Morton up 3-0, and well on its way to a 5-0 Senior Night win.
The Mustangs improved their record to 15-4-0, 5-0-0 in the Gold Division, while Leyden fell to 7-8-2, 2-3-0.
On her second goal, Aguirre stole a page from another player who wore number 7 and excelled years ago on a different kind of slick surface.
Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Esposito’s 717-goal career featured a mantra he later emphasized as a broadcaster: when there’s a chance to score, take the shot.
“We always try to test the goalkeeper in this type of weather,” Morton coach Jim Bageanis said, “and the ball really skips on that turf. Obviously, we talk a lot about that. We always want to see how the keeper will handle the ball in those situations.”
Between Aguirre’s two goals and a nice finish in between by Morton sophomore Aaliyah Leanos, the Mustangs worked early to deny Leyden’s hopes of building on its three-game win streak.
“I thought for a while we did a good job of at least having them take shots from distance, which was the best thing for us,” said Leyden coach Jim Rossetti, whose team had a quality early chance on Jackie Jacinto’s shot just wide four minutes in.
“But unfortunately we gave up a deflection goal (Aguirre’s first) to start the game, which hurt. Then on the second goal, you tip your hat. That girl had a great goal.”
Leanos’ nice finish 8:29 before halftime put Morton up 2-0, and followed a steady stream of Mustangs chances.
One of the best of those came in the 28th minute and featured Leanos.
Esmerelda Bautista made a nice run up the left side and put a perfect touch on her backspin chip towards the box. Leanos raced past a defender to reach the ball and lined a 10-yard shot, but Leyden goalkeeper Jackie Lopez made a nice save at the right post.
Then four minutes later, Mustangs senior Leslie Jiminez sent a pass to Leanos rushing in on right wing. Leanos nimbly maneuvered into the box and lined a 10-yarder inside the upper far corner of the net.
“I was coming down the side of the field and saw the goalie,” Leanos said. “I got the ball from the right side and took the opportunity to take the touch more towards the right, turned my hips and took that shot into the left side.”
Leyden had been less than nine minutes from entering the half down just 1-0. Then came Leanos’ nice finish, Aguirre’s long-distance dagger and a suddenly untenable deficit.
“I’m not saying we were going to win, but we were still in the game at that point,” Rossetti said. “I thought the third one kind of killed us, and coming at the end of the half with two minutes left. But shame on us, because we’ve done that a number of times, giving up late goals.”
Morton’s big finish to the first half removed most doubt about the outcome. Then in the second half, two seniors joined in the scoring fun to help the Mustangs salt the game away.
The first senior tribute after the break came with Fernanda Sanchez Duran taking over at goalkeeper for fellow senior Krystal Rodriguez.
Then with 31:52 left, forward Laura Mora’s score upped the lead to 4-0. A frequent starter each of the past two seasons, Mora is one of 11 seniors who have been multi-year contributors to Morton’s success.
“We have so many seniors who have been with us for a few years,” Bageanis said. “Mayte Gongora has been up (on varsity) since freshman year (2018-19).”
While COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the 2020 season, current seniors Gongora, Bautista, Duran, Vicky Ferrer and Mya Hernandez were all sophomores on the varsity roster.
Fast forward to Thursday, and defender Hernandez was a major factor in Morton earning its 13th shutout of the season (five-for-five in Gold games).
Leyden freshman Tereza Cerna entered the game with 10 goals and 10 assists this season. But with Hernandez tightly marking her, the speedy striker was unable to generate any top-quality chances all night.
“We struggled going forward,” Rossetti said. “We had a hard time getting Tereza the ball. Number 12 (Hernandez) was very formidable today defensively answering the call. And when Tereza can’t get rolling, that’s going to be tough for us.”
Said Bageanis: “Mya’s one of our most physical players. She brings a little physicality to our back line, and she had a very good match. They were both physical players, so that was good.”
Hernandez expected a challenge in Cerna, and she and her defensive mates passed the test.
“She was very fast, and she knew how to move around,” Hernandez said, “but I felt like we had more control of her spacing-wise, and I thought we took advantage of that.”
As for Senior Night, Hernandez summed up her four years in the Morton program and the special game Thursday.
