Cronnolly's hat-trick propels
Maine South past Maine East
Senior's late insurance goals provide relief, 4-1 win
By Michael Wojtychiw
PARK RIDGE - Maine South did something in the first week of the season against Maine East that it did only three times last season: score four or more goals in a single game.
Unlike the 2019 season when it took the Hawks to their 10th game to accomplish the feat, they were able to do it in their second game, when they took down their crosstown rivals 4-1 at home.
"The goal certainly tonight was to get out to a quick start," Maine South manager Dan States said. "Sometimes when you get a two-goal lead, though, you get complacent and that's exactly what happened to us.
"We got in a comfort zone, and Maine East is well-coached and resilient and showed some energy and kept fighting. They weren't going to let us take it easy and forced our guys to bring their 'A' game."
After taking down Vernon Hills 1-0 with a goal in the last 30 seconds earlier in the week, the Maine South squad knew that to win games, it would need to score early to put the pressure on its opponents.
That's exactly what the Hawks, ranked 36th in Chicagoland Soccer's First 50 preseason state-wide poll, did with two goals in the match's first nine minutes.
David Skorupa got the scoring started when he streaked down the right side of the field and snuck a ball past Maine East keeper Ramy Atia at three minutes, 19 seconds into the game.
Exactly five minutes later, John Cronnolly, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, scored the first of his three goals, giving the Maine South the quick lead it had been looking for.
"As coach said before the game, 'Get on top of them from the beginning, and you never look back. Don't give them any chance to breathe,'" Cronnolly said. "We kind of let them back into it at the end of the half, but we regrouped and were able to finish them off late in the game."
After the first 10 or so minutes of the match, Maine East started to settle into the match, connecting with more passes and getting farther down the field and deeper into the Hawks' defense.
Part of that reasoning could be because of the fact the Demons switched to a 3-5-2 formation from their 4-4-2 they had played in previous seasons.
"I think the slow start was due to a number of things, really," Maine East manager Jeff Bishop said. "I think some of it may have been a little bit of nerves, but also they're adjusting to playing a new formation, and they've really only been doing it for a week or so.
"We switched it up this year based on the personnel we have and what we felt gave us the best opportunity to be successful on the pitch."
The Blue Demons' persistence paid off when Joey Vertino put a ball past Maine South keeper Tommy Prokos with 3:48 remaining in the half, cutting the lead to 2-1 going into halftime.
"Our confidence increased throughout the game," Maine East's Sebi Onis said. "We started moving the ball more, which put more trust in each other. That helped us get upfield more and get more chances to put the ball on goal.
"Everything is a learning process. We all need to learn our roles, communicate. Throughout the season, we'll get it down eventually. We showed some great perseverance though and fought with a hard side tonight."
Even though the Blue Demons had the momentum going into the half, the second half started much like the first, with Maine South putting pressure on Atia. But this time they were unable to connect.
But like the previous half, Maine East got more comfortable after about 10 minutes in the half and started to put pressure onto Prokos. Still, the team didn't have its best second half scoring chance until 4:22 remained in the match when Onis stepped into the box to attempt a game-tying penalty kick.
Prokos saved the shot and preserved the lead.
"The pressure with the PK was tough, especially in this game," Prokos said. "With the game 2-1, you had to make a stop or else, obviously it's a tie game. You lose momentum, and they gain momentum, so at the end of the day you have to save it and give your team the momentum to finish the game and just pull through to get your team the win like we did tonight."
"We practice PKs in practice all the time and he makes at least 50 percent of those saves, so I'm pretty confident in him every time," Cronnolly said. "I've been playing with him (Prokos) for a long time so I know what he's capable of and know what he can do in those situations."
Not to be outdone, however, the Hawks earned a penalty of their own with 2:54 remaining and Cronnolly notched his second tally of the game. The senior put the game away 15 seconds later with his third and final goal.
"I don't really have a set area I try to aim for when I go up for a PK." Cronnolly said. "I just go up there, get a feeling in my stomach, try to hit my spot and hopefully the keeper doesn't save it."
Maine South continues its stretch of district games when it hosts Maine West next Tuesday, while Maine East travels to Glenbrook North that same day.
Starting lineups
Maine South
GK: Tommy Prokos
D: Jack Winkler
D: Matt Skorupa
D: Zach Quinlivan
D/MF: Ryan Downing
MF: Jackson Wambach
MF: David Skorupa
MF: John Cronnolly
MF: Gianfranco Grimaldi
MF/F: Andrew Mashni
F: Stefan Iricanin
Maine East
GK: Ramy Atia
D: Jose Gutierrez
D: Edwin Manzano
D: Maddox Henry
D: Sebi Onis
MF/F: Simon Aye
MF: Adam Daniel
MF: Ali Eidan
MF: Andrew Kong
MF: Gabbe Szorz
F: Joshua Vazquez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: John Cronnolly, sr., MF, Maine South
Scoring summary
First half
Maine South - David Skorupa - 4th minute
Maine South - Cronnolly - 10th minute
Maine East - Joey Vertino - 41st minute
Second half
Maine South - Cronnolly PK - 77th minute
Maine South - Cronnolly - 77th minute
--
Mike Wojtychiw
Cell: (773) 677-1758
email: [email protected]
Thanks!Got it.Got it, thanks!
