Wind wins, Oswego East, Batavia tie
Windmill City host Bulldogs battle to 1-1 draw with Wolves
By Chris Walker
BATAVIA -- Adler Palos awoke to the sound of thunder from the skies and raindrops pelting his bedroom window on Saturday morning.
The Batavia senior expected to be greeted by wet conditions for an afternoon nonconference game against Oswego East, but he arrived to see turf that was bone dry.
It had gotten that way mainly because of the hot sun and strong winds, which may have completely dried the field before the 2 p.m. start, but would also play havoc with both teams who were forced to strategize and adjust to playing in it, while also recognizing that they would be at a disadvantage for one half apiece.
Both teams succumbed at times to the difficulty of playing in such conditions, but neither paid dearly as the Bulldogs and Wolves battled to a 1-1 tie.
“I was anticipating a wet field, so I was prepared to come out and shoot a lot because it would skip on the turf,” Adler said. “By the time I got here it was all dry, but then I realized how windy it was going to be. So we had to adapt to the wind, because we’re more of an aerial team with bigger kids and with the wind we had to change our focus to playing more on the ground.”
Batavia (1-1-2) had the wind at its backs for the first half, but that didn’t help the Bulldogs much.
Senior Joe Grendzinski was able to create a few solid scoring chances for the hosts. He landed a cross early in the half, but Oswego East goalkeeper Nathan Huerter was able to snag his shot attempt. About 10 minutes later, Grendzinski had a similar opportunity, but once again Huerter safely defended it.
Huerter was unable to defend a shot from Palos with 8:16 remaining in the first half. Palos was able to secure possession on a pass from senior Miguel Garcia that flicked off the body of a defender.
“We were focusing on putting a lot of pressure on the defense and a failed through-ball came off a defender,” Palos said. “I took my shot with my left foot and got it across the goalie’s body.”
Oswego East (3-1-1) nearly tied the game up in the final 83 seconds of the first half.
First, senior Ford Frazer sent a beautiful, soft touch pass to junior Dacarlos Parodis-Yu who blasted a shot, but it went right toward the chest of Batavia goalkeeper Jacob Mefford. While he couldn’t secure the shot, Mefford was able to deflect it away at least momentarily. The Wolves had two corner kicks right after it. Freshman Kellen Klosterman was able to get a flick on the first one, but not enough to find the net, while the second one came from sophomore Dimitri Huitron but was easily snagged by Mefford.
“I think it’s just little things here and there, and we still have to find a way to finish,” Oswego East coach Steve Szymanski said. “Sometimes the guys are looking for the perfect shot or pass and sometimes you’ve got to put the ball on net and see what happens. It’s high school soccer and not everyone is a pro out there. Put it on net and see what happens.”
The Wolves came out firing to begin the second half and tied the game at 1-1 with 36:08 left in the game on Joey Bavol’s opportunistic goal from Huitron and senior Ford Frazer.
“It was headed and Ford (Frazer) found the second ball. I ran through the space and hit it right through the defenders,” Bavol said. “I put it right into the corner."
Frazer, who was named Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, constantly antagonized the Bulldogs, because that’s what dangerous scoring threats are really good at doing. You forget about them for a split second, and they’re making you pay, even on days when the conditions aren’t ideal.
“It was tricky with that wind and the goalkeeper (Mefford) did a really nice job today,” Frazer said. “I think they wore us out. We could get that ball up there but our mids were so tired, because they’re just kicking and chasing. So we had no one to distribute to the forwards. So those outside wings and our center mids need to get up and learn how to finish with us, because forwards can’t do it all by themselves.”
Recognizing that time was running out, each team constructed scoring threats in the final 10 minutes that are worth noting.
Frazer broke free from a defender and had an open look but couldn’t get much on his shot, which rolled to Mefford with about 10 minutes left. He’d later tap a pass to Parodis-Yu who quickly retreated, sending the ball to Nolan Laczynski who lofted a shot/cross, but it ended up in Mefford’s hands in the final minute.
Batavia pressured a couple of times in the final five minutes to nearly shock the Wolves. Previously the Bulldogs hadn’t threatened much at all in the second half.
“(Oswego East) had the long throw-in guy, and they were a lot more composed there,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “They had the better run of the play but credit to our guys for sticking with it and then creating some possible chances in the last five minutes.”
