Taft on road back after tough tourney run
Eagles control destiny in 1st Division after 3-1 victory over Mather
By Mike Garofola
CHICAGO -- Alexis Sanchez and Melvin Zamora helped steady Taft's teetering ship with impressive style and combined to score all the Eagles goals in a 3-1 Chicago Public League First Division victory over rival Mather on a steamy Thursday afternoon on the northwest side of Chicago.
The win is the second straight for the Eagles (6-5-3, 3-1-1), who had recently endured a four-game stretch were its attack went south, and its morale took a hit after the club was found to be reading far too much into its appearance in an edition of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 ranking.
"We were too full of ourselves," admitted an honest Zamora, after he and his mates did a quick, and off-key, rendition of Happy Birthday to their manager, Jeff Lucco, after surviving the sweltering heat at their home park alongside the Kennedy Expressway.
"Yes, Marvin is right (we) went into our first ever PepsiCo Showdown tournament with a great record, and we thought we would go through our opponents easily. Well, all of our eyes were opened pretty quickly," added Sanchez.
The two seniors, along with their teammates soon had a reality check when it lost 3-0 to state power Waukegan in its PepsiCo opener, before proceeding to drop their next three Showdown games to crawl out of the two-weekend tourney 0-4-0 and 4-5-3 overall.
"If there's such a thing as a good loss (or) good losses, what happened to us at the PepsiCo is all good," continued Sanchez, who was named Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match for his efforts.
"How we played during that tournament opened everyone's eyes, because now we know what the competition is like with some of the bigger and better 3A schools. So we now know what level we need to be at when the city playoffs begin soon."
All of this is music to the ears of Lucco who admits there was some concern after watching his men struggle during that aforementioned four-game slide
"We all had high expectations coming into this season, and we got ourselves off to a very good start. I think all of us felt honored to be placed in the highest bracket of the PepsiCo Showdown.
"But Waukegan brought us down to earth, and during those next three tournament games we had so much trouble scoring. We either couldn't hold a lead, or we had to chase the lead, and our response to all of that wasn't were it needed to be."
Lucco said the best medicine for his ailing club was to chill -- just hang out with more laid back training sessions.
Apparently the idea worked.
The Eagles bounced back with a 2-0 victory over Prosser on Tuesday, which, along with the result it enjoyed over Mather, helps put Lucco's club back on the fast track.
"We control our own destiny now in the CPL, so if we win out, we're going to be in very good shape for the Public League playoffs which begin in the first week of October."
There was plenty of offensive zeal and purpose during the first quarter hour from the Eagles (6-5-1, 3-1-1) who began to demonstrate the greater guile than their opponents, who were unable to put a lasso around Ilyas Boukrim, Kacper Spiewak, Patrick Knap and Sanchez, who played with a lot of pace and energy, and were all dangerous during this time.
A clever flick from Boukrim allowed Jakub Lupinski the best chance thus far, but the sophomore fired over the bar at 16 minutes.
Taft took the lead with a scruffy goal three minutes later.
Boukrim was the architect with some terrific dribbling before unleashing a nasty attempt at Mather keeper Christopher Martinez.
The save crashed off the post and spilled free of the six-yard box where Sanchez, who never stopped running, steered in his close-range shot despite a valiant effort to block from Mather's Leonel Sanchez, who was injured on the play when he collided with the post.
Sanchez was helped off and did not return.
"Our coaches tell us to keep following the play or a shot, and to never stop running. And that's how I was able to score on that," Alexis Sanchez said.
Both managers brought on many of their reserves to combat the intense heat and humidity, and the fresh legs paid dividends from time-to-time.
Freshmen Brandon Tovar would have one on frame in the 26th minute, and also created a long throw for the Eagles moments later. A long throw from Zamora was allowed to fall inside the box and was easily hauled in by Martinez.
"Alexis, who is a four-year starter and Melvin are two guys we have really leaned on, and they've responded to whatever we have asked them to do to become a couple of players who are key to our success," said Lucco.
