Goals go in with the wind
in Lyons win over Libertyville
Lions score 2-0 victory in Morton's Premier Invitational
By Matt Le Cren
BERWYN – Lyons experimented with a 3-5-2 formation on Friday and it gave defender Daniel Svelnis two important tasks.
“I was kind of an outside mid,” Svelnis said. “I had to defend the back post and then score at the other post.
“So, I did my job.”
Indeed, he did. Svelnis recorded his first varsity goal and helped the Lions record their fifth shutout of the season in a 2-0 win over Libertyville at Morton’s Premier Invitational.
Lyons (7-1-3), ranked seventh in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, got all the scoring it needed in the first 10 minutes as Haris Sarajlija and Svelnis found the back of the net six-minutes apart.
“First half we had the wind, so it really helped us be on their half,” Sarajlija said. “In that first 15 minutes we had that huge advantage because of the wind. We could have scored another two.
“It gave us a lot of confidence going forward. We didn’t have to worry about them scoring. Being up two goals gave us comfort.”
Sarajlija got things started when he pounced on a rebound just outside the top of the box and blasted a shot past Libertyville goalkeeper Ben Graditor at the 36:59 mark. It was his fourth goal of the season.
“It was a clearance,” Sarajlija said. “I took a touch outside the box and hit it.”
Six minutes later, the Lions tallied what coach Paul Labbato called “the best goal we’ve scored all year.”
Svelnis ended an impressive buildup by getting to a ball just inside the 6 and sending it through traffic into the net.
“We managed to work it through the midfield and get it to Larry (Martinez), who is our striker,” Svelnis said. “He was on the other edge of the box, and I saw him gearing up for the pass to cross it.
“So I kind of backed out from where I was. I came to where I was in the six-yard box, controlled it with my left and shot it. And it got through.
“It felt great. I loved the feeling.”
Labbato loved it, too.
“We’re very proud of how hard he worked in that spot,” Labbato said.
The Lions hadn’t played since Sept. 11, so Labbato channeled his inner Bill Belichick and got the Lions prepared to try out the new formation, which is a change from their usual 4-3-3 alignment.
“We played that formation all summer,” Labbato said of the 3-5-2. “We went back to kind of what we like, and then we had all this week off.
“So, it was a good week to install another formation and try it out at the end of the week.”
The Lions, who finished the invite with a win over host Morton on Saturday, didn’t have any problems defending out of the 3-5-2. Fullbacks Colin Sullivan, Jackson Rempfer and Igor Chrobotowicz were solid in front of goalkeeper Connor Schmitt.
It was a continuation of a run of strong defensive play by the Lions, who haven’t allowed more than one goal in a game since a season-opening 2-2 tie with Sandburg.
Svelnis said that draw was a wake-up call.
“Sandburg, they’re a good team, but we don’t like giving away two goals,” Svelnis said. “We needed to defend more and stay focused and work hard.”
The Lions did that despite again making the transition from their home grass field to a synthetic field.
“We don’t train on turf,” Labbato said. “It’s so fast.
“Our kids are technical, and when you don’t play on this, it just comes at you so fast that we just struggle a little bit on turf.”
That wasn’t the case this time around. Instead, the Lions made the Wildcats (6-6-0) struggle, especially defending set pieces.
“I was telling these guys, I know they’re big on their set pieces,” Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm said. “We have a backup goalie who is trying his heart out, but he’s still trying to learn.
“He didn’t come off his line, and it landed in the six. And the other one we just didn’t clear, and the guy had a nice shot.”
Senior goalkeeper Eli Johnson is out with a broken wrist and will miss at least three weeks, meaning Graditor will get plenty of practice to hone his craft.
He’s not the only player gaining experience for the Wildcats.
“I got everybody into the game, so we were just trying to see what kids can do,” Thunholm said. “I thought our starters played really well, other than the first 10 minutes.
“For the most part, I thought we played really well. We had an opportunity in the first half, but the kid hit the scoreboard.”
The Wildcats were playing the second of three games in less than 48 hours. They beat Waukegan in a conference game Thursday night, and later lost to Benet 2-0 on Saturday morning.
“I’m proud of the guys of how they fought after Thursday night,” Thunholm said. “We beat Waukegan, so we were kind of focusing on the conference game.
“I’d like to get the win, so that they know they can beat Lyons, but I got everybody in.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK: Connor Schmitt
D: Colin Sullivan
D: Jackson Rempfer
D: Igor Chrobotowicz
M: Patrick Kracker
M: Joe Mazurowski
M: Daniel Svelnis
M: Will Swicionis
F: Haris Sarajlija
F: Larry Martinez
F: Brian Salvino
Libertyville
GK: Ben Graditor
D: Henry Brown
D: Jack Huber
D: Jake Berlowski
D: Nick Snow
D: C.J. Villani
M: Andrew Slago
M: Andrew Phillips
M: Cole Danner
M Alek LaRoi
F: Mateo Portillo
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Haris Sarajlija, jr., F, Lyons.