“It (the win) feels really good,” she said. “You walk in here as a freshman and you see all those seniors and think, ‘That’s going to be me one day.’ And the next thing you know, that is you.”
Aguirre has a shorter history in the program, but had a two-goal night to remember.
“It’s my first year playing here,” she said, “but Senior Night was a great experience. I love playing with these girls. It was awesome being out here.”
The Morton seniors weren’t the only Mustangs motivated to have a big night.
“I’d definitely say Senior Night had a big role in our performance,” Leanos said. “It was the day to honor our seniors, so we really wanted to end this game on a strong note.”
Up 4-0, Morton continued to look strong. Jacquelin Lara (34-yard free kick just wide with 20:40 left), Gongora (shot deflected wide for a corner kick), Citlai Chavez (35-yard liner blocked at the post), Ferrer, Brianna Avalos and Ariana Valdovinos were part of second half chances.
“They’re solid at every position,” Rossetti said. “They’re very fluid, and every girl going forward can attack. Morton does that with the boys, and they do it here.
“They kind of lull you into possess, and then all of a sudden it’s a dangerous ball. They’re really quick and have girls who can get on the other end of it.”
With 13:20 left, senior forward Lara added a very special bit of personal history to the win: her first varsity goal.
Following the same theory of shoot and see what happens that worked earlier for Aguirre, Lara corralled a Leyden clearing attempt on the right side and drove a 30-yard one-timer high inside the right post to seal the 5-0 win.
“Honestly I was super happy that I scored my first goal, especially on Senior Night,” Lara said. “I was surprised. I wasn’t expecting that, but I went for it, and it went in. It was just risking it (the distance shot) and hoping it goes in.”
What was already going to be a night to remember added an extra exclamation point.
“I felt proud because I’ve been playing soccer for many years and playing with these same girls for years,” Lara said. “Playing this last home game in high school is going to mean a lot, because I may not play with them much more in the future. This game was going to be a long-lasting memory for me.”
While the offense made memories, the Morton defense continued a quality run in which opponents have scored just two goals in the last nine games.
“It’s just keeping structure, and the talking and communicating with all the girls is really good,” Hernandez said of the defensive keys. “And since we’ve all played together for a while, we kind of have a connection that, if ‘I’m going to push up, then you cover my spot.’”
Said Leanos: “We have good chemistry as a team. Growing up with each other helps a lot.”
Morton now moves on to its last and biggest test of 2022 in the league finale: Tuesday at Downers Grove South (5-0-0 in conference).
“We’ll have to be on our ‘A’ game,” Bageanis said. “It’s always a good game, and it will probably be physical and high intensity.”
Thursday was a very good sign for Morton.
“It was a good night for the girls,” Bageanis said. “I thought they all played well together. We moved some people around to different positions, and we were still successful.
“Even though the weather wasn’t the greatest, it still ended up being a great night.”
Starting lineups
Leyden
GK Jackie Lopez
D Jasmin Ambrocio
D Zynai Hernandez
D Melany Perez
M Jenny Herrera
M Priscila Perez
M Megan Martinez
M Jackie Jacinto
M Denise Salgado
F Tereza Cerna
F Sherlyn Cebrero
Morton
GK Krystal Rodriguez
D Leslie Jiminez
D Brianna Avalos
D Mya Hernandez
M Mayte Gongora
M Esmerelda Bautista
M Vicky Ferrer
M Jacquelin Lara
M Andrea Aguirre
F Aaliyah Leanos
F Laura Mora
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Andrea Aguirre, sr. MF, Morton
Scoring summary
First half
M- Andrea Aguirre, 10’
M- Aaliyah Leanos (Leslie Jiminez), 32’
M- Aguirre, 38’
Second half
M- Laura Mora, 49’
M- Jacquelin Lara, ‘67
Senior Night splash over Leyden
Class of '22 scores 4 on their night, win 5-0
By Dave Owen
BERWYN -- If it’s better to be lucky than good, what is it to be both?
Morton’s Andrea Aguirre had the whole package on her side Thursday against Leyden.
The senior hustled to intercept a Leyden goal kick and scored to give the host Mustangs a 1-0 lead 9:41 into the West Suburban Conference Gold Division home match Thursday.
“As I received the ball (on the steal) I turned around and viewed my space as I took a shot,” Aguirre said. “It deflected (off a defender), and it went in the goal.”
