Plainfield North tops Naperville Central
in high-scoring Best of West 'semifinal'
Tigers take command early to dictate 5-2 win
By Dave Owen
NAPERVILLE -- On a Naperville Central field that was the high school football home to two Super Bowl champion tight ends (Denver's Owen Daniels and Tampa Bay's Cameron Brate), the host Redhawks and Plainfield North squared off in their final game of Group 1 play that would decide who advanced to the Best of the West final Saturday evening. It was anything but a tight defensive struggle.
The first 30 minutes featured three goals, a missed penalty kick and a virtually nonstop stream of scoring threats at both ends. And the pace never slowed until the final horn.
When the high-speed battle was settled, the visiting Tigers (5-0-0), ranked at the top of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, continued their sizzling start with a 5-2 win over the no. 5 Redhawks (4-1-1). The win set Plainfield North up with Group 2 winner and 10th-ranked Naperville North.
Cooper Allen (now at 10 goals in five games this fall) continued his early season tear with two goals and an assist versus the Redhawks, but suffered a leg injury with 32:58 left in the game that forced him to sit out the rest of the offensive show.
He was walking better after the match, and celebrating his team’s landmark win of sorts, in the Tigers’ great early season.
“We haven't beat these guys (Naperville Central) in three years,” Allen said. “We had a chip on our shoulders coming in. So, we came out with a lot of energy. I think that worked to our advantage.”
“A lot of energy” was an understatement.
Facing a usually stingy Naperville Central defense that played Sandburg to a regulation 0-0 draw Thursday (decided in the Eagles’ favor on penalty kicks), the Tigers roared out to a 2-0 lead within the first 15 minutes.
Allen was the creator on the first salvo, a rush to the end line and cross that Matthew Hipolito tucked in for a 1-0 lead just over seven minutes in.
“Cooper took the ball, turned the (defender) and drove the ball across the face of the goal,” Tigers coach Lukasz Majewski said, “(Justin) Williams let it go through his legs, and Hipolito was back post to tap it in.”
Minutes later, Williams went from decoy to expert free kick creator when he doubled the Plainfield North lead on his 22-yard shot.
“I just noticed that I could bend it (the ball) around the outside of their wall near-post,” Williams said. “I've been working on that the last few weeks, so it was great to finally score on one.”
And even better to seize a fast two-goal lead on a strong opponent.
“Naperville Central is, I feel like, the first really good team that we've played,” Williams said. “We wanted to come out with a lot of energy and match what they come out with. It was great to get ahead early and keep going from there.”
The 10 a.m. start to the match clearly didn’t find the Tigers bleary eyed.
“Not at all,” Williams said. “We were ready to play right away.”
Naperville Central began to battle back with a pair of good chances 26 minutes in by Chase Adams: first a liner over the net, then an Adams run to the end line that ended with a header saved at the post by Tigers goalkeeper Peyton Meyers.
But just as the Redhawks began to respond to their early shock, Allen turned up the electricity 10:38 before halftime.
After a foul set up a free kick, Williams’ quick, short pass to Sean Elster developed into a send to Allen at the left of the box. With great footwork to create space, he lined a low 18-yard rocket inside the near post to make the lead 3-0.
“I saw I had an opportunity 1-on-1 on the edge,” Allen said, “so I took him inside with my right foot, saw someone step, took one more step and slotted it corner.”
Napeville Central could have been forgiven for thinking the day was doomed 24 seconds after Allen’s goal.
Josh Weigel made a great run into the box and was knocked to the ground to earn a penalty kick, the senior midfielder’s PK try curled wide of the left post to keep the score 3-0.
But the hosts didn’t quit after the morning’s latest misfortune.
In the next five minutes, Sean O’Reilly had a tough-angle 6-yard shot saved by Meyers, and Patrick Berryman rocketed a 30-yard one-timer off the football uprights.
With 2:23 left in the half, Naperville Central’s resilience was rewarded.
Chase Adams was again a catalyst, taking a Nathan Kwon pass, racing in left and sending a cross to the right side. O’Reilly was there for a perfect angle shot, a low 18-yarder inside the left post to make the score 3-1 at halftime.
With six goals in their first two Best of the West wins (4-2 over Sandburg and 2-0 over Bartlett), Plainfield North continued its finishing mastery Saturday. But Naperville Central had impressive offensive numbers of its own.