Scoring summary
First half
Lyons – Haris Sarajlija 36:59 remaining
Lyons – Daniel Svelnis 30:57 remaining
in Lyons win over Libertyville
Lions score 2-0 victory in Morton's Premier Invitational
By Matt Le Cren
BERWYN – Lyons experimented with a 3-5-2 formation on Friday and it gave defender Daniel Svelnis two important tasks.
“I was kind of an outside mid,” Svelnis said. “I had to defend the back post and then score at the other post.
“So, I did my job.”
Indeed, he did. Svelnis recorded his first varsity goal and helped the Lions record their fifth shutout of the season in a 2-0 win over Libertyville at Morton’s Premier Invitational.
Lyons (7-1-3), ranked seventh in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, got all the scoring it needed in the first 10 minutes as Haris Sarajlija and Svelnis found the back of the net six-minutes apart.
“First half we had the wind, so it really helped us be on their half,” Sarajlija said. “In that first 15 minutes we had that huge advantage because of the wind. We could have scored another two.
“It gave us a lot of confidence going forward. We didn’t have to worry about them scoring. Being up two goals gave us comfort.”
Sarajlija got things started when he pounced on a rebound just outside the top of the box and blasted a shot past Libertyville goalkeeper Ben Graditor at the 36:59 mark. It was his fourth goal of the season.
“It was a clearance,” Sarajlija said. “I took a touch outside the box and hit it.”
Six minutes later, the Lions tallied what coach Paul Labbato called “the best goal we’ve scored all year.”
Svelnis ended an impressive buildup by getting to a ball just inside the 6 and sending it through traffic into the net.
“We managed to work it through the midfield and get it to Larry (Martinez), who is our striker,” Svelnis said. “He was on the other edge of the box, and I saw him gearing up for the pass to cross it.
“So I kind of backed out from where I was. I came to where I was in the six-yard box, controlled it with my left and shot it. And it got through.
“It felt great. I loved the feeling.”
Labbato loved it, too.
“We’re very proud of how hard he worked in that spot,” Labbato said.
The Lions hadn’t played since Sept. 11, so Labbato channeled his inner Bill Belichick and got the Lions prepared to try out the new formation, which is a change from their usual 4-3-3 alignment.
“We played that formation all summer,” Labbato said of the 3-5-2. “We went back to kind of what we like, and then we had all this week off.
“So, it was a good week to install another formation and try it out at the end of the week.”
The Lions, who finished the invite with a win over host Morton on Saturday, didn’t have any problems defending out of the 3-5-2. Fullbacks Colin Sullivan, Jackson Rempfer and Igor Chrobotowicz were solid in front of goalkeeper Connor Schmitt.
It was a continuation of a run of strong defensive play by the Lions, who haven’t allowed more than one goal in a game since a season-opening 2-2 tie with Sandburg.
Svelnis said that draw was a wake-up call.
“Sandburg, they’re a good team, but we don’t like giving away two goals,” Svelnis said. “We needed to defend more and stay focused and work hard.”
The Lions did that despite again making the transition from their home grass field to a synthetic field.
“We don’t train on turf,” Labbato said. “It’s so fast.
“Our kids are technical, and when you don’t play on this, it just comes at you so fast that we just struggle a little bit on turf.”
That wasn’t the case this time around. Instead, the Lions made the Wildcats (6-6-0) struggle, especially defending set pieces.
“I was telling these guys, I know they’re big on their set pieces,” Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm said. “We have a backup goalie who is trying his heart out, but he’s still trying to learn.
“He didn’t come off his line, and it landed in the six. And the other one we just didn’t clear, and the guy had a nice shot.”
Senior goalkeeper Eli Johnson is out with a broken wrist and will miss at least three weeks, meaning Graditor will get plenty of practice to hone his craft.
He’s not the only player gaining experience for the Wildcats.
“I got everybody into the game, so we were just trying to see what kids can do,” Thunholm said. “I thought our starters played really well, other than the first 10 minutes.
“For the most part, I thought we played really well. We had an opportunity in the first half, but the kid hit the scoreboard.”
The Wildcats were playing the second of three games in less than 48 hours. They beat Waukegan in a conference game Thursday night, and later lost to Benet 2-0 on Saturday morning.
“I’m proud of the guys of how they fought after Thursday night,” Thunholm said. “We beat Waukegan, so we were kind of focusing on the conference game.
“I’d like to get the win, so that they know they can beat Lyons, but I got everybody in.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK: Connor Schmitt
D: Colin Sullivan
D: Jackson Rempfer
D: Igor Chrobotowicz
M: Patrick Kracker
M: Joe Mazurowski
M: Daniel Svelnis
M: Will Swicionis
F: Haris Sarajlija
F: Larry Martinez
F: Brian Salvino
Libertyville
GK: Ben Graditor
D: Henry Brown
D: Jack Huber
D: Jake Berlowski
D: Nick Snow
D: C.J. Villani
M: Andrew Slago
M: Andrew Phillips
M: Cole Danner
M Alek LaRoi
F: Mateo Portillo
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Haris Sarajlija, jr., F, Lyons.
Scoring summary
First half
Lyons – Haris Sarajlija 36:59 remaining
Lyons – Daniel Svelnis 30:57 remaining