Martinez comes off bench
to help Morton tie Libertyville
Inaugural Morton Premier Invitational deemed a success
By Matt Le Cren
BERWYN – Morton senior Daniel Martinez wasn’t expecting to see any action Saturday.
Then starting goalkeeper Sebastian Mayorga aggravated an ankle injury during a collision with a Libertyville player and had to leave the game with 33:15 left.
The unbeaten Mustangs, who are ranked No. 1 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, trailed 1-0 at the time. Soon after, Martinez flubbed a goal kick and teammate Giovanni Alvarez gave him an earful.
“I knew once he went in, he already had his head in the game,” Alvarez said. “He kind of tweaked one a little bit. Someone had to scream at him, and I screamed at him and got his head into the game.”
Martinez actually appreciated the dressing down. He and Alvarez grew up together and are close friends.
“That definitely got my blood flowing and got me focused more,” Martinez said. “That’s what you need.”
It seemed to help both players, who helped the Mustangs avert their first defeat of the season. Alvarez scored the game-tying goal with 26:14 remaining and Martinez made a huge save on a point-blank shot from Ben Nuttal at the 11:40 mark. The match against the 21st-ranked Wildcats ended in a 1-1 tie.
Alvarez’s goal, his ninth of the season, was a great individual effort. He made a steal just outside the Libertyville box and weaved his way through a thicket of defenders before sliding a left-footed shot inside the right post.
“It hit off my knee, I did a roulette and controlled it with my foot,” Alvarez said. “Fake shot it, and I finished it off with my left.
“It feels good to bring up the team like that, especially when we were 1-0 down. But it would have been better if we were tied when I scored that goal, and put us on top.
“I think everybody would like that feeling. But it was two great teams, and it ended 1-1.”
It might not have if not for Martinez, who admitted to some jitters when he first came into the game. They were gone by the time Nuttal broke through the Morton defense in the middle of the box and had a clear path to the goal.
Martinez charged out and blocked the shot, then moved enough to his right to perhaps fluster another Libertyville player enough so that his rebound sailed wide of the post.
“Danny came in in a situation where he had to get ready in the spur of the moment and came up with a big save,” Morton coach Jim Bageanis said. “That would have been a goal.”
Martinez felt some jitters when he first entered. But he had settled in once Nuttall came charging in.
“I just waited for him to take that one touch, because once he took the touch he was going to take the shot,” Martinez said. “I felt like I needed to rush out at him as soon as possible, just close the angle before he could get it off to the corner (of the net).”
The corner was exactly what Libertyville’s Jacob Salgo found on a great shot from 20 yards at the 36:48 mark of the second half. The junior midfielder received a pass from Jon Melcher just outside the top left corner of the Morton box and lofted a shot that went over the head of Mayorga and into the upper right corner of the net.
It was just the second shot of the game for the Wildcats (7-5-2) but it gave them a stunning lead. It also was Salgo’s first goal of the season.
“It was something me and my team were very happy for,” Salgo said. “Today was obviously one of our best games against a very high-level team.
“We’re OK with coming out with a tie. We all played hard, we all worked hard, no one gave up. Subs would come in and did what they needed to do to make sure we were still in it.
“It wasn’t just me. It was everyone.”
Indeed, the Wildcats needed everyone to step up to hold off Morton’s furious rally, which was nearly a carbon-copy of the previous game, when the Mustangs came from a goal down to edge Benet 2-1 on Friday.
Libertyville goalkeeper Michael Krukonis finished with four saves and the Wildcats, who were without the services of three injured players, preserved the draw.
“We had plenty of chances,” Bageanis said. “We were kind of dominating in there for about a 10-minute stretch. That’s what we talked about after the game -- we’ve got to put those away.
“Their goalie made a couple good reaction saves and there were a couple defenders in the right place at the right time. So, you’ve got to give them credit.”
Salgo credited improved chemistry with the result.
“We figured out what we needed to do,” Salgo said. “From the beginning of the year, when we didn’t even know what we were doing, we have improved dramatically.
“It’s all about getting along with your teammates, having a good time during the game, making little jokes with each other. That’s always the best.”
