Plainfield N. regains footing vs. Sandburg
Tigers post 2-0 shutout over Eagles in rebound effort
By Steve Nemeth
NAPERVILLE -- Tuesday’s group play match at the Best of the West tournament was unusual for a variety of reasons that wouldn’t appear obvious at first glance during Plainfield North’s 2-0 triumph over Sandburg at Naperville Central.
It’s not so much that Sandburg didn’t get the outcome the Eagles desired – especially considering they were up against a North unit that is honorably mentioned in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 -- it’s simply surprising that three matches into the year and Eagles (0-1-2) still seek their first win for 2019.
Sandburg has advanced to the sectional semifinals for the two previous years and, as is the rule under ninth-year boss Desi Vuillame, 2018 was yet another winning (13-5-2) season. In this contest, Sandburg struggled to find the right direction for shots or passes.
Meanwhile, Plainfield North (3-1-0) was under the direction of a substitute coach in its effort to recover from an 8-2 thumping at Glenbard West.
Fortunately for the Tigers, they were under the capable guidance of Dave Brown. Now a faculty member at North, Brown found out at 1:30 p.m. he’d be overseeing the Tigers. Less than eight hours later, he could technically add yet another win to the many he had during his head coaching tenure with the Plainfield South boys and girls programs.
Sandburg’s Connor Hildebrand chalked up the initial shot on goal of the game; and Plainfield North goalie Alex Noser followed with the first save of the night when he collected the left-wing shot.
It took only 2 minutes and eight seconds for the first goal to be recorded. That was when Plainfield North's James Vu put a wicked 34-yard rocket past Sandburg keeper Ryan Toppi.
“Seeing their keeper off his line I was hoping we could catch him off guard, perhaps creating a rebound opportunity,” Vu explained. “Thankfully it was on target and where he couldn’t recover. Everyone scores during practice, but any goal in a match is definitely much more satisfying.
“I also believe getting that early lead allowed us to attack a lot harder,” added Vu, the recipient of Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match honor.
At the very least it was a deficit Sandburg didn’t often experience last year while compiling 12 clean-sheets. Even when the Eagles trailed by a goal in the 2019 season opener against no. 7-ranked Lyons, they clawed out a 1-1 draw; the same outcome as this year’s other match.
“I guess you’d rather have a game like this at the beginning of the year instead of the end,” Vuillame stated philosophically. “Perhaps its good to be humbled. Obviously the painful first lesson is to be ready to play from the start.”
Sandburg tried to answer the goal when Brian Maday played a textbook cross, but Jan Goryl’s tap ended as an easy save for Noser. At the opposite end of the field, Eagles goalie Toppi came up big to keep the deficit from growing. After denying a Dilan Andweiller try, he also snared a 53-yard free kick from Kanon Woodill.
In between those plays, Tigers goalie Noser also recorded a pair of defensive clears on potentially dangerous scenarios. He caught a 63-yard direct kick sent into the box and then soared to catch a corner kick from Hildebrand.
“This was definitely not us at our best,” Sandburg quad-captain Christopher Mendez insisted. “Usually we’re solid with ball possessions, not today. It seemed as if the break from our last match was too long and took a toll on our connections. Clearly we need to be 100% ready to play from the get go.”
Both sides exchanged attacks over the course of the second half. The Eagles’ Yannis Georgiou blasted an attempt into a North defender; a free kick from the Tigers’ Woodill was headed high by Andweiler. Sandburg had a flurry of offense in front of the North goal but the majority of shots didn’t get through a maze of defenders.
Toppi made a sure-handed stop with 8:52 left in regulation when Adrian Jurkowski cut toward the middle and unleashed a missile. With only 1:25 to be played, the Eagles goalie blocked a Cooper Allen shot, but the rebound popped into place for Shea Bechtel to park it in the twine from eight yards.
“Having seen their keeper bobble some other attempts, I was simply crashing the net when Cooper nailed a shot,” Bechtel said. “it was a simple tap in, but it certainly sealed the victory.”
Statistically the match appeared to be relatively even with North owning a 13-12 advantage for overall shots and a 7-5 edge in shots on frame. Both keepers earned five saves, however, Sandburg’s Toppi was a tad busier as perhaps indicated by the Tigers’ 5-2 tally for corner kicks.
