Morton-Addison Trail tilt doesn't disappoint
Mustangs earn 7th-straight WSC Gold title via 2-1 win
By Gary Larsen
ADDISON -- After Morton’s 2-1 win over Addison Trail in Tuesday’s West Suburban Conference Gold Division title game, Morton’s Israel Carranza was proud of his teammates and applauded Addison Trail for bringing out the best in them.
But he was most grateful for a single, pivotal moment. “Thank God I scored that goal,” Carranza said.
The goal to which Carranza referred was the game-winner, a header at 61 minutes on a free kick sent in from Anarbol Barajas. It was a goal that effectively secured Morton’s seventh-consecutive Gold Division title.
Carranza knew that Addison Trail (14-5-0, 5-1-0) had no intention of allowing that conference title to come easy for Morton (17-2-1, 6-0-0).
“We knew this was going to be a tough one this year,” Carranza said. “Most of those guys are a part of my club team. It was a very competitive game. We know their style of play and they know ours so it was going to be hard to change something up.”
Addison Trail coach Ryan Dini predicted that with two rock-solid defenses on the field, finishing would be at a premium.
“They’re a top-rated team, and they finished. We had a couple chances, and it just wasn’t our day. But I’m happy with the effort,” Dini said. “I see a lot of hurt in our guys’ faces, and I just told them not to let this game define their season. Because if we play at this level, we should make some noise in the (state) playoffs.”
Addison Trail, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, led 1-0 at halftime against no. 3 Morton. The Blazers’ goal began with a free kick taken by Ernesto Padua from 60 yards out at 34 minutes.
Morton keeper Andruw Martinez left his line but couldn’t keep a handle on Padua’s long serve, and Addison Trail’s Leo Acosta was there to bury the deflection from eight yards.
Addison Trail nearly grabbed a 2-0 lead in the final minute of the first half, but Martinez dove to his left to save a shot from Addison Trail’s Melvin Mora that deflected off a defender.
Acosta’s goal capped a fine attacking performance by the Blazers, during the second 20 minutes of the first half. The first 20 minutes saw Morton hit a crossbar, and Addison Trail keeper Sam Sandoval make a kick save at 7 minutes on a Jesus Perez shot.
“We were a little tight in the beginning of the game, and (Sandoval) made a couple of big saves for us,” Dini said. “Then we started getting into the flow of the game, especially the last 20 minutes of the first half. We had some chances, and we finished on one of them.”
Morton hasn’t faced a ton of deficits this year, but the senior-heavy team never seemed ruffled on Tuesday.
“At halftime we talked about keeping our heads up,” Morton midfielder Andre Olvera said. “We’ve been down before, by one or two goals, and at the end of the day we were able to pull out the win. We knew from the beginning it was going to be a hard fight. We had to come out after halftime and perform and match their intensity.”
Morton coach Jim Bageanis was pleased with the way his boys responded after intermission.
“It’s not too many games where we’ve been down at halftime, so our guys had to dig deep,” he said. “We got aggressive, took more chances up-top, and it paid off to get the tying goal. Then we were riding some confidence.”
Morton’s tying goal came at 44 minutes, when Perez intercepted a clearing attempt and stretched the back netting from 16 yards.
Sandoval made a fine save on a deflected shot taken by Morton’s Cristian Perez at 56 minutes. Martinez fielded a long one-hopper from Mora at 59 minutes before a foul set up a Morton free kick from 40 yards near the right touchline at 61 minutes.
Barajas sent a perfect ball to the goalmouth, where Carranza was there to redirect it in with a head shot. The game-deciding goal earned Carranza Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“I told myself to go wherever the ball goes and do whatever I have to do,” Carranza said. “I just barely touched it. I got just enough of it. And I dedicate that goal to my mom and to the people that I love.”
Sandoval made a diving stop on Adrian Barrera at 65 minutes, and another on Cristian Perez at 75 minutes. With Addison Trail pushing numbers forward down the stretch, Martinez made a huge save in a crowded goalmouth in the game’s final minute to secure the victory for Morton.
“Neither team can say they didn’t have enough chances,” Bageanis said. “Everyone played well for us. One of our guys that started tonight who doesn’t normally start, Alex Sery, played real well. He was one of our outside mids, and he was very effective with his speed and got in a few times early. He had a good game.
“Saul Jaurez and Israel Carranza both played solid (defensively) and Andruw (Martinez) obviously made some huge saves.”
Addison Trail left the field disappointed but knowing they hung tough against one of Illinois’ best teams.