With the home side dominating most of the play as the intermission would draw closer, Knap nearly doubled the Taft advantage when his 24-yard free kick curled around the Mather wall but was neatly saved by Martinez.
Off the second half whistle, Zamora's snap-shot went just wide before a well-played combination sequence from Tovar and Zamora ended with Joshua Andreu dragging his shot over at 43 minutes.
Sixty second later, a Tovar corner sailed into the Mather box and if not for a strong effort in the air from Martinez to punch away this dangerous serve - the home side may have had a wonderful change to add to the scoreline.
Two minutes later, the Eagles did just that.
Center back Marek Klimek served Zamora with a long 50-yard free kick that caught the Mather defense up too high and left its keeper in no-man's land back on his line.
A late charge from the junior proved costly when Zamora's decision to chip the onrushing Martinez resulted in the second goal of the afternoon in the 46th minute.
"Those first two goals were gifted to Taft, and they full advantage of their opportunities," aid Mather manager Henry Rahana.
But the Eagles allowed the visitors to get back in the contest one minute later to fuel a frantic final thirty-minutes plus.
A foul near the top of the box put Leonard Nicolae over the ball, and the junior drove his 25-yard free kick into the upper right corner and beyond the reach of Eagles keeper Pablo Rueda.
"Just a great hit from that young man, (there) was nothing Pablo could do about that one," said Lucco.
Mather attacked with the urgency of the affronted and had to regret its relatively passive play in the first half when they conceded far too much possession and many half-chances which kept them in their end for nearly all of the first 40 minutes.
"We didn't do much of anything in that first half, but we were so much better after the break. But that third goal they got, which was a beautiful goal, took a lot out of us," admitted Rahana.
The Rangers would go with three up-top for the final 26 minutes as they went looking to get back level. With a lot of the play going through Kilmar Alvarez-Orellana, it looked as though the visitors just might find the equalizer before time.
The talented Rangers forward darted between two Taft players before testing Rueta, then ran onto a looping ball over the top from Jesus Rodriguez and forced Rueta to make a goal-saving stop in the 61st minute.
However, when the visitors allowed Sanchez space to tee-off on a 35-yard attempt, the senior sent a guided missile off the gloves of Martinez and into the back of the net to increase the advantage at 65 minutes.
"I saw that I was unmarked and open, so I just took the shot," said Sanchez with a slight smile.
The momentum of the game swung back in favor of the home side after the Eagles' third and final goal of the game. Taft kept the Rangers at bay the rest of the way with some stout play along the back, and an occasional counter to keep their guests on its heels.
"We needed another win this week, so it was good to get one. But we still have some things we have to clean up for us to be okay for the rest of the way," offered Zamora.
"Maybe after that breakdown we had at the Pepsi, we can now go back to being the underdog, instead of the team everyone is looking forward to play and beating," said Lucco.
"I think for now, that's the role that's best for us, and one that will make us a more competitive team once the Public League playoffs begin."
Taft will play league games with Curie and Lincoln Park next week, while Mather (4-7-2, 2-3-1) faces Lincoln Park on Tuesday at home, before finishing up its regular season at Niles West on September 28.
Starting lineups
Mather (4-4-2 starting formation)
GK- Christopher Martinez
D- Leonel Sanchez
D- Kilmar Alvarez
D- Jonathan Delacruz
D- Jesus Rodriguez
M- Rafki Ismael
M- Jesse Alcantar
M- Daniel Strango
M- Daniel Ruiz
F- Kevin Munoz
F- Kilmar Alvarez
Taft (3-5-2)
GK- Pablo Rueda
D- Mateusz Koziara
D- Marek Klimek
D- Byron Abaaya
M- Filipo Maida
M- Kacper Spiewak
M- Patrick Knap
M- Alexis Sanchez
M- Sergio Diaz
F- Ilyas Boukrim
F- Jakub Lapinski
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Alexis Sanchez, sr., MF, Taft
Officials: Damion Rozkuska;Sergio Villages
Scoring summary
Taft: Sanchez (Boukrim) 18', Zamora (Klimak) 46', Sanchez (U/A).
Mather: Nicolae (FK) 47'.
