Naperville North edges Lyons, eyes 3rd title
Early Recendez score gives Huskies 1-0 supersectional win
By Matt Le Cren
ROMEOVILLE – Cesar Recendez hasn’t scored a lot of goals during his three-year varsity career at Naperville North.
Offense, though, is not Recendez’s first priority. He started at left back last year and currently stars as a lockdown defensive midfielder.
But that doesn’t mean he lacks a nose for the goal. Recendez tallied the only goal of the game in the third minute Tuesday night as the Huskies knocked off Lyons 1-0 at the Class 3A Lewis University Supersectional.
The win was the 43rd straight for top-ranked Naperville North (24-0-0), which will play Lake Park (21-3-3) in the state semifinals Friday at Hoffman Estates High School.
It is the first time in school history the Huskies have qualified for the state semifinals three-consecutive years. They are now two wins away from becoming only the third Illinois school to win three-straight state titles.
“It’s a dream to get downstate and to do it three times in a row with the same group of guys just shows how special they are, how resilient they are,” Naperville North coach Jim Konrad said. “They are able to handle a challenge.”
The Huskies got a stiff one from the Lions (17-8-0), who after conceding early battled to the wire and averted the one-sided defeat forecast by many after Recendez’s strike.
“They are the same as us,” Konrad said. “I would say if I had to pick a team in Illinois that’s just like us, it’s them.
“They play the same style. I love coach (Paul) Labbato; he’s a classy guy and his guys play hard for him. Their fan section was amazing.
“I was proud that we were able to capitalize on that first one. We left a couple goals on the field that maybe would have changed things, but that’s this time of year. Goals are hard to come by.”
That’s why Recendez’s goal, which came just 2:25 into the match, was so unexpected and, as it turned out, important.
Christian Romano started the play with a throw-in from the right side. It was headed twice by Lyons defenders and appeared headed out of danger until Recendez intercepted the clearance just outside the 6 and one-timed a shot past Lions goalie Mark Jareczek for his fourth goal of the season.
“No. 17 on the other team tried to let it run past him, but he didn’t see me there, and I was just right place at the right time,” Recendez said. “I knew I was going to shoot it, because I was right on the six-yard box.
“It was kind of hard to believe, because I don’t think we’ve scored that early before, and we had to defend the rest of the game. We got some other chances that unfortunately we didn’t put away.”
Yet there is something about playing at the Lewis University stadium that brings out the best in Recendez. Two years ago, he scored the opening goal in Naperville North’s supersectional victory over Morton.
“I guess it is luck and hard work, because it’s not just me,” Recendez said of his supersectional exploits. “It’s also my entire team. We push each other at practice every day, and we all get better every day.”
Great teams, they say, make their own luck, and that was the case here. Lyons seemingly did everything right. They limited the Huskies’ restart opportunities and took care to defend Naperville North scoring star Colin Iverson and the equally tall Myles Barry on throw-ins into the box.
“We knew they were going to have Iverson and (Barry),” Lyons senior midfielder Skip Locke said. “We planned to double-team it.
“It was kind of a mosh pit of guys thrown in there. We won that first header even though it was flicked, then we won the next ball. It ends up taking three deflections, ends up perfectly to a great player in Cesar, and he took a great shot out of the air.
“It was a wet ground. He knew it was going to be hard to save, and he just skipped it in.”
Given the early lead, it was natural to think the Huskies would go on to dominate the match. They did just that in routing West Aurora 5-1 in the sectional final last Saturday after Iverson scored in the fifth minute.
But that wasn’t the case. While North outshot the Lions 11-4, they only had two other solid scoring chances.
Ty Konrad hit the crossbar on a shot from a severe angle in the 11th minute and Jareczek made a tremendous diving save to punch away an Iverson header off a Ty Konrad corner kick in the 69th minute.
“I was absolutely locked onto that kid the whole game,” said Jareczek, who finished with three saves. “I was waiting for his header, because I knew he was coming.”
While impressive, Lyon’s defensive effort was only half of the equation needed to solve North. The Lions couldn’t come up with any offense of their own, putting only one shot on frame.
Naperville North’s 6-foot-8 goalie, Tom Welch, made one save to record the Huskies’ mind-boggling 20th shutout of the season. He also deftly snagged several high crosses like a giraffe picking an apple tree clean.
“That’s a really organized, consistent (defense),” Labbato said. “It’s a struggle to get anything going.
“I felt like the last 15 minutes we had some chances, but chances that weren’t top chances, that were maybes. We needed a break.”
