Bench mob powers Taft over Northside
7 goals from subs lead Eagles to 8-0 CPL Premier Northwest win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO — Bart Wojda was summoned by his coach about nine minutes into Taft’s game against Northside.
Midfielder Stanislav Gurenko was knocked to the ground, and stayed down for a moment. IHSA rules dictated he had to be replaced. Wojda was the first player on the scene.
The Eagles make no true distinction of who starts or comes off the bench. Coach Jeff Lucco has one of his deepest teams, with 25 players on the roster and little drop off in talent.
Just like that in the 14th minute, Wojda stepped up for his team by intercepting a poorly played ball by the Mustangs’ keeper Brian Ruiz.
Wojda settled the ball down and drilled a laser shot from about 14 yards for the Eagles’ opening goal.
“Our team started it pretty slow, and we tried to get a couple of goals in,” he said.
“When I scored that goal, I was screaming and getting everybody hyped up so that we’d continue to attack and make sure everybody was up and ready.”
The goal began a deluge, and also established a template for success.
Taft had the fortune and the ability to run players in and out. That ability, versatility and depth created a breakthrough offensive performance.
Seven different players scored in the Eagles’ 8-0 victory in Premier Northwest play at Read-Dunning Park on the Northwest Side on Wednesday night.
The eight goals scored marked half (16) of the Eagles’ season total coming into the game.
Taft (7-3-1, 2-0-0) maintained its strong division start. They have outscored their opponents 11-0 in those games.
The prolific attack was a long time coming.
“We have struggled to score goals this year,” midfielder Matej Sokola said. “Against a quality side like Northside, we knew we had to score more.”
The significant story was not just the number of goals, or how they were scored. Aside from a goal by defender Adrian Grden early in the second half, seven of the goals were scored by players who did not start.
Much of the first half was largely a working out process with the Eagles building the attack. The Mustangs (1-6-1, 0-2-0) showed some grit and toughness.
Taft created a lot of pressure, generating multiple corner kicks and dead ball starts throughout the first half. That cumulative pressure clearly unnerved the Mustangs the deeper the game went on.
Northside keeper Ruiz has been solid, but his inexperience cost him in the first half.
“He had an off night due to his injury,” Northside coach Robert Albritton said. “Those first two goals were uncharacteristic mistakes. He's pretty good, and we've been under barrage in many games.”
The game was competitive throughout the first half as Ruiz collected four saves.
Taft created a late first half opportunity off a throw-in. Sokola weaved through the defensive interior and approached the goal. Ruiz responded late and collided with him inside the box, resulting in a penalty kick.
Gabriel Vidaurre smashed home the penalty kick in the 37th minute for the 2-0 halftime advantage.
That turned out to be the prelude to the flood.
“Our schedule is brutal considering our talent level,” Albritton said. “We played North Shore Country Day and gave up seven and Niles North and also gave up seven.
“We only gave up two to Notre Dame, which was outstanding for us. In all our games, Brain has been the outstanding player.”
Taft broke the game open with three goals in the first nine minutes of the second half.
“Our attack needs to pick it up, and we did that in the second half,” Sokola said. “I think instead of just trying to play the ball, we actually attacked forward and tried to push everybody up instead of just sitting and possessing the ball.”
The Eagles went on the offensive right off the second half jump with a propulsive forward movement the Mustangs had little answer for. In the 41st, Vidaurre went back to work with a lethal blast inside the near post from 16 yards.
Taft was now in a groove.
“I think something just clicked in the second half,” Vidaurre said. “Everybody was pressing in the second half. We finally did what our coaches have been asking of us.
“Everybody was making those forward runs and getting involved in the attack. It was just working perfectly.”
Taft is a veteran team with poise, athleticism, and a high skill level. The Eagles have also faced down a challenging early schedule, playing the likes of defending Class AA state champion Boylan and Barrington at the Broncos’ early tournament.
Taft also beat Brother Rice and lost a shootout against Larkin in a downpour in a BodyArmor bracket at Olympic Park last weekend.
“We performed really well against those teams, and I think it motivated us a lot to be a team now and show we can compete with some of the best teams in the state,” Vidauure said.
The Eagles also have an impressive wild card with the addition of junior midfielder and defender Xavier Gamez, a transfer from St. Patrick who was a Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List player for the Shamrocks last year.
