Naperville North rallies past Morton
Iverson’s header takes early season battle of top-ranked teams
By Matt Le Cren
NAPERVILLE – Nata Rojas is one of the many players who have been waiting in the wings for their chance to shoulder a heavier load for Naperville North.
The junior’s time has come.
Rojas was magnificent Saturday, scoring his first varsity goal and playing a key role in the midfield to lead the top-ranked Huskies to a come-from-behind 2-1 win over no. 3 Morton.
“Nata was one of the big reasons we won today,” Naperville North coach Jim Konrad said. “I thought he held us together in the midfield.
“He was composed on the ball, won a lot of balls, held it to give us that second to regain our composure and then he would find someone’s feet. He’s stepped up.”
It couldn’t have come at a better time for the Huskies (2-0-0), who were reeling a bit after sophomore Jesus Perez gave Morton a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute.
Perez got a pass from Isaac Carnalla in the middle of the box and rolled a shot inside the left post. It was the first goal against Naperville North since its unscored upon postseason run to its second-straight state title last fall.
That gave Morton (0-1-1) hope it could avenge last year’s supersectional loss to the Huskies.
But it was not to be.
The Huskies stiffened defensively and fell back on what they do best – scoring on restarts – to pull out the victory.
Both of Naperville North’s goals came on restarts. Both were beautiful plays that unlocked a determined Morton defense.
The first came with 4:50 remaining in the first half. Ty Konrad launched a long free kick into the box which found star defender Colin Iverson just outside the six on the right post.
Iverson headed it past Morton goalkeeper Andruw Martinez, but defender Jose Arellano alertly booted it off the line.
The ball, however, went straight to the onrushing Rojas, who smashed a volley under the crossbar to tie it 1-1.
“I knew there was less than 10 (minutes) left in the half, and I heard my dad from the stands, ‘Just get one before the half,’” Rojas said. “That’s what I was thinking, too, that I needed to get one so we could get some momentum going into the half and start the second half good.”
Rojas has this memory of his inaugural varsity goal.
“Colin won a header over some guy, and he put it on goal,” Rojas said. “There was a defender on the line to clear it out, but it came straight to me, and I hit it with my left foot and it went in.
“It was a good way (for me) to start off the season.”
Iverson was thrilled for Rojas.
“It’s so awesome,” Iverson said. “Nata, he’s such a hard worker and such a great kid. He totally deserved that goal.”
To be sure, Morton made the Huskies earn their goals, even though they came on plays opponents have seen countless times before.
Martinez was asked how a team can prevent Iverson from scoring particularly off of throw-ins.
“We do what we can,” Martinez said. “We put two (players) on them.
“Still, it’s obviously tough. But we’ll work on it and by the end of the season we’ll learn from our mistakes.”
Morton’s mistake, which every team is guilty of against Naperville North, was conceding throw-ins within 40 yards of its own goal.
It’s asking for trouble against the Huskies, who have the personnel to perfectly exploit it. Christian Romano has been taking the long throws, which have wreaked havoc in Naperville North’s first two games this season.
The Huskies nearly scored on such a throw with 26:43 to go in the second half, but Martinez leaped to tip Ali Khorfan’s header into the crossbar.
But the Mustangs lost the ball out of bounds again just 35 seconds later and this time Iverson made them pay, nodding home Romano’s throw for the go-ahead goal at the 25:30 mark.
Though both teams had several scoring chances after that, Iverson’s strike capped the scoring. Martinez made all five of his saves in the second half to keep the Mustangs close, while Naperville North’s Tom Welch stopped three shots.
“I feel like we did good,” Martinez said. “The intensity was there, but at the end we gave up a little bit.
“But still we fought hard. Although we didn’t get the outcome that we wanted, we still played as a team.
“We’re learning from our mistakes. Hopefully we can get a better outcome (if we play them again).”
Neither Jim Konrad nor Morton coach Jim Bageanis want to see each other again this season, although another meeting in the supersectional is possible. But the teams enjoy their annual early season encounter because it provides a stiff test.
“I just love playing them because they bring the best soccer we’re going to see, and they bring the effort on both sides of the ball,” Jim Konrad said. “We were fortunate to win.
“That game could have gone either way. They exposed our weaknesses, and we’ll keep grinding and try to get better.”
The smaller Mustangs used their speed to flummox the Huskies in the first half before the hosts made a crucial adjustment.
“I thought we had a great first 10 minutes and when they scored the goal it kind of put us in our place a little bit,” Iverson said. “Our team is very close together, and I think no matter what the score is we’re going to give 110 percent.
“We just did that today, and we’re all confident in each other.”
That confidence shone through in the second half as the Huskies picked up their intensity.