The Lions, not surprisingly, didn’t get one. The Huskies have allowed only five goals this season. The backline of Romano, Iverson, Barry and Cam Ferus act stingier than Scrooge.
“The backline was perfect today and so was Tom,” Recendez said. “Myles, Christian, Colin and Cam played great today. The other team barely got any shots off.”
The only Lyons shot that had a legitimate chance came off the foot of Locke, who lined a 20-yard free kick over the crossbar in the 56th minute. The second half was more evenly played than the first half with the Lions keeping pace in a furious midfield battle.
“I give (midfielders) Zach (Smith) and Nata (Rojas) and Cesar a ton of credit,” Jim Konrad said. “They had to run a lot today.
“It is a big field, and LT got the ball and came at us, and they challenged us.”
Indeed, that was nothing new for a Lyons team that blew away everyone’s expectations this season, including their own. The Lions graduated their entire starting lineup from a team that lost 2-1 to Morton in the 2017 sectional final and had only seven players with varsity experience.
Yet they overcame a 4-4-0 start to capture a share of the West Suburban Conference Silver Division title and win regional and sectional titles. Tuesday was Lyons first supersectional appearance since 2010. Even Jareczek didn’t see that coming.
“I would have said, ‘Oh, my God,’” Jareczek said. “I would have thought that would be absolutely crazy. My mind would have been blown.
“I really didn’t know what the team was going to look like this year. We had a fresh group of guys, and we built some chemistry, and I love all of those guys. We came together and put it all out there.”
The Lions did not have any Division I talent, and none of the seniors plan to play in college, but they were driven to excel.
“We used our hunger from last year, because last year all of us thought we were going to do exactly what we did this year,” Locke said.
“We had a bunch of seniors who won club regionals that summer so we came in with loads of confidence, and we lost to Morton 2-1 in the sectional final.
“For us seven that came back, it took a little time to get all the new players into the program but as soon as we got it we got the job done. I’m just so proud of everyone.”
That effort and camaraderie is why Locke, while disappointed with the loss, was still upbeat after the game.
“This is the closest group of guys I think I’ve ever been a part of,” Locke said. “Each and every person wanted to fight for one another.
“We weren’t going to let anyone get in our way. We tried to do that and unfortunately (lost to North). We gave them everything we had. Nothing to really complain about.”
The Lions’ effort both impressed and surprised Romano, who was optimistic about prospects for a more comfortable margin of victory after Recendez’s early breakthrough.
“During our pregame we were told Lyons would be a team that would work hard just like us, so I was prepared to be working all game,” Romano said. “1-0 did surprise me a little. I feel like we could have cleaned some things up after the early goal, but we got the win.”
Now the Huskies are two wins away from becoming the third Illinois school to three-peat. Granite City South, which won five-straight titles from 1976-1980 in the one-class system, and Gibault, which won the Class A crown in 2006-2008 in the final years of the two-class system, are the only teams to pull off that feat.
“It’s special. There’s not other words to describe it,” said Smith, a junior who transferred from Kaneland. “It’s not something I’ve done before.
“A lot of these guys have done it twice. Obviously, we’re looking to do it again. It’s just special to be part of that legacy that they’re making here.”
A win over Lake Park likely will set up the highly anticipated rematch of last year’s state title match with Libertyville, which hasn’t lost since the Huskies edged them 1-0 to win their second-straight title last fall.
Those two teams are ranked first and second, respectively, in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, and second and third nationally by Top Drawer Soccer. North is ranked first and Libertyville second in the country by MaxPreps.
But Recendez knows better than to look past Lake Park.
“We’re very grateful that all the hard work has paid off,” Recendez said. “We have a lot of pressure on us, but I think it’s good because it humbles us.
“We can’t get too cocky because we know every team is trying to knock us out of the playoffs. So we’ve just got to keep our minds focused, take it one game at a time, hopefully win Friday and then play for a state championship again on Saturday.
Starting lineups
Naperville North
GK Tom Welch
D Colin Iverson
D Christian Romano
D Cam Ferus
D Myles Barry
M Cesar Recendez
M Zach Smith
M Nata Rojas
F Ali Khorfan
F Patrick Koenig
F Ty Konrad
Lyons
GK Mark Jareczek
D Ty Williams
D Rory McLean
D Kyle Reblin
D Alex Jumic
D Tommy Abbs
M Skip Locke
M Mike Niedermeyer
M Max Behm
F Nolan O’Malley
F Jonny Gray
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match – Cesar Recendez, jr., MF, Naperville North
Scoring summary
First half
Naperville North – Cesar Recendez, 3rd minute
Second half
No scoring
Early Recendez score gives Huskies 1-0 supersectional win
By Matt Le Cren
ROMEOVILLE – Cesar Recendez hasn’t scored a lot of goals during his three-year varsity career at Naperville North.
