PKs leave Loyola, St. Ignatius tangled in tie
Unusual CCL rule leads to draw after 3-3 shootout round
By Dave Owen
CHICAGO – Many coaches come out of penalty kick sessions feeling like neither team deserved to lose.
In the Chicago Catholic League Blue Division, consider that mission accomplished.
After 80 regulation minutes and a pair of five-minute overtimes ended with Loyola and host St. Ignatius locked in a 1-1 tie, Tuesday’s match progressed to a five-shooter PK showdown between the squads.
But fans expecting a resolution were in for a surprise. After the duel between the first five shooters ended in a 3-3 tie, conference rules dictated no further PKs – and a tie went into the books between the Ramblers (9-3-2, 2-1-1) and the Wolfpack (7-2-1, 3-1-1).
“While I don’t love the format, I do think it was a fair result,” Loyola coach Baer Fisher said. “Both teams had some good opportunities, and I thought it was a well-played game against a really good team. They showed well, and they pushed our guys.”
The respective team’s stars of the PK session were a perhaps unexpected pair.
St. Ignatius senior goalkeeper Paul Smith has generally backed up starter Luke Hales this fall.
But Smith seized his chance to start Tuesday with a strong 90 minutes of regulation and overtime – then came up huge in the PKs.
After the first three Loyola shooters -- Michael Sullivan, Zipprich and Mario Hrvojevic -- converted their PKs, Smith made a save at the right post on the fourth attempt.
Then with Loyola taking the final shot of the session with a chance to win, Smith’s sliding kick save at the right post ended the match.
When asked after the game about the tie, the colorful Smith showed his flair for the quote matched his knack for clutch saves.
“Considering I would have saved all the rest of them, it’s a little tough that I didn’t have that opportunity,” Smith joked of the PK session ending after five shots. “But it is what it is. That’s a gripe with the CCL. We had fun.”
As for his PK strategy, Smith didn’t get too technical.
“When they kick it a certain direction, I try to go that way and stop it with either my hands or other appendages,” he said.
With words and deeds, Smith put on a show.
“He’s the one character you want on every squad,” St. Ignatius coach Matt Martin said. “He contributed big time today.
“Today was his second start of the season. He was unfortunate not to get many starts. But we went with Paul today because he’s aggressive in the air he wins his aerial balls and he’s got good positioning sense.
“He showed all that today and came up big. He guessed right on three of the five penalties, one he just missed on (the save) -- great decision making. He was the difference for us not getting a loss at the end.”
The same could be said on the Loyola side for senior goalkeeper Frank Baio.
After sophomore Alex Ainsworth played the regulation and two overtimes between the pipes, Baio stepped in for the PK session and excelled.
While St. Ignatius’ Talcott Malven, Max Hanlon and Daniel Fernandez converted their PKs, Baio made a diving left post save on the Wolfpack’s second shooter.
“We’re really lucky that we have two strong goalkeepers,” Fisher said. “Alex has been playing well, and with where we are now he earned the start tonight.
“That being said, Frankie is terrific in shootouts, so we knew if it got to a shootout we could be confident in Frankie. He was big time.”
St. Ignatius’ fifth shooter sent his PK shot over the net, hesitating on his shot in what turned out to be a Baio miscue turned good.
“Quite honestly I kind of stumbled,” Baio said. “I started one way and then saw him looking the other way, and he stopped.”
In a matter of minutes, Baio had to go from spectator to a goalkeeper’s ultimate test.
“I would say it’s more of a mental thing than physical,” he said of PK’s. “Obviously you’re just going left or right. Just making sure you’re prepared for what they’re about to throw at you. It’s not easy – you’re still very nervous.”
Their matching clutch efforts earned Baio and Smith ech a share of Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“I’ve got mixed emotions right now,” Baio said. “I’m very happy I made that one save, and the other one missed. But obviously we didn’t get the (win) result. Incredible game though. I’m pretty happy about it overall.”
Early on, Loyola’s overall control of play didn’t prevent St. Ignatius from seizing a 1-0 lead midway through the half. Jaden Rice’s goal off a Ronan Sullivan cross put the Wolfpack ahead.
