Balanced effort leads Ignatius over Loyola
Goals on either side of half keep Wolfpack in CCL Blue race
By Mike Garofola
CHICAGO -- Ryan Kearns' men made it three-consecutive shutout wins for St. Ignatius over rival Loyola after a 2-0 victory Thursday night at Fornelli Field.
The host Wolfpack (11-3-2, 3-1-0), ranked 24th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, continued their fine form of late after a first half of soccer highlighted by a rampant attack, timely defense and plenty of box-to-box pace kept the visitors in its own end far more than it would have liked.
"I was really happy with our overall effort tonight, and especially our first half of work. (The) only thing we didn't do was finish a couple of the chances we created, but their keeper had something to do with that," said Kearns, St. Ignatius' manager.
"We spread the play by using width and speed of play, which is something we've been asking the guys to do. And when we play faster (and) not give our opponents much time, we can be this productive on most nights."
This Chicago Catholic League Blue Division contest started in sleepy fashion with each club testing the other here and there for cracks along the walls of both backlines. There were far more whistles than actual passes connected during the first 10-12 minutes of play.
The visitors, who looked to erase the memory of a 4-1 defeat earlier in the week to Mt. Carmel, found little space on the rare occasion they found themselves with the ball in the Wolfpack end. When they did, back four of the home side would have none of it and allowed nothing dangerous to reach keeper Keenan Troy.
"Our plan was to pressure them as much as we could, and not allow them to possess or knock the ball around. And in the first half, we did a very good job of doing that," said senior Eduardo Lopez, who along with his mates won a high percentage of first and second balls in the middle of the park, while effectively slowing the Loyola (9-5-0, 3-3-0) down to a crawl.
"(Their) pressure in the midfield was a big difference in the first half," admitted Loyola senior and co-captain Jonas Madison. "While we, on the other hand, left a lot of open space for them to play through, which is where they built a lot of their attack from."
As the confidence of the home side continued to build after the quarter hour, so did their half-chances and other opportunities on frame.
Daniel Fernandez went over the woodwork in the 28th minute, but it was some very economical play in the build-up to the attempt which was most impressive.
Moments later, Fernandez linked up with Owen Allen, and an attempt from the senior forced Loyola keeper Frank Baio into action.
Baio would make the first of three brilliant saves in the match. A late stab with his left glove hand from the sophomore denied Allen an upper-90 goal.
"Frank was amazing for us tonight. (He) kept us in the game and gave us a chance. It's too bad they put two in on him, because neither one was his fault," said Madison.
Despite the dominance of St. Ignatius dominance up to this point, it was the Ramblers who nearly grabbed the opening goal.
Collin Leider's terrific early ball to Ford Peterson saw his attempt initially stopped by Troy but the saved ball spilled freely to his right.
Leider, who never stopped running, collected the ball and sent his rebound shot the other way of Troy, who despite being wrong-footed during this exchange stayed with low shot to make the save.
St. Ignatius' Lopez and Allen were the architects for a Keith Bevans goal in the 40th minute. The Wolfpack duo moved the ball so quickly, it looked as though it were on a string between the two.
Once free for just a moment, Bevans found a way to steer his back post shot with a sublime finish.
Those are always tough goals to give up right before the half, agreed both Lopez and Fernandez.
The Loyola coaching staff made a couple of key tactical changes during the intermission that would pay immediate dividends once the second period got underway.
"One thing for sure is we knew we had to pressure no. 18 (Fernandez) much more because he was distributing and attacking so well in that first half. In our attack, we had to attack more on the outside," offered Fisher.
"I thought we did on both counts."
"Yes, we were so predictable in that first half. We were playing everything into the middle and made it easy for Ignatius to defend," began Leider, who was dynamic in his role after Fisher pushed him forward for the final 40 minutes.
"Our attack was so much better in the second half, we connected passes, finally possessed the ball real well, but in the end, we just didn't finish our chances when they came."