He assisted Vidauure’s second goal and punctuated the dominant performance by drilling a free kick just outside the box for the Eagles’ final goal.
“It’s a new team, and I have to get used to it, with a new playing style and a new coach,” Gamez said. “The beginning was kind of hard, but I feel like I’m getting used to it.
“I've been connecting more with them since the beginning of the season. We have a very strong team with very good players.”
Sokola, Diego Alinas and Milton Valenzuela added goals for the Eagles. Called the “best defender in the city,” by Lucco, senior Jakub Kieras had three assists.
For their outstanding play, Gabriel Vidaurre and Jakub Kieras shared the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match distinction.
“Coach had a talk with us at halftime, and that really motivated all of us,” Grden said. “He said we weren’t as sharp as we should be, and we started doing that right away.
“We went out there, and we attacked. The Barrington tournament showed our emotion, showed we had heart. Even if we lost, we kept our heads high. We came out to win today.”
Starting lineups
Northside
GK: Brian Ruiz
D: Jhomel Mendez
D: Andy Mejia
D: Daniel Wang
D: Lorenzo Bortzuzky
MF: Hahn-Saem Lee
MF: Emin Bisevic
MF: Zach Deutsch
MF: Andrew Velasquez
MF: Aditya Gaur
F: Jonathan Alvarado
Taft
GK: Jack Shelton
D: Jakub Kieras
D: Daniel Korniat
D: Victor Lewicki
D: Adrian Grden
MF: Roy Molina
MF: Stanislav Gurenko
MF: Michael Sturgelewski
F: Maciej Polinski
F: Mohamed Abbad
F: Ethan Kazberuk
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match:
Gabriel Vidaurre, jr., MF, Taft;
Jakub Kieras, sr., D, Taft
Scoring summary
First half
Taft—Bart Wojda (unassisted), 14th minute
Taft—Gabriel Vidaurre (penalty kick), 37th minute
Second half
Taft—Vidaurre (Xavier Gamez), 41st minute
Taft—Adrien Grden (Jakub Kieras), 43rd
Taft—Milton Valenzuela (Kieras), 49th minute
Taft—Matej Sokola (Diego Alanis), 67th minute
Taft—Alanis (Kieras), 74th minute
Taft—Gamez (free kick), 78th minute
7 goals from subs lead Eagles to 8-0 CPL Premier Northwest win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO — Bart Wojda was summoned by his coach about nine minutes into Taft’s game against Northside.
Midfielder Stanislav Gurenko was knocked to the ground, and stayed down for a moment. IHSA rules dictated he had to be replaced. Wojda was the first player on the scene.
The Eagles make no true distinction of who starts or comes off the bench. Coach Jeff Lucco has one of his deepest teams, with 25 players on the roster and little drop off in talent.
Just like that in the 14th minute, Wojda stepped up for his team by intercepting a poorly played ball by the Mustangs’ keeper Brian Ruiz.
Wojda settled the ball down and drilled a laser shot from about 14 yards for the Eagles’ opening goal.
“Our team started it pretty slow, and we tried to get a couple of goals in,” he said.
“When I scored that goal, I was screaming and getting everybody hyped up so that we’d continue to attack and make sure everybody was up and ready.”
The goal began a deluge, and also established a template for success.
Taft had the fortune and the ability to run players in and out. That ability, versatility and depth created a breakthrough offensive performance.
Seven different players scored in the Eagles’ 8-0 victory in Premier Northwest play at Read-Dunning Park on the Northwest Side on Wednesday night.
The eight goals scored marked half (16) of the Eagles’ season total coming into the game.
Taft (7-3-1, 2-0-0) maintained its strong division start. They have outscored their opponents 11-0 in those games.
The prolific attack was a long time coming.
“We have struggled to score goals this year,” midfielder Matej Sokola said. “Against a quality side like Northside, we knew we had to score more.”
The significant story was not just the number of goals, or how they were scored. Aside from a goal by defender Adrian Grden early in the second half, seven of the goals were scored by players who did not start.
Much of the first half was largely a working out process with the Eagles building the attack. The Mustangs (1-6-1, 0-2-0) showed some grit and toughness.
Taft created a lot of pressure, generating multiple corner kicks and dead ball starts throughout the first half. That cumulative pressure clearly unnerved the Mustangs the deeper the game went on.
Northside keeper Ruiz has been solid, but his inexperience cost him in the first half.