Both teams have a better understanding of where they stand this season after playing two weeks worth of games.
“I think we’re playing well and still trying to gel with a lot of new guys in the mix,” Szymanski said. “We’re finally kind of getting our chemistry a little bit better, and guys are starting to learn tendencies on players and things like that.”
The Wolves were as close to full-strength as they’ve been this year Saturday.
“We’ve had some guys banged up so this was the first time we’ve had everyone available,” Szymanski said. “That was nice, and hopefully we can get a nice rotation that’s more consistent instead of just throwing guys out there. I was proud of how the guys played today. It was a good effort, but we just couldn’t put it in the net, and sometimes that happens.”
Bavol agreed that the Wolves are beginning to mesh.
“I think the team is coming together nicely,” he said. “The defense is doing really well, we’re possessing well, and the only thing we really need to practice on offense is finishing with the ball.”
Still, with new bodies filling big roles this fall, some guys have to learn as they go.
“We’ve got a ton of new kids on varsity who are still trying to learn how compete at this level,” Frazer said. “They’re doing a good job of integrating into our system, but it’s going to take some time.”
Batavia believes it is also momementum as the season moves to its third week.
“I think we’ve improved a lot since the beginning of the season, but there’s always room to get better,” Batavia junior defender Quinn Carlson said. “A lot of us were on JV so it’s a lot of trying to pick things up and bonding with new players.”
As players try to identify roles, they’re also pushing each other for minutes.
“Most of the guys coming from the JV level are super competitive and I like that,” Palos said. “They’re looking to earn their spot and help the team.”
Gianfrancesco considers the Bulldogs to be a work in progress, but not one that lacks talented players looking to be successful. The pieces seem to be there, but they need to mature and gain confidence and a lot of that simply comes from repetition in practice and success in games.
“We’ll keep trying to move forward,” he said. “We’ve got to face some teams that look like they’re playing pretty well with Lake Park on Tuesday and Oswego on Wednesday. We know we’ve got to be organized better and communicate.”
Batavia and Oswego East have been in the same sectional, and they are accustomed to seeing each other in the regular season. This marked the sixth-straight year that the two teams met and the Bulldogs (4-0-2) remain unbeaten against the Wolves.
“They’re in our sectional, and we want to play teams that are competitive and you’re not just pounding or playing against coaches you don’t like,” Gianfrancesco said. “I like playing them, especially early and to see a different style. We saw Wheaton Academy with a 4-3-3 and Neuqua Valley and they were 4-3-3 and then today Oswego East was a 4-4-2 or worked into a 4-2-4. So it’s good seeing different styles and teams.”
Batavia won 8-1 in 2013 and then 7-1 in 2014 behind an Ian Larson hat trick, but the games have been more competitive in recent years with Batavia winning 3-0 in 2015, the teams tying 1-1 in 2016 and Batavia winning 2-1 last year.
“We want to be challenged,” Szymanski said. “We’re going to face a lot of good teams in the playoffs so now’s the time to do it.”
Frazer was hoping the Wolves could finally win their first game in the series in his final year.
“The tricky thing about them is they are notorious for being a good program, but I’ve felt that the last three years we’ve been the better team,” he said. “I feel like we haven’t been able to finish against them, but sometimes it’s hard like today with the winds to get that first win against that program.”
Starting lineups
Oswego East
GK: Nathan Huerter
D: Joey Bavol
D: Zach Lass
D: Juan Manrique
D: Zach Seidel
MF: Dimitri Huitron
MF: Kellen Klosterman
MF: Nolan Laczynski
F: Andre Casas
F: Ford Frazer
F: Decarlos Parodis-Yu
Batavia
GK: Jacob Mefford
D: Quinn Carlson
D: Joe Grendzinski
D: Kipp Knecht
D: Jason Nichols
D: Hector Rosales
MF: Max Hardin
MF: Adler Palos
MF: Ian Wood
F: Miguel Garcia
F: Gunner Knox
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Ford Frazer, sr., F, Oswego East
Scoring Summary
First half
Batavia – Adler Palos (Miguel Garcia), 32nd minute
Second half
Oswego East – Joey Bavol (Dimitri Huitron), 44th minute
Windmill City host Bulldogs battle to 1-1 draw with Wolves
By Chris Walker
BATAVIA -- Adler Palos awoke to the sound of thunder from the skies and raindrops pelting his bedroom window on Saturday morning.
