Rolling Meadows clicks against Palatine
Defender ‘Seat belt’ Winkelman, Mustangs lock in 2-1 MSL win
By Bill McLean
ROLLING MEADOWS — Rolling Meadows coach Brett Olson was a passerby on the pitch when he heard one of his Mustangs utter the nickname of a teammate after Tuesday night’s Mid-Suburban League match against visiting Palatine.
“We call him ‘Seat belt’,” Rolling Meadows senior Joe Salemi said of senior center back Mathew Winkelman. “He’s our clamp. We started calling him that in practice.”
“I feel secure knowing he’s back there,” Mustangs senior forward and wordplay fan Paco Ramirez added. “Mat makes great reads.”
Olson stopped in his tracks.
“‘Seat belt,’ huh? ” the coach said. “I’d never heard that.
“I like it.”
But he loved Rolling Meadows’s 2-1 victory. His urgent crew peppered a pair of shots on goal in the first minute, scored twice in a span of six minutes and got a slew of buckle-down efforts from the indefatigable Winkelman in both halves at Robert A. Hoese Field.
Winkelman was an outside midfielder last year — on the JV squad.
He performed like a decorated fourth-year varsity man against the Pirates in super-pleasant weather conditions. Time after time — particularly in the second half when Palatine’s sense of urgency ramped up to a level Palatine coach Aaron Morris would have liked to witness from the get-go — Winkelman stymied a rush here or executed a clean tackle there.
It’s been said that triples die in All-Star outfielders’ gloves. Against Rolling Meadows, an offense’s optimism perishes at the feet of Winkelman.
“When we were trying to figure out our best 11 in preseason, Mat was among them,” Olson said after his side improved to 6-2-0 (2-1-0 in the MSL) and Palatine dipped to 7-4-0, 2-2-0. “He’s been really good with (junior) Alex Chlopek back there. We’ve been riding with them.”
Winkelman’s presence in front of sophomore goalkeeper Marceli Okonski (three saves and several emphatic punch-aways on corner kicks) has certainly been a boon for Rolling Meadows’s purple and black, since about 95 percent of the Mustangs’ collective minutes on defense last fall ran out of prep eligibility.
Winkelman was an easy pick for the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor. But so was his mate Salemi, who had a goal and an assist. They shared the honor.
Salemi dished a slick 25-yard assist from midfield to a hustling Ramirez in the 27th minute. Ramirez caught up to the delivery and then beat Pirates junior keeper Charlie Rebollar (10 saves) inside the near post from about 12 yards.
But none of the above would have transpired without the critical feed launched by reserve senior midfielder Yeray Alavez near the Pirates’ bench.
Give Y.A. a hockey assist.
Salemi impressed more than just those in Rolling Meadows gear.
“I love the way 10 (Salemi) plays,” Morris said. “We struggled in the middle on that goal, got pulled apart, while Rolling Meadows spaced well. And we didn’t communicate like we should have.
“You can’t fail to communicate against a quick, speedy team like Rolling Meadows,” he added. “I’m frustrated. It’s frustrating to play from behind as often as we have. But I appreciated the work-rate we showed.”
Rolling Meadows went up 2-0 six minutes later. Salemi provided the finishing touch this time, heading a spot-on free kick off the right foot of junior midfielder Brian Diaz, who boomed the freebie from about 30 yards.
“A couple of pretty goals,” Olson said. “I saw some brilliance as that first goal unfolded.”
A handball foul in the 38th minute preceded Palatine’s lone goal. Okonski got a mitt on Palatine junior reserve midfielder David Kozeav’s PK blast, but the ball entered the goal inches below the crossbar.
The highlight of the second half might have been a save — by Olson. Rolling Meadows’ coach (he has a background in volleyball and basketball, an assistant coach informed) extended both arms to stop a zinger of an errant shot heading toward his club’s bench.
Olson caught it cleanly and followed up the athletic move by saying, “I got you, I got you,” to the Mustangs who’d been in the line of fire.
Olson lauded Palatine’s attempt to knot the game in the second half, especially the work of Pirates senior midfielder Dennis Valle.
Olson’s heart skipped a beat whenever the ball was anywhere near Valle’s left foot.
“He was a monster out there, a constant threat,” Olson said.
“Eleven (Valle) was our focus for the entire second half.
“Aaron,” he added, “has a nice group. It’s certainly a style change (compared to what just-retired coach Willie Filian deployed during his decades at the helm), but what I also saw tonight was how hard Palatine’s players played.”
What Winkelman noticed: “One of our best games overall,” he said. “We needed this one.