“He had an off night due to his injury,” Northside coach Robert Albritton said. “Those first two goals were uncharacteristic mistakes. He's pretty good, and we've been under barrage in many games.”
The game was competitive throughout the first half as Ruiz collected four saves.
Taft created a late first half opportunity off a throw-in. Sokola weaved through the defensive interior and approached the goal. Ruiz responded late and collided with him inside the box, resulting in a penalty kick.
Gabriel Vidaurre smashed home the penalty kick in the 37th minute for the 2-0 halftime advantage.
That turned out to be the prelude to the flood.
“Our schedule is brutal considering our talent level,” Albritton said. “We played North Shore Country Day and gave up seven and Niles North and also gave up seven.
“We only gave up two to Notre Dame, which was outstanding for us. In all our games, Brain has been the outstanding player.”
Taft broke the game open with three goals in the first nine minutes of the second half.
“Our attack needs to pick it up, and we did that in the second half,” Sokola said. “I think instead of just trying to play the ball, we actually attacked forward and tried to push everybody up instead of just sitting and possessing the ball.”
The Eagles went on the offensive right off the second half jump with a propulsive forward movement the Mustangs had little answer for. In the 41st, Vidaurre went back to work with a lethal blast inside the near post from 16 yards.
Taft was now in a groove.
“I think something just clicked in the second half,” Vidaurre said. “Everybody was pressing in the second half. We finally did what our coaches have been asking of us.
“Everybody was making those forward runs and getting involved in the attack. It was just working perfectly.”
Taft is a veteran team with poise, athleticism, and a high skill level. The Eagles have also faced down a challenging early schedule, playing the likes of defending Class AA state champion Boylan and Barrington at the Broncos’ early tournament.
Taft also beat Brother Rice and lost a shootout against Larkin in a downpour in a BodyArmor bracket at Olympic Park last weekend.
“We performed really well against those teams, and I think it motivated us a lot to be a team now and show we can compete with some of the best teams in the state,” Vidauure said.
The Eagles also have an impressive wild card with the addition of junior midfielder and defender Xavier Gamez, a transfer from St. Patrick who was a Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List player for the Shamrocks last year.
He assisted Vidauure’s second goal and punctuated the dominant performance by drilling a free kick just outside the box for the Eagles’ final goal.
“It’s a new team, and I have to get used to it, with a new playing style and a new coach,” Gamez said. “The beginning was kind of hard, but I feel like I’m getting used to it.
“I've been connecting more with them since the beginning of the season. We have a very strong team with very good players.”
Sokola, Diego Alinas and Milton Valenzuela added goals for the Eagles. Called the “best defender in the city,” by Lucco, senior Jakub Kieras had three assists.
For their outstanding play, Gabriel Vidaurre and Jakub Kieras shared the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match distinction.
“Coach had a talk with us at halftime, and that really motivated all of us,” Grden said. “He said we weren’t as sharp as we should be, and we started doing that right away.
“We went out there, and we attacked. The Barrington tournament showed our emotion, showed we had heart. Even if we lost, we kept our heads high. We came out to win today.”
Starting lineups
Northside
GK: Brian Ruiz
D: Jhomel Mendez
D: Andy Mejia
D: Daniel Wang
D: Lorenzo Bortzuzky
MF: Hahn-Saem Lee
MF: Emin Bisevic
MF: Zach Deutsch
MF: Andrew Velasquez
MF: Aditya Gaur
F: Jonathan Alvarado
Taft
GK: Jack Shelton
D: Jakub Kieras
D: Daniel Korniat
D: Victor Lewicki
D: Adrian Grden
MF: Roy Molina
MF: Stanislav Gurenko
MF: Michael Sturgelewski
F: Maciej Polinski
F: Mohamed Abbad
F: Ethan Kazberuk
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match:
Gabriel Vidaurre, jr., MF, Taft;
Jakub Kieras, sr., D, Taft
Scoring summary
First half
Taft—Bart Wojda (unassisted), 14th minute
Taft—Gabriel Vidaurre (penalty kick), 37th minute
Second half
Taft—Vidaurre (Xavier Gamez), 41st minute
Taft—Adrien Grden (Jakub Kieras), 43rd
Taft—Milton Valenzuela (Kieras), 49th minute
Taft—Matej Sokola (Diego Alanis), 67th minute
Taft—Alanis (Kieras), 74th minute
Taft—Gamez (free kick), 78th minute