The match was the finale of a series of four games that made up the inaugural Morton Premier Invitational, which pitted four teams ranked in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
In the first match on Saturday, no. 24 Benet knocked off no. 3 Lyons 1-0, which beat Libertyville 1-0 Friday.
“We were right there,” Salgo said. “That Lyons goal was unfortunate. It went off our own heads.
“Against two very good teams, we’re very, very happy with how we played.”
Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm’s goal was to get his inexperienced team some seasoning against top competition.
“That’s why we do these tournaments, because these are the teams we’re assuming are going to be there at the end,” Thunholm said. “We’ve been trying to find our identity, because we’re extremely young. Then we kind of moved pieces around.
“We subbed more than usual, and we hung on with one of the best teams in the state. We’re excited.”
Thunholm said the Wildcats will return to the invite if invited. Benet and Lyons indicated the same. Bageanis is looking into expanding the field to eight teams for 2022.
“Once we got out of the Pepsi, we were trying to get some more competition at our place, and we were lucky enough to have those other three teams with us,” Bageanis said. “We are thinking about possibly expanding it to eight teams. We’ll see how it goes.
“Notre Dame (Peoria) was supposed to come this year but they had a scheduling glitch, so that’s why Lyons was in. Lyons wants to come back, so I think we have a solid five.
“It would be nice to have the best teams in the state playing here every year.”
Starting lineups
Libertyville
GK Michael Krukonis
D C.J. Villani
D Jon Melcher
D Jake Berlowski
D Joey Yurek
M Michael Kelly
M Andrew Phillips
M Cole Danner
F Noah Finnema
F Alek LaRoi
F Mateo Portillo
Morton
GK Sebastian Mayorga
D Eddie Barraza
D Luis Gonzalez
D Juan Ramirez
D Ivan Ramirez
M Jonathon Murillo
M Edgar Quintero
M Daniel Diaz
F Deyair Ruiz
F Giovanni Alvarez
F Ismael Zepeda
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Daniel Martinez, sr., GK, Morton.
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Libertyville – Jacob Salgo (Jon Melcher) 36:48 remaining
Morton – Giovanni Alvarez 26:14 remaining
to help Morton tie Libertyville
Inaugural Morton Premier Invitational deemed a success
By Matt Le Cren
BERWYN – Morton senior Daniel Martinez wasn’t expecting to see any action Saturday.
Then starting goalkeeper Sebastian Mayorga aggravated an ankle injury during a collision with a Libertyville player and had to leave the game with 33:15 left.
The unbeaten Mustangs, who are ranked No. 1 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, trailed 1-0 at the time. Soon after, Martinez flubbed a goal kick and teammate Giovanni Alvarez gave him an earful.
“I knew once he went in, he already had his head in the game,” Alvarez said. “He kind of tweaked one a little bit. Someone had to scream at him, and I screamed at him and got his head into the game.”
Martinez actually appreciated the dressing down. He and Alvarez grew up together and are close friends.
“That definitely got my blood flowing and got me focused more,” Martinez said. “That’s what you need.”
It seemed to help both players, who helped the Mustangs avert their first defeat of the season. Alvarez scored the game-tying goal with 26:14 remaining and Martinez made a huge save on a point-blank shot from Ben Nuttal at the 11:40 mark. The match against the 21st-ranked Wildcats ended in a 1-1 tie.
Alvarez’s goal, his ninth of the season, was a great individual effort. He made a steal just outside the Libertyville box and weaved his way through a thicket of defenders before sliding a left-footed shot inside the right post.
“It hit off my knee, I did a roulette and controlled it with my foot,” Alvarez said. “Fake shot it, and I finished it off with my left.
“It feels good to bring up the team like that, especially when we were 1-0 down. But it would have been better if we were tied when I scored that goal, and put us on top.
“I think everybody would like that feeling. But it was two great teams, and it ended 1-1.”
It might not have if not for Martinez, who admitted to some jitters when he first came into the game. They were gone by the time Nuttal broke through the Morton defense in the middle of the box and had a clear path to the goal.
Martinez charged out and blocked the shot, then moved enough to his right to perhaps fluster another Libertyville player enough so that his rebound sailed wide of the post.
