Rising star leads Oak Park and River Forest past Naperville Central
Soph F Easton Bogard has goal and assist in 2-0 Pepsi win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
SCHAUMBURG — He has a musical name, and a lyrical style to match.
Everything about Easton Bogard just sings.
He is fluid and elegant in space, and he works through tight windows and navigates the areas around him, seemingly always in command and instinctively assured of what to do next.
“He’s really smart,” Oak Park and River Forest coach Jason Fried said about his precocious young talent. “He’s a high IQ player who is very good at finding space and attacking.
“He is not very big, but he is very good about how he uses his body. He doesn’t need a lot of space to get something on the net.”
The sophomore forward continued his dynamic play by scoring a goal and creating another goal as the Huskies defeated no. 15 Naperville Central 2-0 in bracket play of the PepsiCo Showdown at Olympic Park on Saturday afternoon.
“You always talk about the first five (minutes) and the last five of any half,” Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. “Unfortunately they got one in the first five, and that’s a hard mental thing.”
In the marquee opening round game, Bogard made his mark. He is lithe and quick to the ball and has shown excellent vision and balance.
In the sixth minute, defender Josh Dennis pushed the ball up the right flank to a streaking Bogard.
He finished with authority for the stunning opening sequence that set the tone. Bogard scored his 11th goal.
“That start helped a lot. Bogard said. "We also knew that later in the game, we could rely on the fact that even if we dropped off a little in our play, we could hold on because of that early success."
With the win, Oak Park and River Forest (7-0-0) dispatched a second-ranked opponent during the week.
The Huskies beat previously unbeaten no. 7 York 1-0 in the Silver Division opener of the West Suburban Conference on Tuesday.
Oak Park and River Forest has many intriguing parts, a sharp blend of talent and youth, and some high-level players.
The first three weeks have optimized their potential and reach.
“We had a great summer camp, and that helped us get touches and get experience being around each other,” Bogard said.
“Our players are very open to giving and receiving advice from one another, and we have done a great job of meshing.”
Naperville Central entered the game after a tough 1-0 loss against Minooka on Thursday. The Redhawks have played arguably the toughest early slate around.
They have played no. 1 Morton, preseason no. 1 Naperville North, Plainfield North, Minooka and now the Huskies.
“We don’t have a lot of experience playing against them, but I told the boys they are consistently among the top three teams in the West Suburban, and that’s an outstanding conference,” Adams said.
“I did not think we were very good defensively in the first half. I thought we gave them too much space and too much time.”
Naperville Central (6-4-0) responded sharply to the early Huskies’ goal, creating some intriguing combination play and high pressure.
Forwards Benjamin Tietjen and Joey LoDuca both had dangerous opportunities inside the box. Their shots just pushed wide of the mark.
Oak Park and River Forest keeper, senior Clark Turk, was also exceptional. He showed good footwork, was athletic off his line and made several striking stops.
He finished with eight saves.
“We have to find ways to put the ball in the net,” Adams said. “Too many close calls, and those don’t do anything in soccer.
“You can’t kick field goals.”
“We get the ball where we need it to be in the final third, and we just can’t put it in the back of the net,” Tietjen said. “That is something we need to work on in practice.
“I think some people are in their own heads about finishing. One miss gets in our own heads. We are thinking too much about placing it, and we just need to hit it.”
Oak Park and River Forest countered with their own impressive style of play. Midfielder Alex Hauck was very dangerous on set pieces, especially his free kicks.
Senior forward Lindsey Foster is another attacking player who provides another contrast to Bogard. He is a bigger, more traditional target.
The Huskies are also quick and athletic in the back. Dennis solidifies that part of the formation. The quickness enables the team to spring counters, or just develop the attack out of the back.
The fast start was a necessary action after Naperville Central began to find its way throughout the later stages of the first half.
“We need that early one,” Fried said. “Central did a great job of beating us to the ball a lot. They were a really solid team. We were also not playing as tight as we usually do.
“I thought the guys did a good job of staying calm and not panicking in the back. This is a small field, and there are going to be a lot of chances both ways.”
Oak Park and River Forest secured the necessary buffer in the closing seconds of the first half. In the 40th minute, Bogard got to the left edge and sent a terrific cross that Ben Nisbet blasted home.