Sullivan was one of two Wolfpack players who Martin felt elevated their level of play Tuesday.
“Ronan Sullivan has been in and out this season, and he got the assist on Jaden’s goal,” Martin said. “He’s really had to work on his fitness this season, but he can be the difference-maker in big games.
“He’s strong on the ball, and has a helluva shot when he gets it right. He had a good game. And Max Hanlon playing the CDM role did well, and passed the ball around well.”
One of Loyola’s many strengths this fall has been a knack for strong first halves. Over their previous five games, the Ramblers had outscored opponents by an 8-0 margin over the first 40 minutes. And no team had netted a first half score against Loyola since Sept. 3.
But Tuesday’s rare early deficit just dialed up the drive in the Ramblers.
Loyola would finish the first half with a 6-2 edge in shots on goal. And in the 29th minute, junior Collin Redmond’s goal drew the Ramblers into a 1-1 tie.
The offensive push continued until halftime, highlighted by another huge chance in the 38th minute.
Off a pinpoint Nick Roscoe cross towards the crease, Tommy Zipprich’s 6-yard header went inches wide of the left post.
“I thought we were very good in transition in the first half,” Fisher said, “and we were dangerous I thought every time we got the ball.
“But the second half they (St. Ignatius) made some adjustments, tightened a couple of things up and played a good second half.”
The Wolfpack previewed their second half resurgence 1:20 before halftime. Jack Lannon’s send hit Rice in on right wing, whose liner hit the side of the net near the right post.
Rice’s goal and quality chance were the exception to the rule in the first half.
“Loyola came in with a distinct strategy,” St. Ignatius coach Matt Martin said, “and at the end of the day we weren’t able to break it down.
“They were pretty dangerous on the counterattack, they got back with numbers, they got men behind the ball, and ultimately we weren’t able to break them down.
“We weren’t penetrating much past the final third,” Martin added, “and we really fell into their hands – especially for the majority of the first half, and periods of the second as well.”
The Wolfpack had the first good chance of the second half five minutes in, a Fernandez 22-yard rebound just wide after a clear of the crease by Loyola’s Niko Douvalakis.
An end line cross by Luke Hogan off a St. Ignatius corner kick two minutes later was denied on a long clear by Hrvojevic.
Loyola then produced three corner kicks in a 75-second span with 32 minutes left.
The first two were blocked at the near post over the end line by Christian Yonan, and the third corner send by Hrvojevic just missed a header connection in front.
The Ramblers would add quality chances with 24:05 left in regulation (a Joe Roscoe header just wide off an Andrew Hoepfner cross) and 18:55 to go (Smith’s diving near post catch of a Dylan Gripman end line shot).
“It was a mindset thing,” Smith said of the Wolfpack defense. “Keeping our shape and recognizing the way they were playing, with a lot of through-balls. And just realizing that if they’re going to play one way, we’ll stop it one way.”
St. Ignatius turned defense into offense twice late in regulation. Aidan Hurst’s interception and low liner shot on goal with 14:20 left was followed 35 seconds later by a Fernandez steal, which set up a Jared Atoubi right side run and shot that Hrvojevic nicely blocked and cleared.
“We had about 90 percent possession and did nothing with it,” Martin said, “so that was the tough part. We got lucky on the counter at times, but we didn’t show that quality in the final third that we needed to.”
Loyola also couldn’t finish its late chances. A Hurst block denied a Joe Roscoe shot in the box with 10:45 left. Then five minutes later, Zipprich burst in right 1-v.-1 and angled a 12-yard shot just wide of the left post.
A Hrvojevic midfield free kick send with 3:45 left produced a highlight film try, a back-to-the-goal left side 12-yard shot by Nick Roscoe that Smith saved.
St. Ignatius would respond nicely, with the last threat of regulation (Ainsworth’s save on a Rice 30-yarder, then Hrvojevic’s 1-v.-1 steal in the corner denying an Atoubi rush with 30 seconds left.
“It’s frustrating to play against that (Loyola formation),” Martin said. “They knew how to get the most out of a game.
“They got men behind the ball, and they countered quickly. It was funny, they pressed high on defense and dropped back on offense. They weren’t playing a pressing game in their final third, and let us have the ball but were playing a high line. Ultimately we didn’t have answers for that strategy today.”