Sixty seconds into the new half, Leider dragged his shot wide after his mates Nick Lew and Tommy Zipprich did all the preliminary work in order for the junior to have a go.
Lew, who all through the first half was the lone forward in the Ramblers formations, took a licking and kept on ticking as he worked hard to create, hold and track back to defend in the middle of the park when it was warranted.
The difference between winning first and second balls, something in which the home side did at a very high percentage rate in the first half, was evident of just how dominating the Wolfpack was in the opening 40 minutes.
Loyola turned that dominance in its favor in the second half. Quicker touches and a more clinical effort demonstrated their ability to play at a much higher level than they did in the first half.
"We needed to be more consistent today, and not play two entirely difference halves of soccer. The second half we played really well, and that was the message after the game to the boys," said Fisher.
Baio was brilliant once again, this time in the 68th minute when a long free kick from Carlos Sierra fell into the box where Lopez unleashed a wicked attempt -- only to see the Loyola keeper make an extraordinary stop of what looked like a sure goal.
Loyola created two corners, plus a deep throw as it continued its search to find the equalizer, but a spectacular goal from Quinn Troy dashed their hopes of getting even six minutes from time.
That's when a marvelous ball over the top from Fernandez set Troy free. As the senior roared up the flank and pulled Baio off his line for a challenge, he made a touch to his left in full gallop and then finish neatly into the now open net.
"High school soccer comes down to a handful of things when all things are equal: set piece and dead balls, clearance of (both) and finishing. We struggled in all three today," said a reflective Leider.
St. Ignatius defended its home turf.
"When we had to be sharp, we were, so it was a very good win for us," added Fernandez, who earned Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match for his efforts.
Said Lopez: "We have a lot of respect for our rivals such as Loyola, and a lot of pride in ourselves. And that's something we tried to show today with the way we played."
Loyola will take on Fenwick in its league finale on Tuesday, before beginning to tune-up for the postseason with games at Chicago Public League member Jones, followed by Maine East of the Central Suburban League on October 11.
St. Ignatius stayed alive in the conference race with the victory. If the Wolfpack want to defend their league title, they must defeat Mt. Carmel on Tuesday at Fornelli Field.
The prelude to that game is a tough assignment against no. 9 Oak Park and River Forest at home Saturday (September 30). In its last 17 days of the regular season, St. Ignatius play a demanding eight matches.
The heavy workload didn't distact from the satisfaction of the well-earned win versus Loyola.
"When I came here we were in the midst of losing three straight to Loyola, close results but nonetheless losses," said Kearns.
"The last three seasons we've turned that around with (now) three shutout wins in a row, 3-0, 1-0 and 2-0 today, and that's something we're proud of because Loyola has always been a first-rate soccer program.
"Our first half was much better than the first, but you've got to give credit to Loyola with the way they came out after the break."
"We had two very nice goals -- their keeper was terrific in stopping a couple of others. But as you saw, when we have a strong work rate, and play quick, fast and simple soccer, we can be very good."
Starting lineups
Loyola (4-5-1 starting formation)
GK- Frank Baio
D- Brady Reichert
D- Jonas Madison
D- Daniel Montaquila
D- Luke Phillips
M- Tommy Zipprich
M- Collin Leider
M- Michael Sullivan
M- Andrew Hoepfner
M- Christian Jimenez
F- Nick Lew
St. Ignatius (4-5-1)
GK- Keenan Troy
D- Carlos Sierra
D- Christian Telles
D- Jack Galante
D- Connor Broeking
M- Dan Kacey
M- Daniel Fernandez
M- Rudy Bieglmeier
M- Jason Pratt
M- Misha Simon
F- Eduardo Lopez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Daniel Fernandez, so., MF, St. Ignatius
Referee: Bill Stamper
Scoring summary
St. Ignatius
Bevans (Allen, Lopez) 40'
Troy (Fernandez) 74'
Goals on either side of half keep Wolfpack in CCL Blue race
By Mike Garofola
CHICAGO -- Ryan Kearns' men made it three-consecutive shutout wins for St. Ignatius over rival Loyola after a 2-0 victory Thursday night at Fornelli Field.