Offense, though, is not Recendez’s first priority. He started at left back last year and currently stars as a lockdown defensive midfielder.
But that doesn’t mean he lacks a nose for the goal. Recendez tallied the only goal of the game in the third minute Tuesday night as the Huskies knocked off Lyons 1-0 at the Class 3A Lewis University Supersectional.
The win was the 43rd straight for top-ranked Naperville North (24-0-0), which will play Lake Park (21-3-3) in the state semifinals Friday at Hoffman Estates High School.
It is the first time in school history the Huskies have qualified for the state semifinals three-consecutive years. They are now two wins away from becoming only the third Illinois school to win three-straight state titles.
“It’s a dream to get downstate and to do it three times in a row with the same group of guys just shows how special they are, how resilient they are,” Naperville North coach Jim Konrad said. “They are able to handle a challenge.”
The Huskies got a stiff one from the Lions (17-8-0), who after conceding early battled to the wire and averted the one-sided defeat forecast by many after Recendez’s strike.
“They are the same as us,” Konrad said. “I would say if I had to pick a team in Illinois that’s just like us, it’s them.
“They play the same style. I love coach (Paul) Labbato; he’s a classy guy and his guys play hard for him. Their fan section was amazing.
“I was proud that we were able to capitalize on that first one. We left a couple goals on the field that maybe would have changed things, but that’s this time of year. Goals are hard to come by.”
That’s why Recendez’s goal, which came just 2:25 into the match, was so unexpected and, as it turned out, important.
Christian Romano started the play with a throw-in from the right side. It was headed twice by Lyons defenders and appeared headed out of danger until Recendez intercepted the clearance just outside the 6 and one-timed a shot past Lions goalie Mark Jareczek for his fourth goal of the season.
“No. 17 on the other team tried to let it run past him, but he didn’t see me there, and I was just right place at the right time,” Recendez said. “I knew I was going to shoot it, because I was right on the six-yard box.
“It was kind of hard to believe, because I don’t think we’ve scored that early before, and we had to defend the rest of the game. We got some other chances that unfortunately we didn’t put away.”
Yet there is something about playing at the Lewis University stadium that brings out the best in Recendez. Two years ago, he scored the opening goal in Naperville North’s supersectional victory over Morton.
“I guess it is luck and hard work, because it’s not just me,” Recendez said of his supersectional exploits. “It’s also my entire team. We push each other at practice every day, and we all get better every day.”
Great teams, they say, make their own luck, and that was the case here. Lyons seemingly did everything right. They limited the Huskies’ restart opportunities and took care to defend Naperville North scoring star Colin Iverson and the equally tall Myles Barry on throw-ins into the box.
“We knew they were going to have Iverson and (Barry),” Lyons senior midfielder Skip Locke said. “We planned to double-team it.
“It was kind of a mosh pit of guys thrown in there. We won that first header even though it was flicked, then we won the next ball. It ends up taking three deflections, ends up perfectly to a great player in Cesar, and he took a great shot out of the air.
“It was a wet ground. He knew it was going to be hard to save, and he just skipped it in.”
Given the early lead, it was natural to think the Huskies would go on to dominate the match. They did just that in routing West Aurora 5-1 in the sectional final last Saturday after Iverson scored in the fifth minute.
But that wasn’t the case. While North outshot the Lions 11-4, they only had two other solid scoring chances.
Ty Konrad hit the crossbar on a shot from a severe angle in the 11th minute and Jareczek made a tremendous diving save to punch away an Iverson header off a Ty Konrad corner kick in the 69th minute.
“I was absolutely locked onto that kid the whole game,” said Jareczek, who finished with three saves. “I was waiting for his header, because I knew he was coming.”
While impressive, Lyon’s defensive effort was only half of the equation needed to solve North. The Lions couldn’t come up with any offense of their own, putting only one shot on frame.
Naperville North’s 6-foot-8 goalie, Tom Welch, made one save to record the Huskies’ mind-boggling 20th shutout of the season. He also deftly snagged several high crosses like a giraffe picking an apple tree clean.
“That’s a really organized, consistent (defense),” Labbato said. “It’s a struggle to get anything going.
“I felt like the last 15 minutes we had some chances, but chances that weren’t top chances, that were maybes. We needed a break.”