Speaking from experience, Brown shared some advice during the post-match huddle that the Tigers would be well-advised to adopt when both sides continue Best of West group play on Thursday. Sandburg faces tourney co-host and no. 16-rated Naperville Central at 5 p.m. Plainfield North and Bartlett meet in the 7 p.m. follow-up.
There was one point when some ominous dark clouds passed overhead, but unlike the tourney’s other location (Naperville North) where the final minutes n Benet's 5-0 win over Geneva were scratched, lightning appeared only in the distance at Central.
Starting lineups
Carl Sandburg
GK: Ryan Toppi
D Brian Maday
D Christopher Mendez
D Yrijoris Georgiou
D Jack Doll
M Connor Hildebrand
M Jan Goryl
M Arnas Miskins
M Yianni Livieratos
F Yannis Georgiou
F Dimitri Stithos
Plainfield North
GK: Alex Noser
D James Vu
D Brady Harwood
D Kanon Woodill
D Ryan Kuffel
M Adrian Jurkowski
M Sjea Bechtel
M Sam Dachman
M John Seeley
F Avery Bell
F Dilan Andweiler
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: James Vu, sr., D, Plainfield North
Referees: Brett Richter (center), Brue Bode, John Ellenbaas
Game Summary
Plainfield North 2, Sandburg 0
Sandburg 0 0 -- 0 (0-2-2)
Plainfield N. 1 1 -- 2 (3-1 -0)
Scoring
First Half
PN -- Vu 19-yard angled shot from far right inside left post (unassisted), 36:29 gone
Second Half
PN -- Bechtel nine-yard finish off a put-back inside left (Allen assist),65:44 gone
Shots
CS 9 – 3 -- 12
PN 5 – 8 -- 13
Shots on goal
CS 4 – 1 -- 5
PN 3 – 4 -- 7
Saves (goalie)
CS (Toppi) 2 – 3 -- 5
PN (Noser) 4 – 1 -- 5
Corner kicks
CS 1 – 1 -- 2
PN 1 – 4 -- 5
Offsides
CS 1 – 0 -- 1
PN 1 – 0 -- 1
Tigers post 2-0 shutout over Eagles in rebound effort
By Steve Nemeth
NAPERVILLE -- Tuesday’s group play match at the Best of the West tournament was unusual for a variety of reasons that wouldn’t appear obvious at first glance during Plainfield North’s 2-0 triumph over Sandburg at Naperville Central.
It’s not so much that Sandburg didn’t get the outcome the Eagles desired – especially considering they were up against a North unit that is honorably mentioned in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 -- it’s simply surprising that three matches into the year and Eagles (0-1-2) still seek their first win for 2019.
Sandburg has advanced to the sectional semifinals for the two previous years and, as is the rule under ninth-year boss Desi Vuillame, 2018 was yet another winning (13-5-2) season. In this contest, Sandburg struggled to find the right direction for shots or passes.
Meanwhile, Plainfield North (3-1-0) was under the direction of a substitute coach in its effort to recover from an 8-2 thumping at Glenbard West.
Fortunately for the Tigers, they were under the capable guidance of Dave Brown. Now a faculty member at North, Brown found out at 1:30 p.m. he’d be overseeing the Tigers. Less than eight hours later, he could technically add yet another win to the many he had during his head coaching tenure with the Plainfield South boys and girls programs.
Sandburg’s Connor Hildebrand chalked up the initial shot on goal of the game; and Plainfield North goalie Alex Noser followed with the first save of the night when he collected the left-wing shot.
It took only 2 minutes and eight seconds for the first goal to be recorded. That was when Plainfield North's James Vu put a wicked 34-yard rocket past Sandburg keeper Ryan Toppi.
“Seeing their keeper off his line I was hoping we could catch him off guard, perhaps creating a rebound opportunity,” Vu explained. “Thankfully it was on target and where he couldn’t recover. Everyone scores during practice, but any goal in a match is definitely much more satisfying.
“I also believe getting that early lead allowed us to attack a lot harder,” added Vu, the recipient of Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match honor.
At the very least it was a deficit Sandburg didn’t often experience last year while compiling 12 clean-sheets. Even when the Eagles trailed by a goal in the 2019 season opener against no. 7-ranked Lyons, they clawed out a 1-1 draw; the same outcome as this year’s other match.
