Plainfield South ties twice
on opening day of Plainfield Classic
Marmolejo, Sagols score in 1-1 draws against DGN, Shepard
By Matt Le Cren
PLAINFIELD – Plainfield South has surprised some people with its fast start this fall.
In an indication of how far the Cougars have come, they were a little disappointed by playing to a pair of draws Saturday on the opening day of the inaugural Plainfield Classic.
Plainfield South began the day by tying Downers Grove North 1-1 on the strength of a goal from senior Anthony Marmolejo and ended it with another 1-1 draw against Shepard.
“It was kind of a mixed bag with the results,” Plainfield South coach Bryant Williams said. “I was really happy with the effort the boys put in today, especially with two games in one day.
“I would have liked to have gotten a win in one of them, but I guess on the other side at least we didn’t lose. We know we’ve got a few things to work on for Monday night.”
The primary task will be finishing more chances. The Cougars (5-1-4) controlled the action against Shepard, outshooting the Astros 7-2 in the second half, but came up empty.
“We were dominating the ball the whole time,” Plainfield South defender Justin McGuigan said. “We’ve got to turn that domination of the ball into goals.
“We’re playing good. We’ve just got to capitalize a bit more offensively.
“We can always play more as a unit, kind of play off of each other. I think once we figure out how to put the ball in the back of the net more often, we’ll be fine.”
The Cougars conceded an early goal to the Astros but that didn’t faze them. Junior Carlos Sagols got the equalizer just six minutes later, scoring off a scramble in front of the net.
“We didn’t start the game out right,” Sagols said. “We started out a little bit unconcentrated, so we were just trying to get the goal back.
“The ball came into the box, it bounced off a couple defenders, and I just got it into the goal.”
But that was all Plainfield South got into the goal. The Cougars saw three shots saved in the second half, as Gabe Sandoval, Anthony Marmolejo and Justin D’Alessandro all were denied in bids to get the go-ahead strike.
“We’ve got some guys that still get a little overexcited with the ball on their foot in the 18 and the shots go wide, or they flub the shot,” Williams said. “It’s a matter of maybe getting more opportunities and keeping their cool in there and just striking the ball like we can.”
The Cougars don’t seem too anxious about the missed chances. That’s because the back line of D’Alessandro, McGuigan, Fabian Alvarado and Ryan Kabaker has been solid, giving up an average of just over a goal per game.
“We’re possessing the ball really well, and we’re making good passes,” McGuigan said. “We’ve just got to put it together a little bit more up the field.”
One player who does have it together up top is Marmolejo, who converted a penalty kick against Downers Grove North, a quality side which entered the game with a record of 6-2-2. It was the 10th goal of the season for Marmolejo, who also has five assists and thus a hand in 65 percent of South’s goals.
“Anthony Marmolejo has really been playing well this year,” Williams said. “He’s a senior and in the off-season I challenged him.
“I said I want this to be your year. I want you to be the leader. He’s really stepped up.”
The same can be said about the Cougars as a whole. Not many people outside the program thought they would have only one loss in their first 10 games.
“We’ve played really well,” Williams said. “We have several young guys, and I thought we could be a team that could surprise a few people off the bat, and we really have. Several of the new guys have stepped up.”
With the exception of Plainfield Central, which qualified for sectionals in each of the past two seasons, no District 202 school has won a regional championship.
The Plainfield Classic, which is hosted by Plainfield North, is an opportunity for the local teams to make a name for themselves.
“The Plainfield Classic is kind of cool,” McGuigan said. “It’s (played in) our town.
“We’re just trying to show people what Plainfield soccer is about. Hopefully we’ll make a little bit of noise this year.”
Plainfield South
starting lineup
GK Nicholas Beemster
D Justin D’Alessandro
D Fabian Alvarado
D Justin McGuigan
D Ryan Kabaker
M Anthony Marmolejo
M Ernesto Cortina
M Christian Gonzalez
F Miki Derka
F Maxwell Treptow
F Carlos Sagols
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match – Carlos Sagols, jr., F, Plainfield South
on opening day of Plainfield Classic
Marmolejo, Sagols score in 1-1 draws against DGN, Shepard
By Matt Le Cren
PLAINFIELD – Plainfield South has surprised some people with its fast start this fall.