“In the second half I think we just did a better job of pressing hard,” Iverson said. “We gave them a little bit more space in the midfield (in the first half), and we didn’t do a good job tracking them into the midfield.
“So they were running at us a lot more. But as we talked and started stepping up we were able to close them down a lot faster.”
The Huskies’ reticence to engage early on was understandable since one wrong move could lead to a breakaway for the likes of Perez, Carnalla or Adrian Barrera.
“That’s always a problem with good teams,” Jim Konrad said. “They scare you and you end up backing off, and now they’ve got more space to make you look silly.
“If we can step and apply a little more pressure and just be more responsible about stepping to the next layer (we’ll be OK). So I thought the second half was better for us, but it wasn’t like we were better (than Morton).”
Just as the Huskies successfully dealt with the unfamiliar predicament of being down a goal, the Mustangs figure to bounce back from finding themselves being under .500 after two games. Morton tied Mount Carmel 0-0 in its first game.
“The tie was a first game, guys getting back together and playing with each other because a lot of them play on various club teams, so it takes a little while to jell,” Bageanis said. “We had opportunities, we dominated the possession but that’s how soccer is. Luckily, we got out of there with a tie, and we adjusted.
“Then today the guys stepped up and played at the level we should be playing at. Both teams are above-average teams, and it could have gone either way.”
Despite the loss, Bageanis isn’t worried.
“It’s good playing (the Huskies) early in the year, because we get a good gauge on what we need to improve on to take them if we have to face them again,” Bageanis said. “The kids played hard, they played well, and we gave them a good run. We’ll bounce back.”
Starting lineups
Morton
GK Andruw Martinez
D Israel Carranza
D Jose Arellano
D Anarbol Barajas
D Jonahton Perez
M Andre Olvera
M Isaac Carnalla
M Jobany Esparza
M Jesus Perez
F Adrian Barrera
F German Tinoco
Naperville North
GK Tom Welch
D Cam Ferus
D Cesar Recendez
D Christian Romano
D Colin Iverson
M Myles Barry
M Nata Rojas
M Zach Smith
M Ali Khorfan
F Patrick Koenig
F Ty Konrad
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Nata Rojas, M, Naperville North.
Scoring summary
First half
Morton: Jesus Perez (Isaac Canalla), 30:56
Naperville North: Nata Rojas (Colin Iverson, Ty Konrad), 4:50
Second half
Naperville North: Iverson (Christian Romano), 26:43
Iverson’s header takes early season battle of top-ranked teams
By Matt Le Cren
NAPERVILLE – Nata Rojas is one of the many players who have been waiting in the wings for their chance to shoulder a heavier load for Naperville North.
The junior’s time has come.
Rojas was magnificent Saturday, scoring his first varsity goal and playing a key role in the midfield to lead the top-ranked Huskies to a come-from-behind 2-1 win over no. 3 Morton.
“Nata was one of the big reasons we won today,” Naperville North coach Jim Konrad said. “I thought he held us together in the midfield.
“He was composed on the ball, won a lot of balls, held it to give us that second to regain our composure and then he would find someone’s feet. He’s stepped up.”
It couldn’t have come at a better time for the Huskies (2-0-0), who were reeling a bit after sophomore Jesus Perez gave Morton a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute.
Perez got a pass from Isaac Carnalla in the middle of the box and rolled a shot inside the left post. It was the first goal against Naperville North since its unscored upon postseason run to its second-straight state title last fall.
That gave Morton (0-1-1) hope it could avenge last year’s supersectional loss to the Huskies.
But it was not to be.
The Huskies stiffened defensively and fell back on what they do best – scoring on restarts – to pull out the victory.
Both of Naperville North’s goals came on restarts. Both were beautiful plays that unlocked a determined Morton defense.
The first came with 4:50 remaining in the first half. Ty Konrad launched a long free kick into the box which found star defender Colin Iverson just outside the six on the right post.
Iverson headed it past Morton goalkeeper Andruw Martinez, but defender Jose Arellano alertly booted it off the line.
The ball, however, went straight to the onrushing Rojas, who smashed a volley under the crossbar to tie it 1-1.
“I knew there was less than 10 (minutes) left in the half, and I heard my dad from the stands, ‘Just get one before the half,’” Rojas said. “That’s what I was thinking, too, that I needed to get one so we could get some momentum going into the half and start the second half good.”
Rojas has this memory of his inaugural varsity goal.
“Colin won a header over some guy, and he put it on goal,” Rojas said. “There was a defender on the line to clear it out, but it came straight to me, and I hit it with my left foot and it went in.
“It was a good way (for me) to start off the season.”
Iverson was thrilled for Rojas.
“It’s so awesome,” Iverson said. “Nata, he’s such a hard worker and such a great kid. He totally deserved that goal.”