“After our hot start, we kind of slowed down a bit,” Bogard said. “At the end of the half, we had a good break, and I got lucky enough to get past the defender and square the ball to the middle.”
Easton Bogard earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match distinction for his high-level performance.
Despite the devastating last-second goal of the first half, Naperville Central played some of its best soccer at the start of the second half.
Sophomore defender Patrick Bohan showed off his unique and dazzling abilities on throws. He created a series of strong actions that challenged the Huskies.
Like the first half, the set pieces were largely stylish and impressive to see, though finally deprived of the necessary final touch.
“I felt like, especially in the first half, we showed what we can do in the attack and how we can penetrate teams,” midfielder Sean O’Reilly said.
“It just comes down to the finishing aspect that we don’t have right now. We have to continue to work on that.”
In a game where the talent largely offset against each other, Oak Park and River Forest was the more opportunistic team. That was the elemental story.
“We stopped most of the good shots they had on net, and we finished ours,” Fried said. “We thought this kind of start was possible. We have to be happy. We’ve won some pretty good; we’ve won some ugly games; and we’ve won some emotional games.
“The guys are learning a lot as they go. We are getting wins as we do it, so I will take it.”
Starting lineups
Naperville Central
GK: Dean Scott
D: Mateo Lopez
D: Patrick Bohan
D: Patrick Berryman
MF: Carter Adams
MF: Matt Driessens
MF: Sean O’Reilly
MF: Josh Weigel
MF: Evan King
MF: Benjamin Tietjen
MF: Joey LoDuca
Oak Park and River Forest
GK: Clark Turk
D: David Schalich-Ayllon
D: Michael Ziemba
D: Eric Jackson
D: Josh Dennis
D: Tukura Hess
MF: Isaac Cummings
MF: Alex Hauck
MF: Jayden Hsieh-Bailey
F: Lindsey Foster
F: Easton Bogard
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Easton Bogard, so., F, Oak Park and River Forest
Scoring summary
First half
OPRF—Easton Bogard (Josh Dennis), sixth minute
OPRF—Ben Nisbet (Bogard), 40th minute
Second half
No scoring
Soph F Easton Bogard has goal and assist in 2-0 Pepsi win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
SCHAUMBURG — He has a musical name, and a lyrical style to match.
Everything about Easton Bogard just sings.
He is fluid and elegant in space, and he works through tight windows and navigates the areas around him, seemingly always in command and instinctively assured of what to do next.
“He’s really smart,” Oak Park and River Forest coach Jason Fried said about his precocious young talent. “He’s a high IQ player who is very good at finding space and attacking.
“He is not very big, but he is very good about how he uses his body. He doesn’t need a lot of space to get something on the net.”
The sophomore forward continued his dynamic play by scoring a goal and creating another goal as the Huskies defeated no. 15 Naperville Central 2-0 in bracket play of the PepsiCo Showdown at Olympic Park on Saturday afternoon.
“You always talk about the first five (minutes) and the last five of any half,” Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. “Unfortunately they got one in the first five, and that’s a hard mental thing.”
In the marquee opening round game, Bogard made his mark. He is lithe and quick to the ball and has shown excellent vision and balance.
In the sixth minute, defender Josh Dennis pushed the ball up the right flank to a streaking Bogard.
He finished with authority for the stunning opening sequence that set the tone. Bogard scored his 11th goal.
“That start helped a lot. Bogard said. "We also knew that later in the game, we could rely on the fact that even if we dropped off a little in our play, we could hold on because of that early success."
With the win, Oak Park and River Forest (7-0-0) dispatched a second-ranked opponent during the week.
The Huskies beat previously unbeaten no. 7 York 1-0 in the Silver Division opener of the West Suburban Conference on Tuesday.
Oak Park and River Forest has many intriguing parts, a sharp blend of talent and youth, and some high-level players.
The first three weeks have optimized their potential and reach.
“We had a great summer camp, and that helped us get touches and get experience being around each other,” Bogard said.
“Our players are very open to giving and receiving advice from one another, and we have done a great job of meshing.”
Naperville Central entered the game after a tough 1-0 loss against Minooka on Thursday. The Redhawks have played arguably the toughest early slate around.