The Batavia senior expected to be greeted by wet conditions for an afternoon nonconference game against Oswego East, but he arrived to see turf that was bone dry.
It had gotten that way mainly because of the hot sun and strong winds, which may have completely dried the field before the 2 p.m. start, but would also play havoc with both teams who were forced to strategize and adjust to playing in it, while also recognizing that they would be at a disadvantage for one half apiece.
Both teams succumbed at times to the difficulty of playing in such conditions, but neither paid dearly as the Bulldogs and Wolves battled to a 1-1 tie.
“I was anticipating a wet field, so I was prepared to come out and shoot a lot because it would skip on the turf,” Adler said. “By the time I got here it was all dry, but then I realized how windy it was going to be. So we had to adapt to the wind, because we’re more of an aerial team with bigger kids and with the wind we had to change our focus to playing more on the ground.”
Batavia (1-1-2) had the wind at its backs for the first half, but that didn’t help the Bulldogs much.
Senior Joe Grendzinski was able to create a few solid scoring chances for the hosts. He landed a cross early in the half, but Oswego East goalkeeper Nathan Huerter was able to snag his shot attempt. About 10 minutes later, Grendzinski had a similar opportunity, but once again Huerter safely defended it.
Huerter was unable to defend a shot from Palos with 8:16 remaining in the first half. Palos was able to secure possession on a pass from senior Miguel Garcia that flicked off the body of a defender.
“We were focusing on putting a lot of pressure on the defense and a failed through-ball came off a defender,” Palos said. “I took my shot with my left foot and got it across the goalie’s body.”
Oswego East (3-1-1) nearly tied the game up in the final 83 seconds of the first half.
First, senior Ford Frazer sent a beautiful, soft touch pass to junior Dacarlos Parodis-Yu who blasted a shot, but it went right toward the chest of Batavia goalkeeper Jacob Mefford. While he couldn’t secure the shot, Mefford was able to deflect it away at least momentarily. The Wolves had two corner kicks right after it. Freshman Kellen Klosterman was able to get a flick on the first one, but not enough to find the net, while the second one came from sophomore Dimitri Huitron but was easily snagged by Mefford.
“I think it’s just little things here and there, and we still have to find a way to finish,” Oswego East coach Steve Szymanski said. “Sometimes the guys are looking for the perfect shot or pass and sometimes you’ve got to put the ball on net and see what happens. It’s high school soccer and not everyone is a pro out there. Put it on net and see what happens.”
The Wolves came out firing to begin the second half and tied the game at 1-1 with 36:08 left in the game on Joey Bavol’s opportunistic goal from Huitron and senior Ford Frazer.
“It was headed and Ford (Frazer) found the second ball. I ran through the space and hit it right through the defenders,” Bavol said. “I put it right into the corner."
Frazer, who was named Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, constantly antagonized the Bulldogs, because that’s what dangerous scoring threats are really good at doing. You forget about them for a split second, and they’re making you pay, even on days when the conditions aren’t ideal.
“It was tricky with that wind and the goalkeeper (Mefford) did a really nice job today,” Frazer said. “I think they wore us out. We could get that ball up there but our mids were so tired, because they’re just kicking and chasing. So we had no one to distribute to the forwards. So those outside wings and our center mids need to get up and learn how to finish with us, because forwards can’t do it all by themselves.”
Recognizing that time was running out, each team constructed scoring threats in the final 10 minutes that are worth noting.
Frazer broke free from a defender and had an open look but couldn’t get much on his shot, which rolled to Mefford with about 10 minutes left. He’d later tap a pass to Parodis-Yu who quickly retreated, sending the ball to Nolan Laczynski who lofted a shot/cross, but it ended up in Mefford’s hands in the final minute.
Batavia pressured a couple of times in the final five minutes to nearly shock the Wolves. Previously the Bulldogs hadn’t threatened much at all in the second half.
“(Oswego East) had the long throw-in guy, and they were a lot more composed there,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “They had the better run of the play but credit to our guys for sticking with it and then creating some possible chances in the last five minutes.”
