Naperville C, Metea V can't break deadlock
After 100 minutes, teams draw 1-1
By Chris Walker
NAPERVILLE – A lot of big plays are made in a game even when the result is a 1-1 tie in two overtimes.
That’s the beauty of soccer. It's also also what can sometimes make it disheartening at times to play, coach and watch.
But sometimes one particular play - a single player’s shining moment - is even bigger than common folk would know because they hadn’t been exposed to the deeper story behind it.
Before we get to that, understand that this play accounted for Metea Valley’s lone goal as the Mustangs fought to a 1-1 tie with host Naperville Central on Tuesday night as the two gathered on an unseasonably hot and humid evening to open DuPage Valley Conference action.
After great showings by both teams in recent tournament play, the Redhawks climbed to no. 7 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, while the Mustangs rose to no. 16.
Now getting back to one of those big plays.
Metea Valley junior forward Alex Krehl made the aforementioned big play and for the impressive effort was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
His goal came in the 13th minute as he took a through-ball from Colin Bastianoni and lined a shot just inside the far post from about 30 yards.
“I’ve had opportunities like that this season, but it’s been really tough because I’ve not been finishing,” he said. “So that goal for me was really big, because I’ve been missing opportunities left and right.”
If he took that same shot a week ago there's a good chance he would’ve missed it.
“I was working on some things, not really with the team, but by myself,” he said. “I took some shots and was resetting my form to make sure I could get it right.”
Any doubts that might’ve grove after missed scoring chances should be dispelled now.
“Hopefully it’ll build some confidence for him,” Mustangs coach Josh Robinson said. “He kind of settled himself in before taking that shot. That’s good composure, and hopefully these are some of the things we can learn from and grow and develop.”
Naperville Central (5-1-2, 0-0-1) watched one of its shots carom off the crossbar in the 24th minute. It was that kind of first half for the Redhawks, who were able to move the ball fluidly and get a lot of players involved in its connections. But when it came down to taking shots, the finish just wasn’t there.
“After the game we talked about their mentality, and I feel you give this speech once every two or three years,” Redhawks coach Troy Adams said. “It’s got to be a ‘we’ idea. There’s not a singular talented player that’s going to put the team on his back and score three goals. It’s going to be a team effort, a team idea. It’s got to be ‘we.’
“We didn’t play a bad game, but we didn’t do a lot of the little things that we talked about that lead to wins. And the difference between when you’re playing a team as good as you are is the little things add up to the big result. We have got to be more consistent with those little things.”
They include being at the right spot during dead balls and executing proper runs.
“We talked about the two balls that slid through the six and no one was there,” he said. “And we had the discussion multiple times, but they’re 16 and 17 so I get it. The focus is hard. Adults do the same thing. It’s trying to enforce collectively who has this and working through that progression for all taking ownership of those small things.”
Metea Valley seems to be able to find a way to get at least one goal in its games (except for in a 0-0 tie against Jacobs on Aug. 29), but it’s burying another that has been elusive.
The Mustangs got it to beat St. Charles North to win the Saint Charles Invitational Tournament last Saturday. But, they didn’t get it on Tuesday against Naperville Central.
“We’re thrilled with where we’re at,” Robinson said. “It’s just trying to find that second goal. We’re good at getting the first, but it’s trying to grow into being confident to finish games off.”
The Mustangs are all in during their recent run.
“We’re getting it from all over,” Robinson said. “We’re trying to use everybody, and using 17, 18 or 19 guys can be tough some times. There are too many tight games where some guys don’t get some time, but we still have to keep working and grinding it out.”
The Redhawks kept grinding away themselves, and finally saw it pay off with the equalizer in the 49th minute.
Owen Jarrell toiled to create the scoring chance; Roman Krupka finished it with a little touch.
“That was a great header to me from Owen, and I just tapped it in really,” Krupka said. “He did all the work.”
Krupka’s gut told him the Redhawks would add the go-ahead score, but it never materialized.
“I felt like we were going to get that second goal,” he said. “I think we were pressing them good and dominating possession. We really gave it all we had. We were all tired in the end. Our forwards were running their tails off. Sometimes it just doesn’t turn out the way you wanted, but we’ll come out better next time.”
Being part of a close-knit squad allows Krupka to remain optimistic that the Redhawks will use ties and losses as learning experiences and continue to grow.
“I think we have really good team chemistry this year,” he said. “Last year we were a little more separated, but we’re really close this year. I think that’s why we’re playing better.”
That might be one reason. Another is talent -- the Redhawks have lots of it.
“Although we’re a (small) team, I’ll admit we’re a very technical team,” Krupka said. “We get what we need to do. We pass the ball and work on our movement. We probably need a little better movement up-top because our forwards couldn’t really get the ball, so that’s something we’ll figure out.”