“Danny came in in a situation where he had to get ready in the spur of the moment and came up with a big save,” Morton coach Jim Bageanis said. “That would have been a goal.”
Martinez felt some jitters when he first entered. But he had settled in once Nuttall came charging in.
“I just waited for him to take that one touch, because once he took the touch he was going to take the shot,” Martinez said. “I felt like I needed to rush out at him as soon as possible, just close the angle before he could get it off to the corner (of the net).”
The corner was exactly what Libertyville’s Jacob Salgo found on a great shot from 20 yards at the 36:48 mark of the second half. The junior midfielder received a pass from Jon Melcher just outside the top left corner of the Morton box and lofted a shot that went over the head of Mayorga and into the upper right corner of the net.
It was just the second shot of the game for the Wildcats (7-5-2) but it gave them a stunning lead. It also was Salgo’s first goal of the season.
“It was something me and my team were very happy for,” Salgo said. “Today was obviously one of our best games against a very high-level team.
“We’re OK with coming out with a tie. We all played hard, we all worked hard, no one gave up. Subs would come in and did what they needed to do to make sure we were still in it.
“It wasn’t just me. It was everyone.”
Indeed, the Wildcats needed everyone to step up to hold off Morton’s furious rally, which was nearly a carbon-copy of the previous game, when the Mustangs came from a goal down to edge Benet 2-1 on Friday.
Libertyville goalkeeper Michael Krukonis finished with four saves and the Wildcats, who were without the services of three injured players, preserved the draw.
“We had plenty of chances,” Bageanis said. “We were kind of dominating in there for about a 10-minute stretch. That’s what we talked about after the game -- we’ve got to put those away.
“Their goalie made a couple good reaction saves and there were a couple defenders in the right place at the right time. So, you’ve got to give them credit.”
Salgo credited improved chemistry with the result.
“We figured out what we needed to do,” Salgo said. “From the beginning of the year, when we didn’t even know what we were doing, we have improved dramatically.
“It’s all about getting along with your teammates, having a good time during the game, making little jokes with each other. That’s always the best.”
The match was the finale of a series of four games that made up the inaugural Morton Premier Invitational, which pitted four teams ranked in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
In the first match on Saturday, no. 24 Benet knocked off no. 3 Lyons 1-0, which beat Libertyville 1-0 Friday.
“We were right there,” Salgo said. “That Lyons goal was unfortunate. It went off our own heads.
“Against two very good teams, we’re very, very happy with how we played.”
Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm’s goal was to get his inexperienced team some seasoning against top competition.
“That’s why we do these tournaments, because these are the teams we’re assuming are going to be there at the end,” Thunholm said. “We’ve been trying to find our identity, because we’re extremely young. Then we kind of moved pieces around.
“We subbed more than usual, and we hung on with one of the best teams in the state. We’re excited.”
Thunholm said the Wildcats will return to the invite if invited. Benet and Lyons indicated the same. Bageanis is looking into expanding the field to eight teams for 2022.
“Once we got out of the Pepsi, we were trying to get some more competition at our place, and we were lucky enough to have those other three teams with us,” Bageanis said. “We are thinking about possibly expanding it to eight teams. We’ll see how it goes.
“Notre Dame (Peoria) was supposed to come this year but they had a scheduling glitch, so that’s why Lyons was in. Lyons wants to come back, so I think we have a solid five.
“It would be nice to have the best teams in the state playing here every year.”
Starting lineups
Libertyville
GK Michael Krukonis
D C.J. Villani
D Jon Melcher
D Jake Berlowski
D Joey Yurek
M Michael Kelly
M Andrew Phillips
M Cole Danner
F Noah Finnema
F Alek LaRoi
F Mateo Portillo
Morton
GK Sebastian Mayorga
D Eddie Barraza
D Luis Gonzalez
D Juan Ramirez
D Ivan Ramirez
M Jonathon Murillo
M Edgar Quintero
M Daniel Diaz
F Deyair Ruiz
F Giovanni Alvarez
F Ismael Zepeda
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Daniel Martinez, sr., GK, Morton.
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Libertyville – Jacob Salgo (Jon Melcher) 36:48 remaining
Morton – Giovanni Alvarez 26:14 remaining