St. Ignatius had big chances of both five-minute overtimes.
With 50 seconds left in the first OT, Hogan’s send and a Gavin Troy cross set up a Fernandez 10-yard shot in front. But Douvalakis’ partial block and Ainsworth’s save diffused the potential game-winning chance.
Then came an incredible individual effort by Hurst with 1:25 left in the second OT.
Attacking from midfield, Hurst made a great run around and past two defenders and launched an 18-yard shot.
“Aidan’s a top player,” Martin said. “You saw that in the last two minutes when he made that amazing run. He’s got a few of those in his locker in each game.”
A sliding block by Oscar Blazer denied the chance, but Hurst was fouled on the race for the rebound.
Fernandez’s ensuing 23-yard free kick was blocked by Hrvojevic, as St. Ignatius just missed a bid to repeat recent history.
“Our last game against Fenwick (a 2-1 Wolfpack win),” Smith said, “they scored in the first half, we equalized in the second half and then drew a penalty with five-some odd seconds left. Our five-star prospect Rice drew the penalty, and Danny Fernandez scored it.”
More drama would follow this time in the hard-fought PK session, but with a less dramatic resolution.
“We tend to ignore the scoreboard (tie) and take it at face value,” Smith said. “We took on a tough opponent, and we gave it our all.
“The most important part is coming from perhaps a letdown late in the first half to a much better second half and then overtime. Being able to make that transition is something a lot of teams can’t do, and something that’s really important to us.”
Loyola started just two seniors Tuesday. And rare PK tie or not, it was another step forward in a strong season.
“We’ve been playing well aside from one half against St. Laurence,” Fisher said. “Every time you test yourself against a really good team like this, you grow. Especially with everything our guys put into it, which was a ton.
“I don’t want to single out any of our guys,” Fisher added, “because collectively we showed a lot of grit and desire against a good team.
Loyola’s level of play matched the picturesque St. Ignatius field, which features the Chicago skyline looming beyond the east end zone.
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“I love playing at this field,” Baio said. “The turf, the environment – it’s very fun to play at.
“Even though we didn’t get the result we wanted, I still feel we put up a good fight. And we created a lot of opportunities in the final third to score. We unfortunately couldn’t put many away, but I’m still happy with how we played.”
Said Fisher: “We’ll take the result, take the performance and now our attention is on Brother Rice on Thursday.”
St. Ignatius now gears up for another big test.
“We have St. Ignatius in from Ohio on Saturday, the no.-1 ranked team in the country by MaxPreps,” Martin said. That’ll be a nice challenge for the boys. I’m sure they’ll come at us.
“They were planning on coming into town,” Martin added, “and they wanted to play against us as a sister school and see who the best Ignatius is.”
The Wolfpack has one conference game remaining, Oct. 8 at St. Laurence.
“We have to have a couple results elsewhere go our way, but we’ll take it game by game,” Martin said of his team’s CCL Blue title hopes. “I’m not looking at more than the next game.”
Starting lineups
Loyola
GK: Alex Ainsworth
D: Oscar Blazer
D: Mario Hrvojevic
D: Ryan Leider
D: Niko Douvalakis
M: Tommy Zipprich
M: Michael Sullivan
M: Nick Roscoe
M: Andrew Hoepfner
M: Jack Latterman
F: Dylan Gripman
St. Ignatius
GK: Paul Smith
D: Tal Malven
D: Gavin Troy
D: Charlie Kennedy
M: Max Hanlon
M: Aidan Hurst
M: Jaden Rice
M: Daniel Fernandez
M: Ethan Gould
F: Luke Hogan
F: Christian Yonan
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match: Paul Smith, sr. GK, St. Ignatius
Frank Baio, sr. GK, Loyola
Scoring summary
First half
SI- Jaden Rice (Ronan Sullivan assist), 18’
Loy- Colin Redmond, 29’
Second half
No scoring
First OT
No scoring
Second OT
No scoring
PKs
Loy (3)- Michael Sullivan, Tommy Zipprich, Mario Hrvojevic
SI (3)- Tal Malven, Max Hanlon, Daniel Fernandez
Unusual CCL rule leads to draw after 3-3 shootout round
By Dave Owen
CHICAGO – Many coaches come out of penalty kick sessions feeling like neither team deserved to lose.