Eagles control destiny in 1st Division after 3-1 victory over Mather
By Mike Garofola
CHICAGO -- Alexis Sanchez and Melvin Zamora helped steady Taft's teetering ship with impressive style and combined to score all the Eagles goals in a 3-1 Chicago Public League First Division victory over rival Mather on a steamy Thursday afternoon on the northwest side of Chicago.
The win is the second straight for the Eagles (6-5-3, 3-1-1), who had recently endured a four-game stretch were its attack went south, and its morale took a hit after the club was found to be reading far too much into its appearance in an edition of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 ranking.
"We were too full of ourselves," admitted an honest Zamora, after he and his mates did a quick, and off-key, rendition of Happy Birthday to their manager, Jeff Lucco, after surviving the sweltering heat at their home park alongside the Kennedy Expressway.
"Yes, Marvin is right (we) went into our first ever PepsiCo Showdown tournament with a great record, and we thought we would go through our opponents easily. Well, all of our eyes were opened pretty quickly," added Sanchez.
The two seniors, along with their teammates soon had a reality check when it lost 3-0 to state power Waukegan in its PepsiCo opener, before proceeding to drop their next three Showdown games to crawl out of the two-weekend tourney 0-4-0 and 4-5-3 overall.
"If there's such a thing as a good loss (or) good losses, what happened to us at the PepsiCo is all good," continued Sanchez, who was named Chicagoland Soccer's Man of the Match for his efforts.
"How we played during that tournament opened everyone's eyes, because now we know what the competition is like with some of the bigger and better 3A schools. So we now know what level we need to be at when the city playoffs begin soon."
All of this is music to the ears of Lucco who admits there was some concern after watching his men struggle during that aforementioned four-game slide
"We all had high expectations coming into this season, and we got ourselves off to a very good start. I think all of us felt honored to be placed in the highest bracket of the PepsiCo Showdown.
"But Waukegan brought us down to earth, and during those next three tournament games we had so much trouble scoring. We either couldn't hold a lead, or we had to chase the lead, and our response to all of that wasn't were it needed to be."
Lucco said the best medicine for his ailing club was to chill -- just hang out with more laid back training sessions.
Apparently the idea worked.
The Eagles bounced back with a 2-0 victory over Prosser on Tuesday, which, along with the result it enjoyed over Mather, helps put Lucco's club back on the fast track.
"We control our own destiny now in the CPL, so if we win out, we're going to be in very good shape for the Public League playoffs which begin in the first week of October."
There was plenty of offensive zeal and purpose during the first quarter hour from the Eagles (6-5-1, 3-1-1) who began to demonstrate the greater guile than their opponents, who were unable to put a lasso around Ilyas Boukrim, Kacper Spiewak, Patrick Knap and Sanchez, who played with a lot of pace and energy, and were all dangerous during this time.
A clever flick from Boukrim allowed Jakub Lupinski the best chance thus far, but the sophomore fired over the bar at 16 minutes.
Taft took the lead with a scruffy goal three minutes later.
Boukrim was the architect with some terrific dribbling before unleashing a nasty attempt at Mather keeper Christopher Martinez.
The save crashed off the post and spilled free of the six-yard box where Sanchez, who never stopped running, steered in his close-range shot despite a valiant effort to block from Mather's Leonel Sanchez, who was injured on the play when he collided with the post.
Sanchez was helped off and did not return.
"Our coaches tell us to keep following the play or a shot, and to never stop running. And that's how I was able to score on that," Alexis Sanchez said.
Both managers brought on many of their reserves to combat the intense heat and humidity, and the fresh legs paid dividends from time-to-time.
Freshmen Brandon Tovar would have one on frame in the 26th minute, and also created a long throw for the Eagles moments later. A long throw from Zamora was allowed to fall inside the box and was easily hauled in by Martinez.
"Alexis, who is a four-year starter and Melvin are two guys we have really leaned on, and they've responded to whatever we have asked them to do to become a couple of players who are key to our success," said Lucco.