They have played no. 1 Morton, preseason no. 1 Naperville North, Plainfield North, Minooka and now the Huskies.
“We don’t have a lot of experience playing against them, but I told the boys they are consistently among the top three teams in the West Suburban, and that’s an outstanding conference,” Adams said.
“I did not think we were very good defensively in the first half. I thought we gave them too much space and too much time.”
Naperville Central (6-4-0) responded sharply to the early Huskies’ goal, creating some intriguing combination play and high pressure.
Forwards Benjamin Tietjen and Joey LoDuca both had dangerous opportunities inside the box. Their shots just pushed wide of the mark.
Oak Park and River Forest keeper, senior Clark Turk, was also exceptional. He showed good footwork, was athletic off his line and made several striking stops.
He finished with eight saves.
“We have to find ways to put the ball in the net,” Adams said. “Too many close calls, and those don’t do anything in soccer.
“You can’t kick field goals.”
“We get the ball where we need it to be in the final third, and we just can’t put it in the back of the net,” Tietjen said. “That is something we need to work on in practice.
“I think some people are in their own heads about finishing. One miss gets in our own heads. We are thinking too much about placing it, and we just need to hit it.”
Oak Park and River Forest countered with their own impressive style of play. Midfielder Alex Hauck was very dangerous on set pieces, especially his free kicks.
Senior forward Lindsey Foster is another attacking player who provides another contrast to Bogard. He is a bigger, more traditional target.
The Huskies are also quick and athletic in the back. Dennis solidifies that part of the formation. The quickness enables the team to spring counters, or just develop the attack out of the back.
The fast start was a necessary action after Naperville Central began to find its way throughout the later stages of the first half.
“We need that early one,” Fried said. “Central did a great job of beating us to the ball a lot. They were a really solid team. We were also not playing as tight as we usually do.
“I thought the guys did a good job of staying calm and not panicking in the back. This is a small field, and there are going to be a lot of chances both ways.”
Oak Park and River Forest secured the necessary buffer in the closing seconds of the first half. In the 40th minute, Bogard got to the left edge and sent a terrific cross that Ben Nisbet blasted home.
“After our hot start, we kind of slowed down a bit,” Bogard said. “At the end of the half, we had a good break, and I got lucky enough to get past the defender and square the ball to the middle.”
Easton Bogard earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match distinction for his high-level performance.
Despite the devastating last-second goal of the first half, Naperville Central played some of its best soccer at the start of the second half.
Sophomore defender Patrick Bohan showed off his unique and dazzling abilities on throws. He created a series of strong actions that challenged the Huskies.
Like the first half, the set pieces were largely stylish and impressive to see, though finally deprived of the necessary final touch.
“I felt like, especially in the first half, we showed what we can do in the attack and how we can penetrate teams,” midfielder Sean O’Reilly said.
“It just comes down to the finishing aspect that we don’t have right now. We have to continue to work on that.”
In a game where the talent largely offset against each other, Oak Park and River Forest was the more opportunistic team. That was the elemental story.
“We stopped most of the good shots they had on net, and we finished ours,” Fried said. “We thought this kind of start was possible. We have to be happy. We’ve won some pretty good; we’ve won some ugly games; and we’ve won some emotional games.
“The guys are learning a lot as they go. We are getting wins as we do it, so I will take it.”
Starting lineups
Naperville Central
GK: Dean Scott
D: Mateo Lopez
D: Patrick Bohan
D: Patrick Berryman
MF: Carter Adams
MF: Matt Driessens
MF: Sean O’Reilly
MF: Josh Weigel
MF: Evan King
MF: Benjamin Tietjen
MF: Joey LoDuca
Oak Park and River Forest
GK: Clark Turk
D: David Schalich-Ayllon
D: Michael Ziemba
D: Eric Jackson
D: Josh Dennis
D: Tukura Hess
MF: Isaac Cummings
MF: Alex Hauck
MF: Jayden Hsieh-Bailey
F: Lindsey Foster
F: Easton Bogard
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Easton Bogard, so., F, Oak Park and River Forest
Scoring summary
First half
OPRF—Easton Bogard (Josh Dennis), sixth minute
OPRF—Ben Nisbet (Bogard), 40th minute
Second half
No scoring