The host Wolfpack (11-3-2, 3-1-0), ranked 24th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, continued their fine form of late after a first half of soccer highlighted by a rampant attack, timely defense and plenty of box-to-box pace kept the visitors in its own end far more than it would have liked.
"I was really happy with our overall effort tonight, and especially our first half of work. (The) only thing we didn't do was finish a couple of the chances we created, but their keeper had something to do with that," said Kearns, St. Ignatius' manager.
"We spread the play by using width and speed of play, which is something we've been asking the guys to do. And when we play faster (and) not give our opponents much time, we can be this productive on most nights."
This Chicago Catholic League Blue Division contest started in sleepy fashion with each club testing the other here and there for cracks along the walls of both backlines. There were far more whistles than actual passes connected during the first 10-12 minutes of play.
The visitors, who looked to erase the memory of a 4-1 defeat earlier in the week to Mt. Carmel, found little space on the rare occasion they found themselves with the ball in the Wolfpack end. When they did, back four of the home side would have none of it and allowed nothing dangerous to reach keeper Keenan Troy.
"Our plan was to pressure them as much as we could, and not allow them to possess or knock the ball around. And in the first half, we did a very good job of doing that," said senior Eduardo Lopez, who along with his mates won a high percentage of first and second balls in the middle of the park, while effectively slowing the Loyola (9-5-0, 3-3-0) down to a crawl.
"(Their) pressure in the midfield was a big difference in the first half," admitted Loyola senior and co-captain Jonas Madison. "While we, on the other hand, left a lot of open space for them to play through, which is where they built a lot of their attack from."
As the confidence of the home side continued to build after the quarter hour, so did their half-chances and other opportunities on frame.
Daniel Fernandez went over the woodwork in the 28th minute, but it was some very economical play in the build-up to the attempt which was most impressive.
Moments later, Fernandez linked up with Owen Allen, and an attempt from the senior forced Loyola keeper Frank Baio into action.
Baio would make the first of three brilliant saves in the match. A late stab with his left glove hand from the sophomore denied Allen an upper-90 goal.
"Frank was amazing for us tonight. (He) kept us in the game and gave us a chance. It's too bad they put two in on him, because neither one was his fault," said Madison.
Despite the dominance of St. Ignatius dominance up to this point, it was the Ramblers who nearly grabbed the opening goal.
Collin Leider's terrific early ball to Ford Peterson saw his attempt initially stopped by Troy but the saved ball spilled freely to his right.
Leider, who never stopped running, collected the ball and sent his rebound shot the other way of Troy, who despite being wrong-footed during this exchange stayed with low shot to make the save.
St. Ignatius' Lopez and Allen were the architects for a Keith Bevans goal in the 40th minute. The Wolfpack duo moved the ball so quickly, it looked as though it were on a string between the two.
Once free for just a moment, Bevans found a way to steer his back post shot with a sublime finish.
Those are always tough goals to give up right before the half, agreed both Lopez and Fernandez.
The Loyola coaching staff made a couple of key tactical changes during the intermission that would pay immediate dividends once the second period got underway.
"One thing for sure is we knew we had to pressure no. 18 (Fernandez) much more because he was distributing and attacking so well in that first half. In our attack, we had to attack more on the outside," offered Fisher.
"I thought we did on both counts."
"Yes, we were so predictable in that first half. We were playing everything into the middle and made it easy for Ignatius to defend," began Leider, who was dynamic in his role after Fisher pushed him forward for the final 40 minutes.
"Our attack was so much better in the second half, we connected passes, finally possessed the ball real well, but in the end, we just didn't finish our chances when they came."