“(Morton) is a great team because they talk to each other, they fight through, and they keep fighting,” Addison Trail defender Eduardo Huerta said. “We fought throughout the game and tried to get the result. It just wasn’t our day. Now we have to learn from the experience, from our mistakes, and get better and fix those mistakes.”
Dini applauded Sandoval for his performance in net and was anything but disappointed in his side’s play.
“I liked what I saw,” Dini said.“We competed well and our defense has been solid all year. Trying to contain (Morton’s Jesus Perez and Adrian Barrera) is a tough, tough matchup, and I like the way we competed.
“Defensively, Eduardo Huerta was so good for us tonight. We can move him up at times, and he’s just one of those players who doesn’t say much. He’s just always exactly where he’s supposed to be. We’ve been lucky to have him back there for the last two years.”
Addison Trail hosts Hinsdale Central on Thursday in its final regular season game, before opening Class 3A regional play on Oct. 17 against Hoffman Estates. The Blazers are the no. 6 seed of the Addison Trail Sectional, and Hoffman Estates is seeded 12th.
Morton is the top seed of the Riverside-Brookfield Sectional. On Oct. 16, the regional host Morton opens play against the winner between no. 16 Lincoln Park and no. 17 Proviso West.
Tuesday’s game against Addison Trail featured a playoff atmosphere for visiting Morton.
“Overall, it was a good performance by the team,” Olvera said. “I think we’re ready (for the state playoffs) and now we want to keep working hard in practices.
“Our intensity has improved a lot. At the beginning of the year in practice we were maybe goofing off too much. But we all have a goal, half our team is seniors, and we want to leave high school with a state championship.”
Starting lineups
Addison Trail
GK Sam Sandoval
D Matthew Moran
D Martin Murillo
D Eduardo Huerta
D Joseph Macedo
MF Alexis Delapaz
MF Luis Silva
MF Julio Acosta
MF Eduardo Gomez
F Melvin Mora
F Anthony Hernandez
Morton
GK Andruw Martinez
D Israel Carranza
D Saul Juarez
D Jonathan Perez
D Anarbol Barajas
MF Alex Sery
MF Andre Olvera
MF Cristian Perez
MF Yobany Esparza
F Adrian Barrera
F Jesus Perez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Israel Carranza, sr., D, Morton
Scoring summary
First half
Addison Trail - L. Acosta (Padua) 34 minutes
Second half
Morton - J. Perez (UA) 44 minutes
Morton - Carranza (Barajas) 61 minutes
Mustangs earn 7th-straight WSC Gold title via 2-1 win
By Gary Larsen
ADDISON -- After Morton’s 2-1 win over Addison Trail in Tuesday’s West Suburban Conference Gold Division title game, Morton’s Israel Carranza was proud of his teammates and applauded Addison Trail for bringing out the best in them.
But he was most grateful for a single, pivotal moment. “Thank God I scored that goal,” Carranza said.
The goal to which Carranza referred was the game-winner, a header at 61 minutes on a free kick sent in from Anarbol Barajas. It was a goal that effectively secured Morton’s seventh-consecutive Gold Division title.
Carranza knew that Addison Trail (14-5-0, 5-1-0) had no intention of allowing that conference title to come easy for Morton (17-2-1, 6-0-0).
“We knew this was going to be a tough one this year,” Carranza said. “Most of those guys are a part of my club team. It was a very competitive game. We know their style of play and they know ours so it was going to be hard to change something up.”
Addison Trail coach Ryan Dini predicted that with two rock-solid defenses on the field, finishing would be at a premium.
“They’re a top-rated team, and they finished. We had a couple chances, and it just wasn’t our day. But I’m happy with the effort,” Dini said. “I see a lot of hurt in our guys’ faces, and I just told them not to let this game define their season. Because if we play at this level, we should make some noise in the (state) playoffs.”
Addison Trail, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, led 1-0 at halftime against no. 3 Morton. The Blazers’ goal began with a free kick taken by Ernesto Padua from 60 yards out at 34 minutes.
Morton keeper Andruw Martinez left his line but couldn’t keep a handle on Padua’s long serve, and Addison Trail’s Leo Acosta was there to bury the deflection from eight yards.
Addison Trail nearly grabbed a 2-0 lead in the final minute of the first half, but Martinez dove to his left to save a shot from Addison Trail’s Melvin Mora that deflected off a defender.
Acosta’s goal capped a fine attacking performance by the Blazers, during the second 20 minutes of the first half. The first 20 minutes saw Morton hit a crossbar, and Addison Trail keeper Sam Sandoval make a kick save at 7 minutes on a Jesus Perez shot.
“We were a little tight in the beginning of the game, and (Sandoval) made a couple of big saves for us,” Dini said. “Then we started getting into the flow of the game, especially the last 20 minutes of the first half. We had some chances, and we finished on one of them.”