“Getting up 1-0 like we did helped,” the stopper added. “Gave us the momentum we needed.”
Rolling Mdeadows hosts Wheeling on Thursday at 6:45 p.m. and visits Conant — ranked no. 6 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 -- on Saturday at 2 p.m. Conant (8-1-1) lost its first game, a 1-0 setback at Barrington, on Tuesday night.
Palatine hosts Hoffman Estates on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.
Footnotes
You have to admire Morris’ enthusiasm for the MSL’s rugged soccer programs. “I love these league games, all of them,” Palatine’s first-year coach said moments before Tuesday’s kickoff. “They’re fun, and you’re always going up against a competitive, well-coached team.” … Rolling Meadows’s Alavez suffered a knee injury early in the first half of the Mustangs’ season opener last month and missed a handful of games. He looked healthy Tuesday night, especially when he initiated the sequence that led to the night’s first tally. … Palatine junior back Jordan Mok, on the state of the Pirates after the tough
setback Tuesday night: “We’re a very talented squad, but we have to play our best right away in games. We’ll be stronger and continue to work hard the rest of the way. Discipline — we’ll show more of that too.” … Palatine senior forward Jesus Leyva stood out during stretches in the first half, using his size to win 50-50 balls and dribbling skills to sustain rushes.
Starting lineups
Palatine
GK Charlie Rebollar
D Fabian Vargas
D Karan Toor
D Liam Rhattigan
D Jordan Mok
MF Damien Drzewiecki
MF Isaac Lara
MF Zachery Sondergaard
MF Dennis Valle
F Karol Noga
F Jesus Leyva
Rolling Meadows
GK Marceli Okonski
D Matt Schuhmacher
D Alex Chlopek
D Antonio Caldera
D Mathew Winkelman
MF Oscar Chlopek
MF Brian Diaz
MF Joe Salemi
F Alex Kociubinski
F Jonah San Roman
F Paco Ramirez
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match:
Joe Salemi, sr., MF, Rolling Meadows
Mathew Winkelman, sr., D, Rolling Meadows
Scoring summary
First half
Rolling Meadows — Ramirez (Yeray Alavez, Salemi), 27’
Rolling Meadows — Salemi (Diaz), 33’
Palatine — David Kozeav (PK), 38’
Second half
No scoring
Defender ‘Seat belt’ Winkelman, Mustangs lock in 2-1 MSL win
By Bill McLean
ROLLING MEADOWS — Rolling Meadows coach Brett Olson was a passerby on the pitch when he heard one of his Mustangs utter the nickname of a teammate after Tuesday night’s Mid-Suburban League match against visiting Palatine.
“We call him ‘Seat belt’,” Rolling Meadows senior Joe Salemi said of senior center back Mathew Winkelman. “He’s our clamp. We started calling him that in practice.”
“I feel secure knowing he’s back there,” Mustangs senior forward and wordplay fan Paco Ramirez added. “Mat makes great reads.”
Olson stopped in his tracks.
“‘Seat belt,’ huh? ” the coach said. “I’d never heard that.
“I like it.”
But he loved Rolling Meadows’s 2-1 victory. His urgent crew peppered a pair of shots on goal in the first minute, scored twice in a span of six minutes and got a slew of buckle-down efforts from the indefatigable Winkelman in both halves at Robert A. Hoese Field.
Winkelman was an outside midfielder last year — on the JV squad.
He performed like a decorated fourth-year varsity man against the Pirates in super-pleasant weather conditions. Time after time — particularly in the second half when Palatine’s sense of urgency ramped up to a level Palatine coach Aaron Morris would have liked to witness from the get-go — Winkelman stymied a rush here or executed a clean tackle there.
It’s been said that triples die in All-Star outfielders’ gloves. Against Rolling Meadows, an offense’s optimism perishes at the feet of Winkelman.
“When we were trying to figure out our best 11 in preseason, Mat was among them,” Olson said after his side improved to 6-2-0 (2-1-0 in the MSL) and Palatine dipped to 7-4-0, 2-2-0. “He’s been really good with (junior) Alex Chlopek back there. We’ve been riding with them.”
Winkelman’s presence in front of sophomore goalkeeper Marceli Okonski (three saves and several emphatic punch-aways on corner kicks) has certainly been a boon for Rolling Meadows’s purple and black, since about 95 percent of the Mustangs’ collective minutes on defense last fall ran out of prep eligibility.
Winkelman was an easy pick for the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor. But so was his mate Salemi, who had a goal and an assist. They shared the honor.