That was the good part of her scoring night.
Both lucky and good summed up her play 2:42 before halftime, when Aguirre lined a low 35-yard shot that skidded on the rain-soaked turf.
The soccer ball acted like a giant white and black watermelon seed coated in Crisco and skidded through the Leyden goalkeeper’s hands and into the net.
“We all know that the ball’s going to take an awkward bounce (in the rain),” Aguirre said. “Thats what we look to sometimes. I took my opportunity, and it worked.”
That second strike put Morton up 3-0, and well on its way to a 5-0 Senior Night win.
The Mustangs improved their record to 15-4-0, 5-0-0 in the Gold Division, while Leyden fell to 7-8-2, 2-3-0.
On her second goal, Aguirre stole a page from another player who wore number 7 and excelled years ago on a different kind of slick surface.
Hockey Hall of Famer Phil Esposito’s 717-goal career featured a mantra he later emphasized as a broadcaster: when there’s a chance to score, take the shot.
“We always try to test the goalkeeper in this type of weather,” Morton coach Jim Bageanis said, “and the ball really skips on that turf. Obviously, we talk a lot about that. We always want to see how the keeper will handle the ball in those situations.”
Between Aguirre’s two goals and a nice finish in between by Morton sophomore Aaliyah Leanos, the Mustangs worked early to deny Leyden’s hopes of building on its three-game win streak.
“I thought for a while we did a good job of at least having them take shots from distance, which was the best thing for us,” said Leyden coach Jim Rossetti, whose team had a quality early chance on Jackie Jacinto’s shot just wide four minutes in.
“But unfortunately we gave up a deflection goal (Aguirre’s first) to start the game, which hurt. Then on the second goal, you tip your hat. That girl had a great goal.”
Leanos’ nice finish 8:29 before halftime put Morton up 2-0, and followed a steady stream of Mustangs chances.
One of the best of those came in the 28th minute and featured Leanos.
Esmerelda Bautista made a nice run up the left side and put a perfect touch on her backspin chip towards the box. Leanos raced past a defender to reach the ball and lined a 10-yard shot, but Leyden goalkeeper Jackie Lopez made a nice save at the right post.
Then four minutes later, Mustangs senior Leslie Jiminez sent a pass to Leanos rushing in on right wing. Leanos nimbly maneuvered into the box and lined a 10-yarder inside the upper far corner of the net.
“I was coming down the side of the field and saw the goalie,” Leanos said. “I got the ball from the right side and took the opportunity to take the touch more towards the right, turned my hips and took that shot into the left side.”
Leyden had been less than nine minutes from entering the half down just 1-0. Then came Leanos’ nice finish, Aguirre’s long-distance dagger and a suddenly untenable deficit.
“I’m not saying we were going to win, but we were still in the game at that point,” Rossetti said. “I thought the third one kind of killed us, and coming at the end of the half with two minutes left. But shame on us, because we’ve done that a number of times, giving up late goals.”
Morton’s big finish to the first half removed most doubt about the outcome. Then in the second half, two seniors joined in the scoring fun to help the Mustangs salt the game away.
The first senior tribute after the break came with Fernanda Sanchez Duran taking over at goalkeeper for fellow senior Krystal Rodriguez.
Then with 31:52 left, forward Laura Mora’s score upped the lead to 4-0. A frequent starter each of the past two seasons, Mora is one of 11 seniors who have been multi-year contributors to Morton’s success.
“We have so many seniors who have been with us for a few years,” Bageanis said. “Mayte Gongora has been up (on varsity) since freshman year (2018-19).”
While COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the 2020 season, current seniors Gongora, Bautista, Duran, Vicky Ferrer and Mya Hernandez were all sophomores on the varsity roster.
Fast forward to Thursday, and defender Hernandez was a major factor in Morton earning its 13th shutout of the season (five-for-five in Gold games).
Leyden freshman Tereza Cerna entered the game with 10 goals and 10 assists this season. But with Hernandez tightly marking her, the speedy striker was unable to generate any top-quality chances all night.
“We struggled going forward,” Rossetti said. “We had a hard time getting Tereza the ball. Number 12 (Hernandez) was very formidable today defensively answering the call. And when Tereza can’t get rolling, that’s going to be tough for us.”