The Lions, not surprisingly, didn’t get one. The Huskies have allowed only five goals this season. The backline of Romano, Iverson, Barry and Cam Ferus act stingier than Scrooge.
“The backline was perfect today and so was Tom,” Recendez said. “Myles, Christian, Colin and Cam played great today. The other team barely got any shots off.”
The only Lyons shot that had a legitimate chance came off the foot of Locke, who lined a 20-yard free kick over the crossbar in the 56th minute. The second half was more evenly played than the first half with the Lions keeping pace in a furious midfield battle.
“I give (midfielders) Zach (Smith) and Nata (Rojas) and Cesar a ton of credit,” Jim Konrad said. “They had to run a lot today.
“It is a big field, and LT got the ball and came at us, and they challenged us.”
Indeed, that was nothing new for a Lyons team that blew away everyone’s expectations this season, including their own. The Lions graduated their entire starting lineup from a team that lost 2-1 to Morton in the 2017 sectional final and had only seven players with varsity experience.
Yet they overcame a 4-4-0 start to capture a share of the West Suburban Conference Silver Division title and win regional and sectional titles. Tuesday was Lyons first supersectional appearance since 2010. Even Jareczek didn’t see that coming.
“I would have said, ‘Oh, my God,’” Jareczek said. “I would have thought that would be absolutely crazy. My mind would have been blown.
“I really didn’t know what the team was going to look like this year. We had a fresh group of guys, and we built some chemistry, and I love all of those guys. We came together and put it all out there.”
The Lions did not have any Division I talent, and none of the seniors plan to play in college, but they were driven to excel.
“We used our hunger from last year, because last year all of us thought we were going to do exactly what we did this year,” Locke said.
“We had a bunch of seniors who won club regionals that summer so we came in with loads of confidence, and we lost to Morton 2-1 in the sectional final.
“For us seven that came back, it took a little time to get all the new players into the program but as soon as we got it we got the job done. I’m just so proud of everyone.”
That effort and camaraderie is why Locke, while disappointed with the loss, was still upbeat after the game.
“This is the closest group of guys I think I’ve ever been a part of,” Locke said. “Each and every person wanted to fight for one another.
“We weren’t going to let anyone get in our way. We tried to do that and unfortunately (lost to North). We gave them everything we had. Nothing to really complain about.”
The Lions’ effort both impressed and surprised Romano, who was optimistic about prospects for a more comfortable margin of victory after Recendez’s early breakthrough.
“During our pregame we were told Lyons would be a team that would work hard just like us, so I was prepared to be working all game,” Romano said. “1-0 did surprise me a little. I feel like we could have cleaned some things up after the early goal, but we got the win.”
Now the Huskies are two wins away from becoming the third Illinois school to three-peat. Granite City South, which won five-straight titles from 1976-1980 in the one-class system, and Gibault, which won the Class A crown in 2006-2008 in the final years of the two-class system, are the only teams to pull off that feat.
“It’s special. There’s not other words to describe it,” said Smith, a junior who transferred from Kaneland. “It’s not something I’ve done before.
“A lot of these guys have done it twice. Obviously, we’re looking to do it again. It’s just special to be part of that legacy that they’re making here.”
A win over Lake Park likely will set up the highly anticipated rematch of last year’s state title match with Libertyville, which hasn’t lost since the Huskies edged them 1-0 to win their second-straight title last fall.
Those two teams are ranked first and second, respectively, in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, and second and third nationally by Top Drawer Soccer. North is ranked first and Libertyville second in the country by MaxPreps.
But Recendez knows better than to look past Lake Park.
“We’re very grateful that all the hard work has paid off,” Recendez said. “We have a lot of pressure on us, but I think it’s good because it humbles us.
“We can’t get too cocky because we know every team is trying to knock us out of the playoffs. So we’ve just got to keep our minds focused, take it one game at a time, hopefully win Friday and then play for a state championship again on Saturday.
Starting lineups
Naperville North
GK Tom Welch
D Colin Iverson
D Christian Romano
D Cam Ferus
D Myles Barry
M Cesar Recendez
M Zach Smith
M Nata Rojas
F Ali Khorfan
F Patrick Koenig
F Ty Konrad
Lyons
GK Mark Jareczek
D Ty Williams
D Rory McLean
D Kyle Reblin
D Alex Jumic
D Tommy Abbs
M Skip Locke
M Mike Niedermeyer
M Max Behm
F Nolan O’Malley
F Jonny Gray
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match – Cesar Recendez, jr., MF, Naperville North
Scoring summary
First half
Naperville North – Cesar Recendez, 3rd minute
Second half
No scoring