One thing no one will figure out, although it’s something that’s undoubtedly ran through the minds of those who were there to see it, is whether Metea Valley all-state goalkeeper Gandhi Cruz might have gotten to Krupka’s shot.
Cruz left the game due to an injury at the 31:26 mark of the second half.
“I didn’t really want to come out, but I felt a ton of pain,” Cruz said. “He landed on my ankle in a bad way, and I never had felt that kind of pain before.”
Just 43 seconds after Cruz departed, the Redhawks tallied.
“Unfortunately for Metea, their goalie goes out, and that’s the minute that we manage to score,” Adams said. “But I thought that in the second half especially, we did a better job putting more balls on frame, getting a few more chances, and we were a little more aggressive in our forward runs. We've just got to keep working on it.”
As for Krupka’s goal, Robinson was unsure whether Cruz could’ve made the save.
“The kid puts it inside of the post, and I don’t know if Gandhi saves it either,” he said. “But with the other saves he made, who knows.”
Crossbars and keepers blocking the way as well as misfires and turnovers did their part to keep the teams deadlocked for the remainder of the evening.
Metea Valley’s best scoring chance after regulation came right at the start of the second overtime session. Actually, it appeared as if Jacob Tune had scored to give the Mustangs the lead again, but the officials determined a high-kick violation.
“The kid is 5-foot-4 so I don’t know how that’s the case,” Robinson said. “You call it and move on from it. We had a couple opportunities at the end there, and they hit the post. But now we move on. We start the PepsiCo and have a very tough first game, but we get a little relief now with no games until Saturday. We need some time off to heal some and to get the guys some rest.”
Some Players competed in their first DVC game, something that Metea Valley assistant coach Craig Tomczak reminded Robinson about.
“Craig said it best,” Robinson said. “We have a ton of kids who this was their first DVC game. Actually for most of our kids it was their first. We have maybe three or four kids who played a DVC game before. So for their first contest I think they handled it extremely well.”
As one of the veteran starters, Cruz was pleased with what he saw from all of his teammates.
“Every single one of these guys on the roster just works his tail off, and that’s what I really love about this group,” he said. “It’s all 19 of them. They all work from the start of the whistle to the end. That’s the big reason why I feel we were able to keep them off the board.”
Naperville Central's James Kim had a shot bang off the left post early in the second overtime period. It was the Redhawks best chance of netting the game-winner after regulation.
Even after he had some time after the game to take a deep breath and soak in what happened after 100 minutes of soccer, Kim was still in disbelief that his shot opted for the post instead of the back of the net.
“Oh man, it was so close,” Kim said. “The posts are ridiculous.”
He reflected further back than that one play though, not blaming that narrowly missed opportunity for costing the Redhawks the game, but for their play far earlier in the game as slowing them down a bit.
“I’d say if we started playing with the intensity we had in the second half, especially in overtime, then we could’ve come out with a win today,” Kim said. “We’re trying to work on not starting our games slow anymore. It’s important to have good warm-ups. We’re trying to work on that, on getting game-ready. If we started playing by running our butts off like we did in the second half, I think we could’ve maybe gotten even a solid win.”
Instead the game ended in a draw.
“A tie was probably a fair one,” Redhawks coach Troy Adams said. “It’s the nature of this area. Teams are good. You play the DVC and you go back through it, and I have to say 90% of the games are going to be in will be 1-0 and 1-1. They’re going to be close.”
The DVC may have lost teams but it has not lost its level of elite high school soccer.
“Teams are well-coached, they’re well-disciplined and the players care,” Adams said. “You see kids dropping to the ground giving everything they had. Those are the types of games you want to be in as a player or a coach.”
Starting lineups
Metea Valley
GK Gandhi Cruz
D Matthew Dovalovsky
D Joseph Fitzgerald
D Tyler Kero
D Clarke Simonich
MF Abraham Antar
MF Colin Bastianoni
MF Drew Marquardt
MF Davis Quarles
MF Nick Sanchez
F Alex Krehl
Naperville Central
GK Caden Redpath
D Mitch Becker
D Seth Lendzion
D Mateo Lopez
D Benjamin Tietjen
MF Owen Jarrell
MF Johnny Kim
MF Rohan Bhargava
F Nico Couropmitree
F James Kim
F Roman Krupka
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Alex Krehl, Metea Valley, jr., F
Scoring summary
Metea Valley 1, Naperville Central 1
Metea Valley 1 0 0 0 – 1
Naperville Central 0 1 0 0 - 1
First half
Metea Valley – Alex Krehl (u/a) 26:26
Second half
Naperville Central – Roman Krupka (Owen Jarrell), 30:43
After 100 minutes, teams draw 1-1
By Chris Walker
NAPERVILLE – A lot of big plays are made in a game even when the result is a 1-1 tie in two overtimes.