To be sure, Morton made the Huskies earn their goals, even though they came on plays opponents have seen countless times before.
Martinez was asked how a team can prevent Iverson from scoring particularly off of throw-ins.
“We do what we can,” Martinez said. “We put two (players) on them.
“Still, it’s obviously tough. But we’ll work on it and by the end of the season we’ll learn from our mistakes.”
Morton’s mistake, which every team is guilty of against Naperville North, was conceding throw-ins within 40 yards of its own goal.
It’s asking for trouble against the Huskies, who have the personnel to perfectly exploit it. Christian Romano has been taking the long throws, which have wreaked havoc in Naperville North’s first two games this season.
The Huskies nearly scored on such a throw with 26:43 to go in the second half, but Martinez leaped to tip Ali Khorfan’s header into the crossbar.
But the Mustangs lost the ball out of bounds again just 35 seconds later and this time Iverson made them pay, nodding home Romano’s throw for the go-ahead goal at the 25:30 mark.
Though both teams had several scoring chances after that, Iverson’s strike capped the scoring. Martinez made all five of his saves in the second half to keep the Mustangs close, while Naperville North’s Tom Welch stopped three shots.
“I feel like we did good,” Martinez said. “The intensity was there, but at the end we gave up a little bit.
“But still we fought hard. Although we didn’t get the outcome that we wanted, we still played as a team.
“We’re learning from our mistakes. Hopefully we can get a better outcome (if we play them again).”
Neither Jim Konrad nor Morton coach Jim Bageanis want to see each other again this season, although another meeting in the supersectional is possible. But the teams enjoy their annual early season encounter because it provides a stiff test.
“I just love playing them because they bring the best soccer we’re going to see, and they bring the effort on both sides of the ball,” Jim Konrad said. “We were fortunate to win.
“That game could have gone either way. They exposed our weaknesses, and we’ll keep grinding and try to get better.”
The smaller Mustangs used their speed to flummox the Huskies in the first half before the hosts made a crucial adjustment.
“I thought we had a great first 10 minutes and when they scored the goal it kind of put us in our place a little bit,” Iverson said. “Our team is very close together, and I think no matter what the score is we’re going to give 110 percent.
“We just did that today, and we’re all confident in each other.”
That confidence shone through in the second half as the Huskies picked up their intensity.
“In the second half I think we just did a better job of pressing hard,” Iverson said. “We gave them a little bit more space in the midfield (in the first half), and we didn’t do a good job tracking them into the midfield.
“So they were running at us a lot more. But as we talked and started stepping up we were able to close them down a lot faster.”
The Huskies’ reticence to engage early on was understandable since one wrong move could lead to a breakaway for the likes of Perez, Carnalla or Adrian Barrera.
“That’s always a problem with good teams,” Jim Konrad said. “They scare you and you end up backing off, and now they’ve got more space to make you look silly.
“If we can step and apply a little more pressure and just be more responsible about stepping to the next layer (we’ll be OK). So I thought the second half was better for us, but it wasn’t like we were better (than Morton).”
Just as the Huskies successfully dealt with the unfamiliar predicament of being down a goal, the Mustangs figure to bounce back from finding themselves being under .500 after two games. Morton tied Mount Carmel 0-0 in its first game.
“The tie was a first game, guys getting back together and playing with each other because a lot of them play on various club teams, so it takes a little while to jell,” Bageanis said. “We had opportunities, we dominated the possession but that’s how soccer is. Luckily, we got out of there with a tie, and we adjusted.
“Then today the guys stepped up and played at the level we should be playing at. Both teams are above-average teams, and it could have gone either way.”
Despite the loss, Bageanis isn’t worried.
“It’s good playing (the Huskies) early in the year, because we get a good gauge on what we need to improve on to take them if we have to face them again,” Bageanis said. “The kids played hard, they played well, and we gave them a good run. We’ll bounce back.”
Starting lineups
Morton
GK Andruw Martinez
D Israel Carranza
D Jose Arellano
D Anarbol Barajas
D Jonahton Perez
M Andre Olvera
M Isaac Carnalla
M Jobany Esparza
M Jesus Perez
F Adrian Barrera
F German Tinoco
Naperville North
GK Tom Welch
D Cam Ferus
D Cesar Recendez
D Christian Romano
D Colin Iverson
M Myles Barry
M Nata Rojas
M Zach Smith
M Ali Khorfan
F Patrick Koenig
F Ty Konrad
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Nata Rojas, M, Naperville North.
Scoring summary
First half
Morton: Jesus Perez (Isaac Canalla), 30:56
Naperville North: Nata Rojas (Colin Iverson, Ty Konrad), 4:50
Second half
Naperville North: Iverson (Christian Romano), 26:43