With the home side dominating most of the play as the intermission would draw closer, Knap nearly doubled the Taft advantage when his 24-yard free kick curled around the Mather wall but was neatly saved by Martinez.
Off the second half whistle, Zamora's snap-shot went just wide before a well-played combination sequence from Tovar and Zamora ended with Joshua Andreu dragging his shot over at 43 minutes.
Sixty second later, a Tovar corner sailed into the Mather box and if not for a strong effort in the air from Martinez to punch away this dangerous serve - the home side may have had a wonderful change to add to the scoreline.
Two minutes later, the Eagles did just that.
Center back Marek Klimek served Zamora with a long 50-yard free kick that caught the Mather defense up too high and left its keeper in no-man's land back on his line.
A late charge from the junior proved costly when Zamora's decision to chip the onrushing Martinez resulted in the second goal of the afternoon in the 46th minute.
"Those first two goals were gifted to Taft, and they full advantage of their opportunities," aid Mather manager Henry Rahana.
But the Eagles allowed the visitors to get back in the contest one minute later to fuel a frantic final thirty-minutes plus.
A foul near the top of the box put Leonard Nicolae over the ball, and the junior drove his 25-yard free kick into the upper right corner and beyond the reach of Eagles keeper Pablo Rueda.
"Just a great hit from that young man, (there) was nothing Pablo could do about that one," said Lucco.
Mather attacked with the urgency of the affronted and had to regret its relatively passive play in the first half when they conceded far too much possession and many half-chances which kept them in their end for nearly all of the first 40 minutes.
"We didn't do much of anything in that first half, but we were so much better after the break. But that third goal they got, which was a beautiful goal, took a lot out of us," admitted Rahana.
The Rangers would go with three up-top for the final 26 minutes as they went looking to get back level. With a lot of the play going through Kilmar Alvarez-Orellana, it looked as though the visitors just might find the equalizer before time.
The talented Rangers forward darted between two Taft players before testing Rueta, then ran onto a looping ball over the top from Jesus Rodriguez and forced Rueta to make a goal-saving stop in the 61st minute.
However, when the visitors allowed Sanchez space to tee-off on a 35-yard attempt, the senior sent a guided missile off the gloves of Martinez and into the back of the net to increase the advantage at 65 minutes.
"I saw that I was unmarked and open, so I just took the shot," said Sanchez with a slight smile.
The momentum of the game swung back in favor of the home side after the Eagles' third and final goal of the game. Taft kept the Rangers at bay the rest of the way with some stout play along the back, and an occasional counter to keep their guests on its heels.
"We needed another win this week, so it was good to get one. But we still have some things we have to clean up for us to be okay for the rest of the way," offered Zamora.
"Maybe after that breakdown we had at the Pepsi, we can now go back to being the underdog, instead of the team everyone is looking forward to play and beating," said Lucco.
"I think for now, that's the role that's best for us, and one that will make us a more competitive team once the Public League playoffs begin."
Taft will play league games with Curie and Lincoln Park next week, while Mather (4-7-2, 2-3-1) faces Lincoln Park on Tuesday at home, before finishing up its regular season at Niles West on September 28.
Starting lineups
Mather (4-4-2 starting formation)
GK- Christopher Martinez
D- Leonel Sanchez
D- Kilmar Alvarez
D- Jonathan Delacruz
D- Jesus Rodriguez
M- Rafki Ismael
M- Jesse Alcantar
M- Daniel Strango
M- Daniel Ruiz
F- Kevin Munoz
F- Kilmar Alvarez
Taft (3-5-2)
GK- Pablo Rueda
D- Mateusz Koziara
D- Marek Klimek
D- Byron Abaaya
M- Filipo Maida
M- Kacper Spiewak
M- Patrick Knap
M- Alexis Sanchez
M- Sergio Diaz
F- Ilyas Boukrim
F- Jakub Lapinski
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Alexis Sanchez, sr., MF, Taft
Officials: Damion Rozkuska;Sergio Villages
Scoring summary
Taft: Sanchez (Boukrim) 18', Zamora (Klimak) 46', Sanchez (U/A).
Mather: Nicolae (FK) 47'.