“They (Plainfield North) had 10 shots and five goals," Redhawks coach Troy Adams said, "and we had 14 shots and two goals.
"The ying and yang of soccer is that sometimes that’s the way it is. Today they were better in front of the goal than we were, and that's going to happen sometimes.”
Naperville Central continued the momentum from its 38th-minute goal into the second half.
Two minutes after the break, Plainfield North’s Aidan Smith nicely deflected away a corner kick to repel another threat.
Then just 1:07 later, another great Tigers set piece and Allen’s finishing touch reinflated the Plainfield North lead to 4-1.
Williams’ well-struck 35-yard free kick from the right side eluded the Redhawks goalkeeper, and Allen was there for a 6-yard running header.
From distance or the doorstep, Allen is scoring goals at a record pace. And it’s barely September.
“(Chances) have just been coming to me so why not score them,” Allen said. “I need around seven more to break the school record.”
Allen is also much more than a finisher.
“You can see our unselfishness around the field,” Majewski said. “Cooper is just a beast out there, but he's going to share the wealth just as much as he wants the ball on his foot.”
Said Allen: “We have a lot of speed up-top. It's easy to play balls behind them and use the speed to our advantage, and then put it in the back of the net.”
The offensive talent comes in waves for the Tigers.
“Cooper is really good up-top,” Williams said. “We have Timi (Usikalu) who is good up-top, and Paul (McCormick) is another good forward.
“I think this is the first year where all of our pieces are really good players. Our starting 11 are all good. It's really nice where you can play anyone on the field, and they're going to show up and play well.”
And if that’s not enough, there are the Tigers’ dangerous free kicks.
“We practice (free kicks) every day with the team,” Williams said, “and often times I'll stay after and work on them a little extra. Second half I played Cooper far post with another free kick.
“Set pieces are a big part of our game. We got three goals off them today.”
After grabbing the 4-1 lead, Plainfield North lost Allen to injury and had to deal with a resilient and relentless Naperville Central attack.
The Redhawks’ Joe LoDuca hit a liner that was deflected wide left with 31:40 to play. It set up a corner kick that the Tigers’ McCormick nicely cleared to midfield.
Nice steals 25 yards out by Ryan Bechtel (30:05 to go) and the combo of Brady Harwood and McCormick (28:55 left) repelled two more Naperville Central threats, but the hosts kept charging.
That was true of Weigel in particular.
Shaken up after landing hard on his back on an attempt to redirect a corner kick send with 26:10 to play, Weigel soon returned and was the finisher on a pretty goal with 13:42 left that drew his team back within 4-2.
On a play began by Patrick Bohan, a subsequent nice give-and-go was capped by Chase Adams’ nice touch-pass to Weigel rushing up the middle. Weigel did the rest, splitting the defense and tucking a low 15-yard shot inside the right post.
“I played a ball to Chase and just sprinted through the line and tried to get the ball back,” Weigel said. “I got it back and slotted it home. That was good, because I made up for the penalty (kick) I missed.”
That PK was just a small part of the Redhawks’ first half woes.
“Early in the half I thought there was a lack of intensity on our part,” Weigel said. “We didn't start the game super well.
“At the end of the half we kind of picked it up a little bit, but I think just we need to focus on coming out with better focus at the start of the game and sticking with that throughout the entire game.”
Coach Adams also emphasized the positive response to the 3-0 deficit.
“The last 15 minutes of the first half I thought we played much better as a whole,” he said. “You're obviously looking at what you can do better, but there's also what you did well. You play good teams in order to find things out. So, I think there's a lot we can work on, but a lot of positives as well.
“Like on one play I thought we did a really nice job with a combination play at the far side and found the guy, but put it over top. I've told my players I will not yell at you about technical mistakes. We did everything right and just hit the wrong ball. That happens.
“We do have to work on communication,” Adams added. “We had lots of times where players weren't in the right spot. But that's a fixable thing.”
Having pulled within 4-2 on Weigel’s goal, the Redhawks nearly drew even closer one minute later.
Off an initial clear, Bohan’s 28-yard left side send to the box produced a solid Kwon header on goal, but it ended with a Meyers catch.
Then with 9:39 to go, the relentless Plainfield North attack was back.
Williams endured a hard foul near the left post on Daniel Martinez’s send to the box, producing both a penalty kick and a red card on the Redhawks.