In the Chicago Catholic League Blue Division, consider that mission accomplished.
After 80 regulation minutes and a pair of five-minute overtimes ended with Loyola and host St. Ignatius locked in a 1-1 tie, Tuesday’s match progressed to a five-shooter PK showdown between the squads.
But fans expecting a resolution were in for a surprise. After the duel between the first five shooters ended in a 3-3 tie, conference rules dictated no further PKs – and a tie went into the books between the Ramblers (9-3-2, 2-1-1) and the Wolfpack (7-2-1, 3-1-1).
“While I don’t love the format, I do think it was a fair result,” Loyola coach Baer Fisher said. “Both teams had some good opportunities, and I thought it was a well-played game against a really good team. They showed well, and they pushed our guys.”
The respective team’s stars of the PK session were a perhaps unexpected pair.
St. Ignatius senior goalkeeper Paul Smith has generally backed up starter Luke Hales this fall.
But Smith seized his chance to start Tuesday with a strong 90 minutes of regulation and overtime – then came up huge in the PKs.
After the first three Loyola shooters -- Michael Sullivan, Zipprich and Mario Hrvojevic -- converted their PKs, Smith made a save at the right post on the fourth attempt.
Then with Loyola taking the final shot of the session with a chance to win, Smith’s sliding kick save at the right post ended the match.
When asked after the game about the tie, the colorful Smith showed his flair for the quote matched his knack for clutch saves.
“Considering I would have saved all the rest of them, it’s a little tough that I didn’t have that opportunity,” Smith joked of the PK session ending after five shots. “But it is what it is. That’s a gripe with the CCL. We had fun.”
As for his PK strategy, Smith didn’t get too technical.
“When they kick it a certain direction, I try to go that way and stop it with either my hands or other appendages,” he said.
With words and deeds, Smith put on a show.
“He’s the one character you want on every squad,” St. Ignatius coach Matt Martin said. “He contributed big time today.
“Today was his second start of the season. He was unfortunate not to get many starts. But we went with Paul today because he’s aggressive in the air he wins his aerial balls and he’s got good positioning sense.
“He showed all that today and came up big. He guessed right on three of the five penalties, one he just missed on (the save) -- great decision making. He was the difference for us not getting a loss at the end.”
The same could be said on the Loyola side for senior goalkeeper Frank Baio.
After sophomore Alex Ainsworth played the regulation and two overtimes between the pipes, Baio stepped in for the PK session and excelled.
While St. Ignatius’ Talcott Malven, Max Hanlon and Daniel Fernandez converted their PKs, Baio made a diving left post save on the Wolfpack’s second shooter.
“We’re really lucky that we have two strong goalkeepers,” Fisher said. “Alex has been playing well, and with where we are now he earned the start tonight.
“That being said, Frankie is terrific in shootouts, so we knew if it got to a shootout we could be confident in Frankie. He was big time.”
St. Ignatius’ fifth shooter sent his PK shot over the net, hesitating on his shot in what turned out to be a Baio miscue turned good.
“Quite honestly I kind of stumbled,” Baio said. “I started one way and then saw him looking the other way, and he stopped.”
In a matter of minutes, Baio had to go from spectator to a goalkeeper’s ultimate test.
“I would say it’s more of a mental thing than physical,” he said of PK’s. “Obviously you’re just going left or right. Just making sure you’re prepared for what they’re about to throw at you. It’s not easy – you’re still very nervous.”
Their matching clutch efforts earned Baio and Smith ech a share of Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“I’ve got mixed emotions right now,” Baio said. “I’m very happy I made that one save, and the other one missed. But obviously we didn’t get the (win) result. Incredible game though. I’m pretty happy about it overall.”
Early on, Loyola’s overall control of play didn’t prevent St. Ignatius from seizing a 1-0 lead midway through the half. Jaden Rice’s goal off a Ronan Sullivan cross put the Wolfpack ahead.
Sullivan was one of two Wolfpack players who Martin felt elevated their level of play Tuesday.