Sixty seconds into the new half, Leider dragged his shot wide after his mates Nick Lew and Tommy Zipprich did all the preliminary work in order for the junior to have a go.
Lew, who all through the first half was the lone forward in the Ramblers formations, took a licking and kept on ticking as he worked hard to create, hold and track back to defend in the middle of the park when it was warranted.
The difference between winning first and second balls, something in which the home side did at a very high percentage rate in the first half, was evident of just how dominating the Wolfpack was in the opening 40 minutes.
Loyola turned that dominance in its favor in the second half. Quicker touches and a more clinical effort demonstrated their ability to play at a much higher level than they did in the first half.
"We needed to be more consistent today, and not play two entirely difference halves of soccer. The second half we played really well, and that was the message after the game to the boys," said Fisher.
Baio was brilliant once again, this time in the 68th minute when a long free kick from Carlos Sierra fell into the box where Lopez unleashed a wicked attempt -- only to see the Loyola keeper make an extraordinary stop of what looked like a sure goal.
Loyola created two corners, plus a deep throw as it continued its search to find the equalizer, but a spectacular goal from Quinn Troy dashed their hopes of getting even six minutes from time.
That's when a marvelous ball over the top from Fernandez set Troy free. As the senior roared up the flank and pulled Baio off his line for a challenge, he made a touch to his left in full gallop and then finish neatly into the now open net.
"High school soccer comes down to a handful of things when all things are equal: set piece and dead balls, clearance of (both) and finishing. We struggled in all three today," said a reflective Leider.
St. Ignatius defended its home turf.
"When we had to be sharp, we were, so it was a very good win for us," added Fernandez, who earned Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match for his efforts.
Said Lopez: "We have a lot of respect for our rivals such as Loyola, and a lot of pride in ourselves. And that's something we tried to show today with the way we played."
Loyola will take on Fenwick in its league finale on Tuesday, before beginning to tune-up for the postseason with games at Chicago Public League member Jones, followed by Maine East of the Central Suburban League on October 11.
St. Ignatius stayed alive in the conference race with the victory. If the Wolfpack want to defend their league title, they must defeat Mt. Carmel on Tuesday at Fornelli Field.
The prelude to that game is a tough assignment against no. 9 Oak Park and River Forest at home Saturday (September 30). In its last 17 days of the regular season, St. Ignatius play a demanding eight matches.
The heavy workload didn't distact from the satisfaction of the well-earned win versus Loyola.
"When I came here we were in the midst of losing three straight to Loyola, close results but nonetheless losses," said Kearns.
"The last three seasons we've turned that around with (now) three shutout wins in a row, 3-0, 1-0 and 2-0 today, and that's something we're proud of because Loyola has always been a first-rate soccer program.
"Our first half was much better than the first, but you've got to give credit to Loyola with the way they came out after the break."
"We had two very nice goals -- their keeper was terrific in stopping a couple of others. But as you saw, when we have a strong work rate, and play quick, fast and simple soccer, we can be very good."
Starting lineups
Loyola (4-5-1 starting formation)
GK- Frank Baio
D- Brady Reichert
D- Jonas Madison
D- Daniel Montaquila
D- Luke Phillips
M- Tommy Zipprich
M- Collin Leider
M- Michael Sullivan
M- Andrew Hoepfner
M- Christian Jimenez
F- Nick Lew
St. Ignatius (4-5-1)
GK- Keenan Troy
D- Carlos Sierra
D- Christian Telles
D- Jack Galante
D- Connor Broeking
M- Dan Kacey
M- Daniel Fernandez
M- Rudy Bieglmeier
M- Jason Pratt
M- Misha Simon
F- Eduardo Lopez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Daniel Fernandez, so., MF, St. Ignatius
Referee: Bill Stamper
Scoring summary
St. Ignatius
Bevans (Allen, Lopez) 40'
Troy (Fernandez) 74'