Usikalu powered the PK inside the lower left corner of the net to seal the 5-2 final. With it, the Tigers had impressively cleared a major and persistent obstacle.
“It always seems for us like it's that Naperville hiccup,” Majewski said. “If it's not Central, it's North or Neuqua. But the boys are buying in.
“I think half the battle is for these guys to believe. And I know they believe, but to see it play out and say 'You guys are what we had on paper, and it shows' is great.
“It’s a long season, a one game at a time approach and keep on believing.”
The loss ended the Redhawks’ Best of the West quest. But a long season remains with plenty of hope and good signs.
“The Sandburg game we kind of struggled to get shots off,” Weigel said. “I think we did a better job of that today, shooting and getting chances.
“It's a work in progress. We just have to keep working in practice on shooting and finishing too, because we left a lot of goals on the table I thought today.
“And it’s intensity … as a team collectively having discipline and just working hard throughout the entire game. And finishing. We have to work on that a little bit.”
While another big test loomed for Plainfield North mere hours later against Naperville North, the Tigers are roaring like seldom before.
“It feels good,” Allen said. “We just want to stay on top and keep doing what we're doing. Keep working. Don't stop.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
GK: Peyton Meyers
D: Aidan Smith
D: Ryan Bechtel
D: Ryan Mauder
D: Matthew Hipolito
M: Brady Harwood
M: Sean Elster
M: Justin Williams
F: Cooper Allen
F: Timi Usikalu
F: Paul McCormick
Naperville Central
GK: Austin Waite
D: Patrick Bohan
D: Michael Cavalleri
D: Patrick Berryman
D: Owen Stephens
M: Sean O’Reilly
M: Josh Weigel
M: Carter Adams
F: Joe LoDuca
F: Nathan Kwon
F: Chase Adams
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Cooper Allen, sr. F, Plainfield North
Scoring summary
First half
PN- Matthew Hipolito (Cooper Allen assist), 8’
PN- Justin Williams (free kick), 13’
PN- Cooper Allen (Sean Elster), 30’
NC- Sean O’Reilly (Chase Adams), 38’
Second half
PN- Allen (Williams free kick), 43’
NC- Josh Weigel (Chase Adams), 67’
PN- Timi Usikalu (PK), 71’
in high-scoring Best of West 'semifinal'
Tigers take command early to dictate 5-2 win
By Dave Owen
NAPERVILLE -- On a Naperville Central field that was the high school football home to two Super Bowl champion tight ends (Denver's Owen Daniels and Tampa Bay's Cameron Brate), the host Redhawks and Plainfield North squared off in their final game of Group 1 play that would decide who advanced to the Best of the West final Saturday evening. It was anything but a tight defensive struggle.
The first 30 minutes featured three goals, a missed penalty kick and a virtually nonstop stream of scoring threats at both ends. And the pace never slowed until the final horn.
When the high-speed battle was settled, the visiting Tigers (5-0-0), ranked at the top of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, continued their sizzling start with a 5-2 win over the no. 5 Redhawks (4-1-1). The win set Plainfield North up with Group 2 winner and 10th-ranked Naperville North.
Cooper Allen (now at 10 goals in five games this fall) continued his early season tear with two goals and an assist versus the Redhawks, but suffered a leg injury with 32:58 left in the game that forced him to sit out the rest of the offensive show.
He was walking better after the match, and celebrating his team’s landmark win of sorts, in the Tigers’ great early season.
“We haven't beat these guys (Naperville Central) in three years,” Allen said. “We had a chip on our shoulders coming in. So, we came out with a lot of energy. I think that worked to our advantage.”
“A lot of energy” was an understatement.
Facing a usually stingy Naperville Central defense that played Sandburg to a regulation 0-0 draw Thursday (decided in the Eagles’ favor on penalty kicks), the Tigers roared out to a 2-0 lead within the first 15 minutes.
Allen was the creator on the first salvo, a rush to the end line and cross that Matthew Hipolito tucked in for a 1-0 lead just over seven minutes in.
“Cooper took the ball, turned the (defender) and drove the ball across the face of the goal,” Tigers coach Lukasz Majewski said, “(Justin) Williams let it go through his legs, and Hipolito was back post to tap it in.”
Minutes later, Williams went from decoy to expert free kick creator when he doubled the Plainfield North lead on his 22-yard shot.