“Ronan Sullivan has been in and out this season, and he got the assist on Jaden’s goal,” Martin said. “He’s really had to work on his fitness this season, but he can be the difference-maker in big games.
“He’s strong on the ball, and has a helluva shot when he gets it right. He had a good game. And Max Hanlon playing the CDM role did well, and passed the ball around well.”
One of Loyola’s many strengths this fall has been a knack for strong first halves. Over their previous five games, the Ramblers had outscored opponents by an 8-0 margin over the first 40 minutes. And no team had netted a first half score against Loyola since Sept. 3.
But Tuesday’s rare early deficit just dialed up the drive in the Ramblers.
Loyola would finish the first half with a 6-2 edge in shots on goal. And in the 29th minute, junior Collin Redmond’s goal drew the Ramblers into a 1-1 tie.
The offensive push continued until halftime, highlighted by another huge chance in the 38th minute.
Off a pinpoint Nick Roscoe cross towards the crease, Tommy Zipprich’s 6-yard header went inches wide of the left post.
“I thought we were very good in transition in the first half,” Fisher said, “and we were dangerous I thought every time we got the ball.
“But the second half they (St. Ignatius) made some adjustments, tightened a couple of things up and played a good second half.”
The Wolfpack previewed their second half resurgence 1:20 before halftime. Jack Lannon’s send hit Rice in on right wing, whose liner hit the side of the net near the right post.
Rice’s goal and quality chance were the exception to the rule in the first half.
“Loyola came in with a distinct strategy,” St. Ignatius coach Matt Martin said, “and at the end of the day we weren’t able to break it down.
“They were pretty dangerous on the counterattack, they got back with numbers, they got men behind the ball, and ultimately we weren’t able to break them down.
“We weren’t penetrating much past the final third,” Martin added, “and we really fell into their hands – especially for the majority of the first half, and periods of the second as well.”
The Wolfpack had the first good chance of the second half five minutes in, a Fernandez 22-yard rebound just wide after a clear of the crease by Loyola’s Niko Douvalakis.
An end line cross by Luke Hogan off a St. Ignatius corner kick two minutes later was denied on a long clear by Hrvojevic.
Loyola then produced three corner kicks in a 75-second span with 32 minutes left.
The first two were blocked at the near post over the end line by Christian Yonan, and the third corner send by Hrvojevic just missed a header connection in front.
The Ramblers would add quality chances with 24:05 left in regulation (a Joe Roscoe header just wide off an Andrew Hoepfner cross) and 18:55 to go (Smith’s diving near post catch of a Dylan Gripman end line shot).
“It was a mindset thing,” Smith said of the Wolfpack defense. “Keeping our shape and recognizing the way they were playing, with a lot of through-balls. And just realizing that if they’re going to play one way, we’ll stop it one way.”
St. Ignatius turned defense into offense twice late in regulation. Aidan Hurst’s interception and low liner shot on goal with 14:20 left was followed 35 seconds later by a Fernandez steal, which set up a Jared Atoubi right side run and shot that Hrvojevic nicely blocked and cleared.
“We had about 90 percent possession and did nothing with it,” Martin said, “so that was the tough part. We got lucky on the counter at times, but we didn’t show that quality in the final third that we needed to.”
Loyola also couldn’t finish its late chances. A Hurst block denied a Joe Roscoe shot in the box with 10:45 left. Then five minutes later, Zipprich burst in right 1-v.-1 and angled a 12-yard shot just wide of the left post.
A Hrvojevic midfield free kick send with 3:45 left produced a highlight film try, a back-to-the-goal left side 12-yard shot by Nick Roscoe that Smith saved.
St. Ignatius would respond nicely, with the last threat of regulation (Ainsworth’s save on a Rice 30-yarder, then Hrvojevic’s 1-v.-1 steal in the corner denying an Atoubi rush with 30 seconds left.
“It’s frustrating to play against that (Loyola formation),” Martin said. “They knew how to get the most out of a game.
“They got men behind the ball, and they countered quickly. It was funny, they pressed high on defense and dropped back on offense. They weren’t playing a pressing game in their final third, and let us have the ball but were playing a high line. Ultimately we didn’t have answers for that strategy today.”