That’s the beauty of soccer. It's also also what can sometimes make it disheartening at times to play, coach and watch.
But sometimes one particular play - a single player’s shining moment - is even bigger than common folk would know because they hadn’t been exposed to the deeper story behind it.
Before we get to that, understand that this play accounted for Metea Valley’s lone goal as the Mustangs fought to a 1-1 tie with host Naperville Central on Tuesday night as the two gathered on an unseasonably hot and humid evening to open DuPage Valley Conference action.
After great showings by both teams in recent tournament play, the Redhawks climbed to no. 7 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, while the Mustangs rose to no. 16.
Now getting back to one of those big plays.
Metea Valley junior forward Alex Krehl made the aforementioned big play and for the impressive effort was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
His goal came in the 13th minute as he took a through-ball from Colin Bastianoni and lined a shot just inside the far post from about 30 yards.
“I’ve had opportunities like that this season, but it’s been really tough because I’ve not been finishing,” he said. “So that goal for me was really big, because I’ve been missing opportunities left and right.”
If he took that same shot a week ago there's a good chance he would’ve missed it.
“I was working on some things, not really with the team, but by myself,” he said. “I took some shots and was resetting my form to make sure I could get it right.”
Any doubts that might’ve grove after missed scoring chances should be dispelled now.
“Hopefully it’ll build some confidence for him,” Mustangs coach Josh Robinson said. “He kind of settled himself in before taking that shot. That’s good composure, and hopefully these are some of the things we can learn from and grow and develop.”
Naperville Central (5-1-2, 0-0-1) watched one of its shots carom off the crossbar in the 24th minute. It was that kind of first half for the Redhawks, who were able to move the ball fluidly and get a lot of players involved in its connections. But when it came down to taking shots, the finish just wasn’t there.
“After the game we talked about their mentality, and I feel you give this speech once every two or three years,” Redhawks coach Troy Adams said. “It’s got to be a ‘we’ idea. There’s not a singular talented player that’s going to put the team on his back and score three goals. It’s going to be a team effort, a team idea. It’s got to be ‘we.’
“We didn’t play a bad game, but we didn’t do a lot of the little things that we talked about that lead to wins. And the difference between when you’re playing a team as good as you are is the little things add up to the big result. We have got to be more consistent with those little things.”
They include being at the right spot during dead balls and executing proper runs.
“We talked about the two balls that slid through the six and no one was there,” he said. “And we had the discussion multiple times, but they’re 16 and 17 so I get it. The focus is hard. Adults do the same thing. It’s trying to enforce collectively who has this and working through that progression for all taking ownership of those small things.”
Metea Valley seems to be able to find a way to get at least one goal in its games (except for in a 0-0 tie against Jacobs on Aug. 29), but it’s burying another that has been elusive.
The Mustangs got it to beat St. Charles North to win the Saint Charles Invitational Tournament last Saturday. But, they didn’t get it on Tuesday against Naperville Central.
“We’re thrilled with where we’re at,” Robinson said. “It’s just trying to find that second goal. We’re good at getting the first, but it’s trying to grow into being confident to finish games off.”
The Mustangs are all in during their recent run.
“We’re getting it from all over,” Robinson said. “We’re trying to use everybody, and using 17, 18 or 19 guys can be tough some times. There are too many tight games where some guys don’t get some time, but we still have to keep working and grinding it out.”
The Redhawks kept grinding away themselves, and finally saw it pay off with the equalizer in the 49th minute.
Owen Jarrell toiled to create the scoring chance; Roman Krupka finished it with a little touch.
“That was a great header to me from Owen, and I just tapped it in really,” Krupka said. “He did all the work.”
Krupka’s gut told him the Redhawks would add the go-ahead score, but it never materialized.
“I felt like we were going to get that second goal,” he said. “I think we were pressing them good and dominating possession. We really gave it all we had. We were all tired in the end. Our forwards were running their tails off. Sometimes it just doesn’t turn out the way you wanted, but we’ll come out better next time.”
Being part of a close-knit squad allows Krupka to remain optimistic that the Redhawks will use ties and losses as learning experiences and continue to grow.
“I think we have really good team chemistry this year,” he said. “Last year we were a little more separated, but we’re really close this year. I think that’s why we’re playing better.”
That might be one reason. Another is talent -- the Redhawks have lots of it.
“Although we’re a (small) team, I’ll admit we’re a very technical team,” Krupka said. “We get what we need to do. We pass the ball and work on our movement. We probably need a little better movement up-top because our forwards couldn’t really get the ball, so that’s something we’ll figure out.”