Said Bageanis: “Mya’s one of our most physical players. She brings a little physicality to our back line, and she had a very good match. They were both physical players, so that was good.”
Hernandez expected a challenge in Cerna, and she and her defensive mates passed the test.
“She was very fast, and she knew how to move around,” Hernandez said, “but I felt like we had more control of her spacing-wise, and I thought we took advantage of that.”
As for Senior Night, Hernandez summed up her four years in the Morton program and the special game Thursday.
“It (the win) feels really good,” she said. “You walk in here as a freshman and you see all those seniors and think, ‘That’s going to be me one day.’ And the next thing you know, that is you.”
Aguirre has a shorter history in the program, but had a two-goal night to remember.
“It’s my first year playing here,” she said, “but Senior Night was a great experience. I love playing with these girls. It was awesome being out here.”
The Morton seniors weren’t the only Mustangs motivated to have a big night.
“I’d definitely say Senior Night had a big role in our performance,” Leanos said. “It was the day to honor our seniors, so we really wanted to end this game on a strong note.”
Up 4-0, Morton continued to look strong. Jacquelin Lara (34-yard free kick just wide with 20:40 left), Gongora (shot deflected wide for a corner kick), Citlai Chavez (35-yard liner blocked at the post), Ferrer, Brianna Avalos and Ariana Valdovinos were part of second half chances.
“They’re solid at every position,” Rossetti said. “They’re very fluid, and every girl going forward can attack. Morton does that with the boys, and they do it here.
“They kind of lull you into possess, and then all of a sudden it’s a dangerous ball. They’re really quick and have girls who can get on the other end of it.”
With 13:20 left, senior forward Lara added a very special bit of personal history to the win: her first varsity goal.
Following the same theory of shoot and see what happens that worked earlier for Aguirre, Lara corralled a Leyden clearing attempt on the right side and drove a 30-yard one-timer high inside the right post to seal the 5-0 win.
“Honestly I was super happy that I scored my first goal, especially on Senior Night,” Lara said. “I was surprised. I wasn’t expecting that, but I went for it, and it went in. It was just risking it (the distance shot) and hoping it goes in.”
What was already going to be a night to remember added an extra exclamation point.
“I felt proud because I’ve been playing soccer for many years and playing with these same girls for years,” Lara said. “Playing this last home game in high school is going to mean a lot, because I may not play with them much more in the future. This game was going to be a long-lasting memory for me.”
While the offense made memories, the Morton defense continued a quality run in which opponents have scored just two goals in the last nine games.
“It’s just keeping structure, and the talking and communicating with all the girls is really good,” Hernandez said of the defensive keys. “And since we’ve all played together for a while, we kind of have a connection that, if ‘I’m going to push up, then you cover my spot.’”
Said Leanos: “We have good chemistry as a team. Growing up with each other helps a lot.”
Morton now moves on to its last and biggest test of 2022 in the league finale: Tuesday at Downers Grove South (5-0-0 in conference).
“We’ll have to be on our ‘A’ game,” Bageanis said. “It’s always a good game, and it will probably be physical and high intensity.”
Thursday was a very good sign for Morton.
“It was a good night for the girls,” Bageanis said. “I thought they all played well together. We moved some people around to different positions, and we were still successful.
“Even though the weather wasn’t the greatest, it still ended up being a great night.”
Starting lineups
Leyden
GK Jackie Lopez
D Jasmin Ambrocio
D Zynai Hernandez
D Melany Perez
M Jenny Herrera
M Priscila Perez
M Megan Martinez
M Jackie Jacinto
M Denise Salgado
F Tereza Cerna
F Sherlyn Cebrero
Morton
GK Krystal Rodriguez
D Leslie Jiminez
D Brianna Avalos
D Mya Hernandez
M Mayte Gongora
M Esmerelda Bautista
M Vicky Ferrer
M Jacquelin Lara
M Andrea Aguirre
F Aaliyah Leanos
F Laura Mora
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Andrea Aguirre, sr. MF, Morton
Scoring summary
First half
M- Andrea Aguirre, 10’
M- Aaliyah Leanos (Leslie Jiminez), 32’
M- Aguirre, 38’
Second half
M- Laura Mora, 49’
M- Jacquelin Lara, ‘67