“I guess you’d rather have a game like this at the beginning of the year instead of the end,” Vuillame stated philosophically. “Perhaps its good to be humbled. Obviously the painful first lesson is to be ready to play from the start.”
Sandburg tried to answer the goal when Brian Maday played a textbook cross, but Jan Goryl’s tap ended as an easy save for Noser. At the opposite end of the field, Eagles goalie Toppi came up big to keep the deficit from growing. After denying a Dilan Andweiller try, he also snared a 53-yard free kick from Kanon Woodill.
In between those plays, Tigers goalie Noser also recorded a pair of defensive clears on potentially dangerous scenarios. He caught a 63-yard direct kick sent into the box and then soared to catch a corner kick from Hildebrand.
“This was definitely not us at our best,” Sandburg quad-captain Christopher Mendez insisted. “Usually we’re solid with ball possessions, not today. It seemed as if the break from our last match was too long and took a toll on our connections. Clearly we need to be 100% ready to play from the get go.”
Both sides exchanged attacks over the course of the second half. The Eagles’ Yannis Georgiou blasted an attempt into a North defender; a free kick from the Tigers’ Woodill was headed high by Andweiler. Sandburg had a flurry of offense in front of the North goal but the majority of shots didn’t get through a maze of defenders.
Toppi made a sure-handed stop with 8:52 left in regulation when Adrian Jurkowski cut toward the middle and unleashed a missile. With only 1:25 to be played, the Eagles goalie blocked a Cooper Allen shot, but the rebound popped into place for Shea Bechtel to park it in the twine from eight yards.
“Having seen their keeper bobble some other attempts, I was simply crashing the net when Cooper nailed a shot,” Bechtel said. “it was a simple tap in, but it certainly sealed the victory.”
Statistically the match appeared to be relatively even with North owning a 13-12 advantage for overall shots and a 7-5 edge in shots on frame. Both keepers earned five saves, however, Sandburg’s Toppi was a tad busier as perhaps indicated by the Tigers’ 5-2 tally for corner kicks.
Speaking from experience, Brown shared some advice during the post-match huddle that the Tigers would be well-advised to adopt when both sides continue Best of West group play on Thursday. Sandburg faces tourney co-host and no. 16-rated Naperville Central at 5 p.m. Plainfield North and Bartlett meet in the 7 p.m. follow-up.
There was one point when some ominous dark clouds passed overhead, but unlike the tourney’s other location (Naperville North) where the final minutes n Benet's 5-0 win over Geneva were scratched, lightning appeared only in the distance at Central.
Starting lineups
Carl Sandburg
GK: Ryan Toppi
D Brian Maday
D Christopher Mendez
D Yrijoris Georgiou
D Jack Doll
M Connor Hildebrand
M Jan Goryl
M Arnas Miskins
M Yianni Livieratos
F Yannis Georgiou
F Dimitri Stithos
Plainfield North
GK: Alex Noser
D James Vu
D Brady Harwood
D Kanon Woodill
D Ryan Kuffel
M Adrian Jurkowski
M Sjea Bechtel
M Sam Dachman
M John Seeley
F Avery Bell
F Dilan Andweiler
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: James Vu, sr., D, Plainfield North
Referees: Brett Richter (center), Brue Bode, John Ellenbaas
Game Summary
Plainfield North 2, Sandburg 0
Sandburg 0 0 -- 0 (0-2-2)
Plainfield N. 1 1 -- 2 (3-1 -0)
Scoring
First Half
PN -- Vu 19-yard angled shot from far right inside left post (unassisted), 36:29 gone
Second Half
PN -- Bechtel nine-yard finish off a put-back inside left (Allen assist),65:44 gone
Shots
CS 9 – 3 -- 12
PN 5 – 8 -- 13
Shots on goal
CS 4 – 1 -- 5
PN 3 – 4 -- 7
Saves (goalie)
CS (Toppi) 2 – 3 -- 5
PN (Noser) 4 – 1 -- 5
Corner kicks
CS 1 – 1 -- 2
PN 1 – 4 -- 5
Offsides
CS 1 – 0 -- 1
PN 1 – 0 -- 1