Salemi dished a slick 25-yard assist from midfield to a hustling Ramirez in the 27th minute. Ramirez caught up to the delivery and then beat Pirates junior keeper Charlie Rebollar (10 saves) inside the near post from about 12 yards.
But none of the above would have transpired without the critical feed launched by reserve senior midfielder Yeray Alavez near the Pirates’ bench.
Give Y.A. a hockey assist.
Salemi impressed more than just those in Rolling Meadows gear.
“I love the way 10 (Salemi) plays,” Morris said. “We struggled in the middle on that goal, got pulled apart, while Rolling Meadows spaced well. And we didn’t communicate like we should have.
“You can’t fail to communicate against a quick, speedy team like Rolling Meadows,” he added. “I’m frustrated. It’s frustrating to play from behind as often as we have. But I appreciated the work-rate we showed.”
Rolling Meadows went up 2-0 six minutes later. Salemi provided the finishing touch this time, heading a spot-on free kick off the right foot of junior midfielder Brian Diaz, who boomed the freebie from about 30 yards.
“A couple of pretty goals,” Olson said. “I saw some brilliance as that first goal unfolded.”
A handball foul in the 38th minute preceded Palatine’s lone goal. Okonski got a mitt on Palatine junior reserve midfielder David Kozeav’s PK blast, but the ball entered the goal inches below the crossbar.
The highlight of the second half might have been a save — by Olson. Rolling Meadows’ coach (he has a background in volleyball and basketball, an assistant coach informed) extended both arms to stop a zinger of an errant shot heading toward his club’s bench.
Olson caught it cleanly and followed up the athletic move by saying, “I got you, I got you,” to the Mustangs who’d been in the line of fire.
Olson lauded Palatine’s attempt to knot the game in the second half, especially the work of Pirates senior midfielder Dennis Valle.
Olson’s heart skipped a beat whenever the ball was anywhere near Valle’s left foot.
“He was a monster out there, a constant threat,” Olson said.
“Eleven (Valle) was our focus for the entire second half.
“Aaron,” he added, “has a nice group. It’s certainly a style change (compared to what just-retired coach Willie Filian deployed during his decades at the helm), but what I also saw tonight was how hard Palatine’s players played.”
What Winkelman noticed: “One of our best games overall,” he said. “We needed this one.
“Getting up 1-0 like we did helped,” the stopper added. “Gave us the momentum we needed.”
Rolling Mdeadows hosts Wheeling on Thursday at 6:45 p.m. and visits Conant — ranked no. 6 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 -- on Saturday at 2 p.m. Conant (8-1-1) lost its first game, a 1-0 setback at Barrington, on Tuesday night.
Palatine hosts Hoffman Estates on Thursday at 6:45 p.m.
Footnotes
You have to admire Morris’ enthusiasm for the MSL’s rugged soccer programs. “I love these league games, all of them,” Palatine’s first-year coach said moments before Tuesday’s kickoff. “They’re fun, and you’re always going up against a competitive, well-coached team.” … Rolling Meadows’s Alavez suffered a knee injury early in the first half of the Mustangs’ season opener last month and missed a handful of games. He looked healthy Tuesday night, especially when he initiated the sequence that led to the night’s first tally. … Palatine junior back Jordan Mok, on the state of the Pirates after the tough
setback Tuesday night: “We’re a very talented squad, but we have to play our best right away in games. We’ll be stronger and continue to work hard the rest of the way. Discipline — we’ll show more of that too.” … Palatine senior forward Jesus Leyva stood out during stretches in the first half, using his size to win 50-50 balls and dribbling skills to sustain rushes.
Starting lineups
Palatine
GK Charlie Rebollar
D Fabian Vargas
D Karan Toor
D Liam Rhattigan
D Jordan Mok
MF Damien Drzewiecki
MF Isaac Lara
MF Zachery Sondergaard
MF Dennis Valle
F Karol Noga
F Jesus Leyva
Rolling Meadows
GK Marceli Okonski
D Matt Schuhmacher
D Alex Chlopek
D Antonio Caldera
D Mathew Winkelman
MF Oscar Chlopek
MF Brian Diaz
MF Joe Salemi
F Alex Kociubinski
F Jonah San Roman
F Paco Ramirez
Chicagoland Soccer Men of the Match:
Joe Salemi, sr., MF, Rolling Meadows
Mathew Winkelman, sr., D, Rolling Meadows
Scoring summary
First half
Rolling Meadows — Ramirez (Yeray Alavez, Salemi), 27’
Rolling Meadows — Salemi (Diaz), 33’
Palatine — David Kozeav (PK), 38’
Second half
No scoring