“I just noticed that I could bend it (the ball) around the outside of their wall near-post,” Williams said. “I've been working on that the last few weeks, so it was great to finally score on one.”
And even better to seize a fast two-goal lead on a strong opponent.
“Naperville Central is, I feel like, the first really good team that we've played,” Williams said. “We wanted to come out with a lot of energy and match what they come out with. It was great to get ahead early and keep going from there.”
The 10 a.m. start to the match clearly didn’t find the Tigers bleary eyed.
“Not at all,” Williams said. “We were ready to play right away.”
Naperville Central began to battle back with a pair of good chances 26 minutes in by Chase Adams: first a liner over the net, then an Adams run to the end line that ended with a header saved at the post by Tigers goalkeeper Peyton Meyers.
But just as the Redhawks began to respond to their early shock, Allen turned up the electricity 10:38 before halftime.
After a foul set up a free kick, Williams’ quick, short pass to Sean Elster developed into a send to Allen at the left of the box. With great footwork to create space, he lined a low 18-yard rocket inside the near post to make the lead 3-0.
“I saw I had an opportunity 1-on-1 on the edge,” Allen said, “so I took him inside with my right foot, saw someone step, took one more step and slotted it corner.”
Napeville Central could have been forgiven for thinking the day was doomed 24 seconds after Allen’s goal.
Josh Weigel made a great run into the box and was knocked to the ground to earn a penalty kick, the senior midfielder’s PK try curled wide of the left post to keep the score 3-0.
But the hosts didn’t quit after the morning’s latest misfortune.
In the next five minutes, Sean O’Reilly had a tough-angle 6-yard shot saved by Meyers, and Patrick Berryman rocketed a 30-yard one-timer off the football uprights.
With 2:23 left in the half, Naperville Central’s resilience was rewarded.
Chase Adams was again a catalyst, taking a Nathan Kwon pass, racing in left and sending a cross to the right side. O’Reilly was there for a perfect angle shot, a low 18-yarder inside the left post to make the score 3-1 at halftime.
With six goals in their first two Best of the West wins (4-2 over Sandburg and 2-0 over Bartlett), Plainfield North continued its finishing mastery Saturday. But Naperville Central had impressive offensive numbers of its own.
“They (Plainfield North) had 10 shots and five goals," Redhawks coach Troy Adams said, "and we had 14 shots and two goals.
"The ying and yang of soccer is that sometimes that’s the way it is. Today they were better in front of the goal than we were, and that's going to happen sometimes.”
Naperville Central continued the momentum from its 38th-minute goal into the second half.
Two minutes after the break, Plainfield North’s Aidan Smith nicely deflected away a corner kick to repel another threat.
Then just 1:07 later, another great Tigers set piece and Allen’s finishing touch reinflated the Plainfield North lead to 4-1.
Williams’ well-struck 35-yard free kick from the right side eluded the Redhawks goalkeeper, and Allen was there for a 6-yard running header.
From distance or the doorstep, Allen is scoring goals at a record pace. And it’s barely September.
“(Chances) have just been coming to me so why not score them,” Allen said. “I need around seven more to break the school record.”
Allen is also much more than a finisher.
“You can see our unselfishness around the field,” Majewski said. “Cooper is just a beast out there, but he's going to share the wealth just as much as he wants the ball on his foot.”
Said Allen: “We have a lot of speed up-top. It's easy to play balls behind them and use the speed to our advantage, and then put it in the back of the net.”
The offensive talent comes in waves for the Tigers.
“Cooper is really good up-top,” Williams said. “We have Timi (Usikalu) who is good up-top, and Paul (McCormick) is another good forward.
“I think this is the first year where all of our pieces are really good players. Our starting 11 are all good. It's really nice where you can play anyone on the field, and they're going to show up and play well.”
And if that’s not enough, there are the Tigers’ dangerous free kicks.
“We practice (free kicks) every day with the team,” Williams said, “and often times I'll stay after and work on them a little extra. Second half I played Cooper far post with another free kick.
“Set pieces are a big part of our game. We got three goals off them today.”
After grabbing the 4-1 lead, Plainfield North lost Allen to injury and had to deal with a resilient and relentless Naperville Central attack.
The Redhawks’ Joe LoDuca hit a liner that was deflected wide left with 31:40 to play. It set up a corner kick that the Tigers’ McCormick nicely cleared to midfield.