Maine South past Maine East
Senior's late insurance goals provide relief, 4-1 win
By Michael Wojtychiw
PARK RIDGE - Maine South did something in the first week of the season against Maine East that it did only three times last season: score four or more goals in a single game.
Unlike the 2019 season when it took the Hawks to their 10th game to accomplish the feat, they were able to do it in their second game, when they took down their crosstown rivals 4-1 at home.
"The goal certainly tonight was to get out to a quick start," Maine South manager Dan States said. "Sometimes when you get a two-goal lead, though, you get complacent and that's exactly what happened to us.
"We got in a comfort zone, and Maine East is well-coached and resilient and showed some energy and kept fighting. They weren't going to let us take it easy and forced our guys to bring their 'A' game."
After taking down Vernon Hills 1-0 with a goal in the last 30 seconds earlier in the week, the Maine South squad knew that to win games, it would need to score early to put the pressure on its opponents.
That's exactly what the Hawks, ranked 36th in Chicagoland Soccer's First 50 preseason state-wide poll, did with two goals in the match's first nine minutes.
David Skorupa got the scoring started when he streaked down the right side of the field and snuck a ball past Maine East keeper Ramy Atia at three minutes, 19 seconds into the game.
Exactly five minutes later, John Cronnolly, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, scored the first of his three goals, giving the Maine South the quick lead it had been looking for.
"As coach said before the game, 'Get on top of them from the beginning, and you never look back. Don't give them any chance to breathe,'" Cronnolly said. "We kind of let them back into it at the end of the half, but we regrouped and were able to finish them off late in the game."
After the first 10 or so minutes of the match, Maine East started to settle into the match, connecting with more passes and getting farther down the field and deeper into the Hawks' defense.
Part of that reasoning could be because of the fact the Demons switched to a 3-5-2 formation from their 4-4-2 they had played in previous seasons.
"I think the slow start was due to a number of things, really," Maine East manager Jeff Bishop said. "I think some of it may have been a little bit of nerves, but also they're adjusting to playing a new formation, and they've really only been doing it for a week or so.
"We switched it up this year based on the personnel we have and what we felt gave us the best opportunity to be successful on the pitch."
The Blue Demons' persistence paid off when Joey Vertino put a ball past Maine South keeper Tommy Prokos with 3:48 remaining in the half, cutting the lead to 2-1 going into halftime.
"Our confidence increased throughout the game," Maine East's Sebi Onis said. "We started moving the ball more, which put more trust in each other. That helped us get upfield more and get more chances to put the ball on goal.
"Everything is a learning process. We all need to learn our roles, communicate. Throughout the season, we'll get it down eventually. We showed some great perseverance though and fought with a hard side tonight."
Even though the Blue Demons had the momentum going into the half, the second half started much like the first, with Maine South putting pressure on Atia. But this time they were unable to connect.
But like the previous half, Maine East got more comfortable after about 10 minutes in the half and started to put pressure onto Prokos. Still, the team didn't have its best second half scoring chance until 4:22 remained in the match when Onis stepped into the box to attempt a game-tying penalty kick.
Prokos saved the shot and preserved the lead.
"The pressure with the PK was tough, especially in this game," Prokos said. "With the game 2-1, you had to make a stop or else, obviously it's a tie game. You lose momentum, and they gain momentum, so at the end of the day you have to save it and give your team the momentum to finish the game and just pull through to get your team the win like we did tonight."
"We practice PKs in practice all the time and he makes at least 50 percent of those saves, so I'm pretty confident in him every time," Cronnolly said. "I've been playing with him (Prokos) for a long time so I know what he's capable of and know what he can do in those situations."
Not to be outdone, however, the Hawks earned a penalty of their own with 2:54 remaining and Cronnolly notched his second tally of the game. The senior put the game away 15 seconds later with his third and final goal.
"I don't really have a set area I try to aim for when I go up for a PK." Cronnolly said. "I just go up there, get a feeling in my stomach, try to hit my spot and hopefully the keeper doesn't save it."
Maine South continues its stretch of district games when it hosts Maine West next Tuesday, while Maine East travels to Glenbrook North that same day.
Starting lineups
Maine South
GK: Tommy Prokos
D: Jack Winkler
D: Matt Skorupa
D: Zach Quinlivan
D/MF: Ryan Downing
MF: Jackson Wambach
MF: David Skorupa
MF: John Cronnolly
MF: Gianfranco Grimaldi
MF/F: Andrew Mashni
F: Stefan Iricanin
Maine East
GK: Ramy Atia
D: Jose Gutierrez
D: Edwin Manzano
D: Maddox Henry
D: Sebi Onis
MF/F: Simon Aye
MF: Adam Daniel
MF: Ali Eidan
MF: Andrew Kong
MF: Gabbe Szorz
F: Joshua Vazquez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: John Cronnolly, sr., MF, Maine South
Scoring summary
First half
Maine South - David Skorupa - 4th minute
Maine South - Cronnolly - 10th minute
Maine East - Joey Vertino - 41st minute
Second half
Maine South - Cronnolly PK - 77th minute
Maine South - Cronnolly - 77th minute
--
Mike Wojtychiw
Cell: (773) 677-1758
email: [email protected]
Thanks!Got it.Got it, thanks!