Morton hasn’t faced a ton of deficits this year, but the senior-heavy team never seemed ruffled on Tuesday.
“At halftime we talked about keeping our heads up,” Morton midfielder Andre Olvera said. “We’ve been down before, by one or two goals, and at the end of the day we were able to pull out the win. We knew from the beginning it was going to be a hard fight. We had to come out after halftime and perform and match their intensity.”
Morton coach Jim Bageanis was pleased with the way his boys responded after intermission.
“It’s not too many games where we’ve been down at halftime, so our guys had to dig deep,” he said. “We got aggressive, took more chances up-top, and it paid off to get the tying goal. Then we were riding some confidence.”
Morton’s tying goal came at 44 minutes, when Perez intercepted a clearing attempt and stretched the back netting from 16 yards.
Sandoval made a fine save on a deflected shot taken by Morton’s Cristian Perez at 56 minutes. Martinez fielded a long one-hopper from Mora at 59 minutes before a foul set up a Morton free kick from 40 yards near the right touchline at 61 minutes.
Barajas sent a perfect ball to the goalmouth, where Carranza was there to redirect it in with a head shot. The game-deciding goal earned Carranza Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“I told myself to go wherever the ball goes and do whatever I have to do,” Carranza said. “I just barely touched it. I got just enough of it. And I dedicate that goal to my mom and to the people that I love.”
Sandoval made a diving stop on Adrian Barrera at 65 minutes, and another on Cristian Perez at 75 minutes. With Addison Trail pushing numbers forward down the stretch, Martinez made a huge save in a crowded goalmouth in the game’s final minute to secure the victory for Morton.
“Neither team can say they didn’t have enough chances,” Bageanis said. “Everyone played well for us. One of our guys that started tonight who doesn’t normally start, Alex Sery, played real well. He was one of our outside mids, and he was very effective with his speed and got in a few times early. He had a good game.
“Saul Jaurez and Israel Carranza both played solid (defensively) and Andruw (Martinez) obviously made some huge saves.”
Addison Trail left the field disappointed but knowing they hung tough against one of Illinois’ best teams.
“(Morton) is a great team because they talk to each other, they fight through, and they keep fighting,” Addison Trail defender Eduardo Huerta said. “We fought throughout the game and tried to get the result. It just wasn’t our day. Now we have to learn from the experience, from our mistakes, and get better and fix those mistakes.”
Dini applauded Sandoval for his performance in net and was anything but disappointed in his side’s play.
“I liked what I saw,” Dini said.“We competed well and our defense has been solid all year. Trying to contain (Morton’s Jesus Perez and Adrian Barrera) is a tough, tough matchup, and I like the way we competed.
“Defensively, Eduardo Huerta was so good for us tonight. We can move him up at times, and he’s just one of those players who doesn’t say much. He’s just always exactly where he’s supposed to be. We’ve been lucky to have him back there for the last two years.”
Addison Trail hosts Hinsdale Central on Thursday in its final regular season game, before opening Class 3A regional play on Oct. 17 against Hoffman Estates. The Blazers are the no. 6 seed of the Addison Trail Sectional, and Hoffman Estates is seeded 12th.
Morton is the top seed of the Riverside-Brookfield Sectional. On Oct. 16, the regional host Morton opens play against the winner between no. 16 Lincoln Park and no. 17 Proviso West.
Tuesday’s game against Addison Trail featured a playoff atmosphere for visiting Morton.
“Overall, it was a good performance by the team,” Olvera said. “I think we’re ready (for the state playoffs) and now we want to keep working hard in practices.
“Our intensity has improved a lot. At the beginning of the year in practice we were maybe goofing off too much. But we all have a goal, half our team is seniors, and we want to leave high school with a state championship.”
Starting lineups
Addison Trail
GK Sam Sandoval
D Matthew Moran
D Martin Murillo
D Eduardo Huerta
D Joseph Macedo
MF Alexis Delapaz
MF Luis Silva
MF Julio Acosta
MF Eduardo Gomez
F Melvin Mora
F Anthony Hernandez
Morton
GK Andruw Martinez
D Israel Carranza
D Saul Juarez
D Jonathan Perez
D Anarbol Barajas
MF Alex Sery
MF Andre Olvera
MF Cristian Perez
MF Yobany Esparza
F Adrian Barrera
F Jesus Perez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Israel Carranza, sr., D, Morton
Scoring summary
First half
Addison Trail - L. Acosta (Padua) 34 minutes
Second half
Morton - J. Perez (UA) 44 minutes
Morton - Carranza (Barajas) 61 minutes