Libertyville battles Mundelein to draw
GK Lynch comes up big for Wildcats in 1-1 final
By Rusty Silber
LIBERTYVILLE -- Libertyville remains unbeaten but -- news flash -- they may have been discovered to be mortal. The Wildcats, who are ranked second behind Morton in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, settled for a draw against North Suburban Conference foe Mundelein on Thursday night at home.
The tie followed a 2-0 deficit to then no. 11 Benet in a game that became unofficial when weather forced it to be called just before halftime Sept. 21. Sandwiched between the games was a 3-0 league win at Lake Zurich.
Senior keeper Hunter Lynch made sure his squad stayed in the ranks of the unbeaten when he stepped up with a seven-save performance. He made quality save after quality save to preserve the draw.
"It was tough. We knew (Mundelein) was coming off a 6-2 win against Stevenson," Lynch said. "We knew that they could score, and I knew that they were a good team. Coming in, I had a mindset like other games like New Trier or Warren, you just have to learn from that."
Including in his night of work were were a number of point-blank saves aa he shined as the star of the back third.
"A lot of it was reaction, and hopefully I can set myself up right and trust my reaction speed," said Lynch, who acknowledged he had ample help from the defensive line of Jacopo Franciosi, Will Herbek, Cole Houser and Landon Johnson. "Just to make those kind of saves, the defense made it 10 times easier for me. They do a great job protecting the box, and I trust them when they clear stuff out. It makes my job a lot easier."
Lynch earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor performance, though it looked like his night would be cut short in the 16th minute. He left the game after he was elbowed in the head going up for a ball. After he was checked by the trainer, he was allowed to return to the field 11 minutes later.
"When, I went down, I didn't want to go out." Lynch said. "I wanted to get back in as quick as I can. I knew that I could help my team. It was nice to get that reception when I came back in. I just wanted to help the team."
Libertyville (10-0-1, 3-0-1) knew Mundelein (6-1-4, 3-0-1) would provide a strong challenge.
"(Mundelein) had a great team, well-coached, and they had a lot of heart, a lot of effort," Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm said. "I thought we played really well. I thought Hunter (Lynch) played great and owned the box."
With the way the match progressed, Thunhom wasn't totally pleased with stretches of play from his team. Those issues will be addressed in upcoming training sessions.
"We just gave too many opportunities on deadballs and corner kicks," Thunholm said. "We made silly, ticky-tack fouls. So, we just have to get better.
"We did hit the post three or four times, we ran by the goalie once and we put one on the end line over the goal. So, we had our opportunities, and it didn't work out the way we wanted.
"The guys think this is the worst thing in the world. A lot of teams celebrate a tie, but with a 1-1 draw we're going home with a loss in our eyes. That's something I respect our kids for, and it's something that we will learn from."
Patrick Graham got Libertyville on the board with a ninth-minute finish after a Connor Hay corner kick. The header earned him his third goal this season.
"It was a great ball and high enough for me to get it, which I like, and jumping high for it," Hay said. "It was the delivery that set it up. When I see the ball going to the back post, I'll go after it every time, and it has to be there."
A focus for Libertyville has been trying to score more goals and to get them early on in matches.
"It's pretty important, and we got one early this game," Graham said. "We usually say the flood gates are open once we get one, and they start rolling. We had opportunities, we just have to put the ball away."
Mundelein found a way to even the match just 15 seconds into the second half. Darren Gray took a pass from Cole Pauly. Then, he made a move down the left sideline with the ball and found a way to curl a left-footed 30-yard kick under the crossbar and into the side netting for his fourth goal this season.
""I was just keeping my head down and going after the defender," Gray said. "I was looking for a shot and taking a shot when I had too. I've been working on these the whole summer, and I've been working for this game since we lost last year.
"I was just working on finishing and working on my technique. It was a big shot against a big team like Libertyville. We came in here thinking that we were going to win this game and really didn't want to lose or tie."
The race in the North Suburban Conference is a good one with no. 11 Zion-Benton (10-1-2, 4-0-1), Libertyville and Mundelein. The Zee-Bees' remaining two league matches are against the pair. Libertyville and Mundelein have three matches remaining in league play.
"Obviously, we have some big matches coming up," Mundelein coach Ernie Billittier said. "But, I think getting a result at Libertyville with a huge crowd, it was fun to be in a playoff atmosphere in the middle of the season before the seeding happens. We'll take a lot away from this as we approach the end of the season. I'm proud of our boys, we created a lot of chances. We could've easily won that game; Libertyville could've won that game. It's fun stuff."
Starting Lineups
Mundelein
GK-Danny Dominguez
D-Cole Pauly
D-Zak Serby
D-Yayo Jimenez
D-Matt Whelan
MF-Jesus Abrego
MF-Paul Yoo
MF-Camden Kowalski
MF-David Bochniak
F-Darren Gray
F-John Chambers
Libertyville
GK-Hunter Lynch
D-Jacopo Franciosi
D-Landon Johnson
D-Cole Houser
D-Will Herbek
MF-Micky Reilly
MF-Connor Hay
MF-Luke Underwood
MF-Cade Apon
F-Jake Brennan
F-Patrick Graham
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Hunter Lynch, sr., GK, Libertyville
Scoring summary
First Half
Lib-Patrick Graham (Connor Hay) 9'
Second Half
Mund-Darren Gray (Cole Pauly) 41'
GK Lynch comes up big for Wildcats in 1-1 final
By Rusty Silber
LIBERTYVILLE -- Libertyville remains unbeaten but -- news flash -- they may have been discovered to be mortal. The Wildcats, who are ranked second behind Morton in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, settled for a draw against North Suburban Conference foe Mundelein on Thursday night at home.