Both teams have a better understanding of where they stand this season after playing two weeks worth of games.
“I think we’re playing well and still trying to gel with a lot of new guys in the mix,” Szymanski said. “We’re finally kind of getting our chemistry a little bit better, and guys are starting to learn tendencies on players and things like that.”
The Wolves were as close to full-strength as they’ve been this year Saturday.
“We’ve had some guys banged up so this was the first time we’ve had everyone available,” Szymanski said. “That was nice, and hopefully we can get a nice rotation that’s more consistent instead of just throwing guys out there. I was proud of how the guys played today. It was a good effort, but we just couldn’t put it in the net, and sometimes that happens.”
Bavol agreed that the Wolves are beginning to mesh.
“I think the team is coming together nicely,” he said. “The defense is doing really well, we’re possessing well, and the only thing we really need to practice on offense is finishing with the ball.”
Still, with new bodies filling big roles this fall, some guys have to learn as they go.
“We’ve got a ton of new kids on varsity who are still trying to learn how compete at this level,” Frazer said. “They’re doing a good job of integrating into our system, but it’s going to take some time.”
Batavia believes it is also momementum as the season moves to its third week.
“I think we’ve improved a lot since the beginning of the season, but there’s always room to get better,” Batavia junior defender Quinn Carlson said. “A lot of us were on JV so it’s a lot of trying to pick things up and bonding with new players.”
As players try to identify roles, they’re also pushing each other for minutes.
“Most of the guys coming from the JV level are super competitive and I like that,” Palos said. “They’re looking to earn their spot and help the team.”
Gianfrancesco considers the Bulldogs to be a work in progress, but not one that lacks talented players looking to be successful. The pieces seem to be there, but they need to mature and gain confidence and a lot of that simply comes from repetition in practice and success in games.
“We’ll keep trying to move forward,” he said. “We’ve got to face some teams that look like they’re playing pretty well with Lake Park on Tuesday and Oswego on Wednesday. We know we’ve got to be organized better and communicate.”
Batavia and Oswego East have been in the same sectional, and they are accustomed to seeing each other in the regular season. This marked the sixth-straight year that the two teams met and the Bulldogs (4-0-2) remain unbeaten against the Wolves.
“They’re in our sectional, and we want to play teams that are competitive and you’re not just pounding or playing against coaches you don’t like,” Gianfrancesco said. “I like playing them, especially early and to see a different style. We saw Wheaton Academy with a 4-3-3 and Neuqua Valley and they were 4-3-3 and then today Oswego East was a 4-4-2 or worked into a 4-2-4. So it’s good seeing different styles and teams.”
Batavia won 8-1 in 2013 and then 7-1 in 2014 behind an Ian Larson hat trick, but the games have been more competitive in recent years with Batavia winning 3-0 in 2015, the teams tying 1-1 in 2016 and Batavia winning 2-1 last year.
“We want to be challenged,” Szymanski said. “We’re going to face a lot of good teams in the playoffs so now’s the time to do it.”
Frazer was hoping the Wolves could finally win their first game in the series in his final year.
“The tricky thing about them is they are notorious for being a good program, but I’ve felt that the last three years we’ve been the better team,” he said. “I feel like we haven’t been able to finish against them, but sometimes it’s hard like today with the winds to get that first win against that program.”
Starting lineups
Oswego East
GK: Nathan Huerter
D: Joey Bavol
D: Zach Lass
D: Juan Manrique
D: Zach Seidel
MF: Dimitri Huitron
MF: Kellen Klosterman
MF: Nolan Laczynski
F: Andre Casas
F: Ford Frazer
F: Decarlos Parodis-Yu
Batavia
GK: Jacob Mefford
D: Quinn Carlson
D: Joe Grendzinski
D: Kipp Knecht
D: Jason Nichols
D: Hector Rosales
MF: Max Hardin
MF: Adler Palos
MF: Ian Wood
F: Miguel Garcia
F: Gunner Knox
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Ford Frazer, sr., F, Oswego East
Scoring Summary
First half
Batavia – Adler Palos (Miguel Garcia), 32nd minute
Second half
Oswego East – Joey Bavol (Dimitri Huitron), 44th minute