Nice steals 25 yards out by Ryan Bechtel (30:05 to go) and the combo of Brady Harwood and McCormick (28:55 left) repelled two more Naperville Central threats, but the hosts kept charging.
That was true of Weigel in particular.
Shaken up after landing hard on his back on an attempt to redirect a corner kick send with 26:10 to play, Weigel soon returned and was the finisher on a pretty goal with 13:42 left that drew his team back within 4-2.
On a play began by Patrick Bohan, a subsequent nice give-and-go was capped by Chase Adams’ nice touch-pass to Weigel rushing up the middle. Weigel did the rest, splitting the defense and tucking a low 15-yard shot inside the right post.
“I played a ball to Chase and just sprinted through the line and tried to get the ball back,” Weigel said. “I got it back and slotted it home. That was good, because I made up for the penalty (kick) I missed.”
That PK was just a small part of the Redhawks’ first half woes.
“Early in the half I thought there was a lack of intensity on our part,” Weigel said. “We didn't start the game super well.
“At the end of the half we kind of picked it up a little bit, but I think just we need to focus on coming out with better focus at the start of the game and sticking with that throughout the entire game.”
Coach Adams also emphasized the positive response to the 3-0 deficit.
“The last 15 minutes of the first half I thought we played much better as a whole,” he said. “You're obviously looking at what you can do better, but there's also what you did well. You play good teams in order to find things out. So, I think there's a lot we can work on, but a lot of positives as well.
“Like on one play I thought we did a really nice job with a combination play at the far side and found the guy, but put it over top. I've told my players I will not yell at you about technical mistakes. We did everything right and just hit the wrong ball. That happens.
“We do have to work on communication,” Adams added. “We had lots of times where players weren't in the right spot. But that's a fixable thing.”
Having pulled within 4-2 on Weigel’s goal, the Redhawks nearly drew even closer one minute later.
Off an initial clear, Bohan’s 28-yard left side send to the box produced a solid Kwon header on goal, but it ended with a Meyers catch.
Then with 9:39 to go, the relentless Plainfield North attack was back.
Williams endured a hard foul near the left post on Daniel Martinez’s send to the box, producing both a penalty kick and a red card on the Redhawks.
Usikalu powered the PK inside the lower left corner of the net to seal the 5-2 final. With it, the Tigers had impressively cleared a major and persistent obstacle.
“It always seems for us like it's that Naperville hiccup,” Majewski said. “If it's not Central, it's North or Neuqua. But the boys are buying in.
“I think half the battle is for these guys to believe. And I know they believe, but to see it play out and say 'You guys are what we had on paper, and it shows' is great.
“It’s a long season, a one game at a time approach and keep on believing.”
The loss ended the Redhawks’ Best of the West quest. But a long season remains with plenty of hope and good signs.
“The Sandburg game we kind of struggled to get shots off,” Weigel said. “I think we did a better job of that today, shooting and getting chances.
“It's a work in progress. We just have to keep working in practice on shooting and finishing too, because we left a lot of goals on the table I thought today.
“And it’s intensity … as a team collectively having discipline and just working hard throughout the entire game. And finishing. We have to work on that a little bit.”
While another big test loomed for Plainfield North mere hours later against Naperville North, the Tigers are roaring like seldom before.
“It feels good,” Allen said. “We just want to stay on top and keep doing what we're doing. Keep working. Don't stop.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
GK: Peyton Meyers
D: Aidan Smith
D: Ryan Bechtel
D: Ryan Mauder
D: Matthew Hipolito
M: Brady Harwood
M: Sean Elster
M: Justin Williams
F: Cooper Allen
F: Timi Usikalu
F: Paul McCormick
Naperville Central
GK: Austin Waite
D: Patrick Bohan
D: Michael Cavalleri
D: Patrick Berryman
D: Owen Stephens
M: Sean O’Reilly
M: Josh Weigel
M: Carter Adams
F: Joe LoDuca
F: Nathan Kwon
F: Chase Adams
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Cooper Allen, sr. F, Plainfield North
Scoring summary
First half
PN- Matthew Hipolito (Cooper Allen assist), 8’
PN- Justin Williams (free kick), 13’
PN- Cooper Allen (Sean Elster), 30’
NC- Sean O’Reilly (Chase Adams), 38’
Second half
PN- Allen (Williams free kick), 43’
NC- Josh Weigel (Chase Adams), 67’
PN- Timi Usikalu (PK), 71’