The tie followed a 2-0 deficit to then no. 11 Benet in a game that became unofficial when weather forced it to be called just before halftime Sept. 21. Sandwiched between the games was a 3-0 league win at Lake Zurich.
Senior keeper Hunter Lynch made sure his squad stayed in the ranks of the unbeaten when he stepped up with a seven-save performance. He made quality save after quality save to preserve the draw.
"It was tough. We knew (Mundelein) was coming off a 6-2 win against Stevenson," Lynch said. "We knew that they could score, and I knew that they were a good team. Coming in, I had a mindset like other games like New Trier or Warren, you just have to learn from that."
Including in his night of work were were a number of point-blank saves aa he shined as the star of the back third.
"A lot of it was reaction, and hopefully I can set myself up right and trust my reaction speed," said Lynch, who acknowledged he had ample help from the defensive line of Jacopo Franciosi, Will Herbek, Cole Houser and Landon Johnson. "Just to make those kind of saves, the defense made it 10 times easier for me. They do a great job protecting the box, and I trust them when they clear stuff out. It makes my job a lot easier."
Lynch earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor performance, though it looked like his night would be cut short in the 16th minute. He left the game after he was elbowed in the head going up for a ball. After he was checked by the trainer, he was allowed to return to the field 11 minutes later.
"When, I went down, I didn't want to go out." Lynch said. "I wanted to get back in as quick as I can. I knew that I could help my team. It was nice to get that reception when I came back in. I just wanted to help the team."
Libertyville (10-0-1, 3-0-1) knew Mundelein (6-1-4, 3-0-1) would provide a strong challenge.
"(Mundelein) had a great team, well-coached, and they had a lot of heart, a lot of effort," Libertyville coach Kevin Thunholm said. "I thought we played really well. I thought Hunter (Lynch) played great and owned the box."
With the way the match progressed, Thunhom wasn't totally pleased with stretches of play from his team. Those issues will be addressed in upcoming training sessions.
"We just gave too many opportunities on deadballs and corner kicks," Thunholm said. "We made silly, ticky-tack fouls. So, we just have to get better.
"We did hit the post three or four times, we ran by the goalie once and we put one on the end line over the goal. So, we had our opportunities, and it didn't work out the way we wanted.
"The guys think this is the worst thing in the world. A lot of teams celebrate a tie, but with a 1-1 draw we're going home with a loss in our eyes. That's something I respect our kids for, and it's something that we will learn from."
Patrick Graham got Libertyville on the board with a ninth-minute finish after a Connor Hay corner kick. The header earned him his third goal this season.
"It was a great ball and high enough for me to get it, which I like, and jumping high for it," Hay said. "It was the delivery that set it up. When I see the ball going to the back post, I'll go after it every time, and it has to be there."
A focus for Libertyville has been trying to score more goals and to get them early on in matches.
"It's pretty important, and we got one early this game," Graham said. "We usually say the flood gates are open once we get one, and they start rolling. We had opportunities, we just have to put the ball away."
Mundelein found a way to even the match just 15 seconds into the second half. Darren Gray took a pass from Cole Pauly. Then, he made a move down the left sideline with the ball and found a way to curl a left-footed 30-yard kick under the crossbar and into the side netting for his fourth goal this season.
""I was just keeping my head down and going after the defender," Gray said. "I was looking for a shot and taking a shot when I had too. I've been working on these the whole summer, and I've been working for this game since we lost last year.
"I was just working on finishing and working on my technique. It was a big shot against a big team like Libertyville. We came in here thinking that we were going to win this game and really didn't want to lose or tie."
The race in the North Suburban Conference is a good one with no. 11 Zion-Benton (10-1-2, 4-0-1), Libertyville and Mundelein. The Zee-Bees' remaining two league matches are against the pair. Libertyville and Mundelein have three matches remaining in league play.
"Obviously, we have some big matches coming up," Mundelein coach Ernie Billittier said. "But, I think getting a result at Libertyville with a huge crowd, it was fun to be in a playoff atmosphere in the middle of the season before the seeding happens. We'll take a lot away from this as we approach the end of the season. I'm proud of our boys, we created a lot of chances. We could've easily won that game; Libertyville could've won that game. It's fun stuff."
Starting Lineups
Mundelein
GK-Danny Dominguez
D-Cole Pauly
D-Zak Serby
D-Yayo Jimenez
D-Matt Whelan
MF-Jesus Abrego
MF-Paul Yoo
MF-Camden Kowalski
MF-David Bochniak
F-Darren Gray
F-John Chambers
Libertyville
GK-Hunter Lynch
D-Jacopo Franciosi
D-Landon Johnson
D-Cole Houser
D-Will Herbek
MF-Micky Reilly
MF-Connor Hay
MF-Luke Underwood
MF-Cade Apon
F-Jake Brennan
F-Patrick Graham
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Hunter Lynch, sr., GK, Libertyville
Scoring summary
First Half
Lib-Patrick Graham (Connor Hay) 9'
Second Half
Mund-Darren Gray (Cole Pauly) 41'