In an indication of how far the Cougars have come, they were a little disappointed by playing to a pair of draws Saturday on the opening day of the inaugural Plainfield Classic.
Plainfield South began the day by tying Downers Grove North 1-1 on the strength of a goal from senior Anthony Marmolejo and ended it with another 1-1 draw against Shepard.
“It was kind of a mixed bag with the results,” Plainfield South coach Bryant Williams said. “I was really happy with the effort the boys put in today, especially with two games in one day.
“I would have liked to have gotten a win in one of them, but I guess on the other side at least we didn’t lose. We know we’ve got a few things to work on for Monday night.”
The primary task will be finishing more chances. The Cougars (5-1-4) controlled the action against Shepard, outshooting the Astros 7-2 in the second half, but came up empty.
“We were dominating the ball the whole time,” Plainfield South defender Justin McGuigan said. “We’ve got to turn that domination of the ball into goals.
“We’re playing good. We’ve just got to capitalize a bit more offensively.
“We can always play more as a unit, kind of play off of each other. I think once we figure out how to put the ball in the back of the net more often, we’ll be fine.”
The Cougars conceded an early goal to the Astros but that didn’t faze them. Junior Carlos Sagols got the equalizer just six minutes later, scoring off a scramble in front of the net.
“We didn’t start the game out right,” Sagols said. “We started out a little bit unconcentrated, so we were just trying to get the goal back.
“The ball came into the box, it bounced off a couple defenders, and I just got it into the goal.”
But that was all Plainfield South got into the goal. The Cougars saw three shots saved in the second half, as Gabe Sandoval, Anthony Marmolejo and Justin D’Alessandro all were denied in bids to get the go-ahead strike.
“We’ve got some guys that still get a little overexcited with the ball on their foot in the 18 and the shots go wide, or they flub the shot,” Williams said. “It’s a matter of maybe getting more opportunities and keeping their cool in there and just striking the ball like we can.”
The Cougars don’t seem too anxious about the missed chances. That’s because the back line of D’Alessandro, McGuigan, Fabian Alvarado and Ryan Kabaker has been solid, giving up an average of just over a goal per game.
“We’re possessing the ball really well, and we’re making good passes,” McGuigan said. “We’ve just got to put it together a little bit more up the field.”
One player who does have it together up top is Marmolejo, who converted a penalty kick against Downers Grove North, a quality side which entered the game with a record of 6-2-2. It was the 10th goal of the season for Marmolejo, who also has five assists and thus a hand in 65 percent of South’s goals.
“Anthony Marmolejo has really been playing well this year,” Williams said. “He’s a senior and in the off-season I challenged him.
“I said I want this to be your year. I want you to be the leader. He’s really stepped up.”
The same can be said about the Cougars as a whole. Not many people outside the program thought they would have only one loss in their first 10 games.
“We’ve played really well,” Williams said. “We have several young guys, and I thought we could be a team that could surprise a few people off the bat, and we really have. Several of the new guys have stepped up.”
With the exception of Plainfield Central, which qualified for sectionals in each of the past two seasons, no District 202 school has won a regional championship.
The Plainfield Classic, which is hosted by Plainfield North, is an opportunity for the local teams to make a name for themselves.
“The Plainfield Classic is kind of cool,” McGuigan said. “It’s (played in) our town.
“We’re just trying to show people what Plainfield soccer is about. Hopefully we’ll make a little bit of noise this year.”
Plainfield South
starting lineup
GK Nicholas Beemster
D Justin D’Alessandro
D Fabian Alvarado
D Justin McGuigan
D Ryan Kabaker
M Anthony Marmolejo
M Ernesto Cortina
M Christian Gonzalez
F Miki Derka
F Maxwell Treptow
F Carlos Sagols
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match – Carlos Sagols, jr., F, Plainfield South