St. Ignatius had big chances of both five-minute overtimes.
With 50 seconds left in the first OT, Hogan’s send and a Gavin Troy cross set up a Fernandez 10-yard shot in front. But Douvalakis’ partial block and Ainsworth’s save diffused the potential game-winning chance.
Then came an incredible individual effort by Hurst with 1:25 left in the second OT.
Attacking from midfield, Hurst made a great run around and past two defenders and launched an 18-yard shot.
“Aidan’s a top player,” Martin said. “You saw that in the last two minutes when he made that amazing run. He’s got a few of those in his locker in each game.”
A sliding block by Oscar Blazer denied the chance, but Hurst was fouled on the race for the rebound.
Fernandez’s ensuing 23-yard free kick was blocked by Hrvojevic, as St. Ignatius just missed a bid to repeat recent history.
“Our last game against Fenwick (a 2-1 Wolfpack win),” Smith said, “they scored in the first half, we equalized in the second half and then drew a penalty with five-some odd seconds left. Our five-star prospect Rice drew the penalty, and Danny Fernandez scored it.”
More drama would follow this time in the hard-fought PK session, but with a less dramatic resolution.
“We tend to ignore the scoreboard (tie) and take it at face value,” Smith said. “We took on a tough opponent, and we gave it our all.
“The most important part is coming from perhaps a letdown late in the first half to a much better second half and then overtime. Being able to make that transition is something a lot of teams can’t do, and something that’s really important to us.”
Loyola started just two seniors Tuesday. And rare PK tie or not, it was another step forward in a strong season.
“We’ve been playing well aside from one half against St. Laurence,” Fisher said. “Every time you test yourself against a really good team like this, you grow. Especially with everything our guys put into it, which was a ton.
“I don’t want to single out any of our guys,” Fisher added, “because collectively we showed a lot of grit and desire against a good team.
Loyola’s level of play matched the picturesque St. Ignatius field, which features the Chicago skyline looming beyond the east end zone.
\
“I love playing at this field,” Baio said. “The turf, the environment – it’s very fun to play at.
“Even though we didn’t get the result we wanted, I still feel we put up a good fight. And we created a lot of opportunities in the final third to score. We unfortunately couldn’t put many away, but I’m still happy with how we played.”
Said Fisher: “We’ll take the result, take the performance and now our attention is on Brother Rice on Thursday.”
St. Ignatius now gears up for another big test.
“We have St. Ignatius in from Ohio on Saturday, the no.-1 ranked team in the country by MaxPreps,” Martin said. That’ll be a nice challenge for the boys. I’m sure they’ll come at us.
“They were planning on coming into town,” Martin added, “and they wanted to play against us as a sister school and see who the best Ignatius is.”
The Wolfpack has one conference game remaining, Oct. 8 at St. Laurence.
“We have to have a couple results elsewhere go our way, but we’ll take it game by game,” Martin said of his team’s CCL Blue title hopes. “I’m not looking at more than the next game.”
Starting lineups
Loyola
GK: Alex Ainsworth
D: Oscar Blazer
D: Mario Hrvojevic
D: Ryan Leider
D: Niko Douvalakis
M: Tommy Zipprich
M: Michael Sullivan
M: Nick Roscoe
M: Andrew Hoepfner
M: Jack Latterman
F: Dylan Gripman
St. Ignatius
GK: Paul Smith
D: Tal Malven
D: Gavin Troy
D: Charlie Kennedy
M: Max Hanlon
M: Aidan Hurst
M: Jaden Rice
M: Daniel Fernandez
M: Ethan Gould
F: Luke Hogan
F: Christian Yonan
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match: Paul Smith, sr. GK, St. Ignatius
Frank Baio, sr. GK, Loyola
Scoring summary
First half
SI- Jaden Rice (Ronan Sullivan assist), 18’
Loy- Colin Redmond, 29’
Second half
No scoring
First OT
No scoring
Second OT
No scoring
PKs
Loy (3)- Michael Sullivan, Tommy Zipprich, Mario Hrvojevic
SI (3)- Tal Malven, Max Hanlon, Daniel Fernandez