One thing no one will figure out, although it’s something that’s undoubtedly ran through the minds of those who were there to see it, is whether Metea Valley all-state goalkeeper Gandhi Cruz might have gotten to Krupka’s shot.
Cruz left the game due to an injury at the 31:26 mark of the second half.
“I didn’t really want to come out, but I felt a ton of pain,” Cruz said. “He landed on my ankle in a bad way, and I never had felt that kind of pain before.”
Just 43 seconds after Cruz departed, the Redhawks tallied.
“Unfortunately for Metea, their goalie goes out, and that’s the minute that we manage to score,” Adams said. “But I thought that in the second half especially, we did a better job putting more balls on frame, getting a few more chances, and we were a little more aggressive in our forward runs. We've just got to keep working on it.”
As for Krupka’s goal, Robinson was unsure whether Cruz could’ve made the save.
“The kid puts it inside of the post, and I don’t know if Gandhi saves it either,” he said. “But with the other saves he made, who knows.”
Crossbars and keepers blocking the way as well as misfires and turnovers did their part to keep the teams deadlocked for the remainder of the evening.
Metea Valley’s best scoring chance after regulation came right at the start of the second overtime session. Actually, it appeared as if Jacob Tune had scored to give the Mustangs the lead again, but the officials determined a high-kick violation.
“The kid is 5-foot-4 so I don’t know how that’s the case,” Robinson said. “You call it and move on from it. We had a couple opportunities at the end there, and they hit the post. But now we move on. We start the PepsiCo and have a very tough first game, but we get a little relief now with no games until Saturday. We need some time off to heal some and to get the guys some rest.”
Some Players competed in their first DVC game, something that Metea Valley assistant coach Craig Tomczak reminded Robinson about.
“Craig said it best,” Robinson said. “We have a ton of kids who this was their first DVC game. Actually for most of our kids it was their first. We have maybe three or four kids who played a DVC game before. So for their first contest I think they handled it extremely well.”
As one of the veteran starters, Cruz was pleased with what he saw from all of his teammates.
“Every single one of these guys on the roster just works his tail off, and that’s what I really love about this group,” he said. “It’s all 19 of them. They all work from the start of the whistle to the end. That’s the big reason why I feel we were able to keep them off the board.”
Naperville Central's James Kim had a shot bang off the left post early in the second overtime period. It was the Redhawks best chance of netting the game-winner after regulation.
Even after he had some time after the game to take a deep breath and soak in what happened after 100 minutes of soccer, Kim was still in disbelief that his shot opted for the post instead of the back of the net.
“Oh man, it was so close,” Kim said. “The posts are ridiculous.”
He reflected further back than that one play though, not blaming that narrowly missed opportunity for costing the Redhawks the game, but for their play far earlier in the game as slowing them down a bit.
“I’d say if we started playing with the intensity we had in the second half, especially in overtime, then we could’ve come out with a win today,” Kim said. “We’re trying to work on not starting our games slow anymore. It’s important to have good warm-ups. We’re trying to work on that, on getting game-ready. If we started playing by running our butts off like we did in the second half, I think we could’ve maybe gotten even a solid win.”
Instead the game ended in a draw.
“A tie was probably a fair one,” Redhawks coach Troy Adams said. “It’s the nature of this area. Teams are good. You play the DVC and you go back through it, and I have to say 90% of the games are going to be in will be 1-0 and 1-1. They’re going to be close.”
The DVC may have lost teams but it has not lost its level of elite high school soccer.
“Teams are well-coached, they’re well-disciplined and the players care,” Adams said. “You see kids dropping to the ground giving everything they had. Those are the types of games you want to be in as a player or a coach.”
Starting lineups
Metea Valley
GK Gandhi Cruz
D Matthew Dovalovsky
D Joseph Fitzgerald
D Tyler Kero
D Clarke Simonich
MF Abraham Antar
MF Colin Bastianoni
MF Drew Marquardt
MF Davis Quarles
MF Nick Sanchez
F Alex Krehl
Naperville Central
GK Caden Redpath
D Mitch Becker
D Seth Lendzion
D Mateo Lopez
D Benjamin Tietjen
MF Owen Jarrell
MF Johnny Kim
MF Rohan Bhargava
F Nico Couropmitree
F James Kim
F Roman Krupka
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Alex Krehl, Metea Valley, jr., F
Scoring summary
Metea Valley 1, Naperville Central 1
Metea Valley 1 0 0 0 – 1
Naperville Central 0 1 0 0 - 1
First half
Metea Valley – Alex Krehl (u/a) 26:26
Second half
Naperville Central – Roman Krupka (Owen Jarrell), 30:43