Morton hands R-B 1st defeat of season
Moreno brace paces 3-0 win
By Mike Garofola
BERWYN -- Five days after its less than sparkling effort at East Aurora, manager Jim Bageanis' Morton club arrived at Hoffman Field on Tuesday afternoon with the clear intention to take the game to visiting Riverside-Brookfield.
With Morton staring at a potential fourth-consecutive defeat to its high-scoring and undefeated neighbor, the Mustangs put to rest the memory of their 2-1 loss to East Aurora with a well-deserved and comfortable 3-0 victory at its home park.
Everything changed in this nonconference contest when the opener came with the most straight-forward of tap-ins by Adriana Moreno at 19 minutes. The first of two goals from the sophomore highlighted a wonderful first 40 minutes from the Mustangs.
"We were not very good against East Aurora last week," admitted Bageanis, whose club is now back level at 3-3-0.
"The effort wasn't very good, our energy level was way low and maybe the girls were feeling the effect of those back-to-back losses to Glenbrook South and Andrew (in the Windy City Ram Classic).
"Whatever it was, it went away today with a terrific first half. Now hopefully we can carry it on through to Thursday when we play Argo before going on spring break."
What the home side showed from the opening whistle is that it can play attractive, free-flowing attacking soccer. Much of it goes through the effervescent and creative Melanie Carranza, who Bageanis stationed in the middle alongside freshman Mayte Gongora.
With Carranza running the show, her frontline mates Medelin Loza and Moreno became the recepients of her distribution, along with the Mustangs outside-mids and a backline which joined the attack to give Riverside-Brookfield manager Ivek Halic tactical issues throughout the contest.
"Morton is very technical," said Halic. "They have some girls who can play and who like to attack. With us giving them too much space, especially on the outside, it proved to be our downfall today."
The Bulldogs, who came off a 7-0 thrashing of Romeoville that kept its spring record near perfect at 5-0-1, had outscored its previous opponents 24-2. But on this day, the Riverside-Brookfield was unable to find the back of the net against keeper Dayanna Gonzalez and a water-tight unit in front of her.
"One of my roles in the back is to keep us organized and to have most of the play in front of us," said co-captain Nayelly Villalobos with a bit of a wry smile; she knew she spent plenty of time getting forward to add numbers. "But at the same time, I like to get forward to join the attack when I can."
"Nayelly is so solid for us in the back, Bageanis said. "She's a great defender, and because of her speed and skill on the ball it's like we have another weapon for our attack."
The visitors had trouble getting out of their own end during the first quarter hour and was therefore unable to find either of their top players Taylor Kosiak or Grace Larson.
Much of this was due to the Mustangs work rate in the midfield and, of course, Villalobos and her backline mates: Lorena Jaimes, Joanna Solano and Esperanza Aranda, herself a terrific two-footed player who made her way into the attack from time to time.
Some nice exchanges in the early going from Moreno, Loza and Carranza saw the homeside go close in the 10th minute. Moments later, a quality cross from Carranza nearly found Jessica Franco at the back post.
With the Morton attack gaining confidence with each build-up through quick touches, purpose and use of width, it did not come as a surprise when Moreno finished at the back post in the 19th minute.
Villalobos, Loza and Carranza finished a well-executed combo down the right side to set up the goal when Carranza whipped a low cross through the box.
The goal was most deserving after 20 minutes of having a high percentage of the possession but if not for a strong tackle by Jaimes on Kosiak at 33 minutes, the Riverside-Brookfield star may have found herself inside the box along with Dayanna Gonzalez.
"No doubt, Morton had most of, if not all of the play in that first half," began Halic.
"But in soccer, that's not everything. If we put one in, and late, it's 1-1 at the break, and maybe it's a different second half for both of us."
"Yes, I agree," Bageanis said. "We had some chances to add to our lead, and that's something we'll have to continue to work on, especially after dominating the play in the first half."
Halic thought his club enjoyed a better second half, fueled by an increase in its energy level and a desire to go harder into tackles while connecting with more passes.
Kosiak went endline, then almost found Larson at the back post five minutes into the second period. After some slow early second half play, The homeside got back after it.
Mazzy Marcucci came to the rescue for R-B when a clever one-two combination by Jaimes and Carranza pried open the visitors near the six-yard box. That led to a trio of deep throws in which Morton was unable to get anything of quality on frame.
Loza went over the bar from 22 yards in the 54th minute. Moreno saw her half-volley snapshot saved by Reagan Peschke. Carranza ended the sequence with an attempt of her own.
Abigail Higgins unloaded a 25-yard blast just over the bar for the Bulldogs. It was Riverside-Brookfield's best chance at Gonzalez, who turned in a solid 80 minutes of work.
"Dayanna was out all of last season when she suffered an ACL injury playing volleyball. So we were really excited when she came back to start for us in her junior year," said Bageanis.
"She is very athletic, which you saw when she came off her line, or went side-to-side (coming) out for balls near the edge. She has very good skill with both of her feet, which makes her (like) another defender for us."
Moreno made it 2-0 on the hour when her powerful, 22-yard shot crashed into the back of the net just over the outstretched gloves of Peschke.
Two minutes later, an own goal produced mostly by the work of Franco, soon led Bageanis to bring on most of his reserves for the last quarter hour of play.
"We're getting better each time out, and today, I thought our ability to communicate better, possess, and move the ball around quickly to a lot of my teammates was very good," offered Carranza, who along with Villalobos, shared Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match honors.
Both Mustangs stars suggested the youngest player on the roster, Gongora impressed all afternoon, as did Franco, according to Carranza.
"We played really well to feet today, maybe the best we have this season so far," added Villalobos. "It was great that we scored three goals, especially after scoring just three in our last three games
For Riverside-Brookfield's Halic, there was much to gain from the Bulldogs first loss.
"We're missing a couple of players, but that's not an excuse, or meant to take anything away from Morton," he said. "(They) were the better team, and one that has some very talented players.
"But we learned a lot about ourselves, and that's okay with me. We'll take all of that going forward, and we'll be better for it."
The Bulldogs, who recently claimed first place at the Raider Invitational at Glenbard South, will take a few days off before getting back at it once again on April 1 (Monday) when it hosts Bolingbrook.
Morton, as mentioned earlier, will welcome Argo on Thursday, but at a new time, 4:30, not the previously published 6:30 start.
"(Winning) 3-0 is a good result for us, but we have to remember we created a handful of other chances to score, particularly in the first half," said Bageanis.
"Despite that, I was real pleased with the effort today, and with the way we competed, both in our attack and when defending. I'll be looking for the girls to do the same when we come out next time."
After a spring break in which Bageanis will have his club out training and improving its fitness level, the start of the PepsiCo Showdown will greet the Mustangs to the tune of four games in eight days.
Starting lineups
Riverside-Brookfield (4-4-2)
G- Reagan Peschke
D- Maddy Georgopoulos
D- Megan Riordan
D- Evie Roth
D- Isabel Rurka
M- Amanda DiForti
M- Kathy Acevedo
M- Abigail Higgins
M- Carmen Guerrero
F- Taylor Kosiak
F- Grace Larson
Morton (4-4-2)
G- Dayanna Gonzalez
D- Esperanza Aranda
D- Lorena Jaimes
D- Joanna Solano
D- Nayelly Villalobos
M- Julissa Solano
M- Melanie Carranza
M- Mayte Gongora
M- Jessica Franco
M- Adriana Moreno
M- Medelin Loza
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Nayelly Villalobos, sr., D, Morton
Melanie Carranza, jr., MF, Morton
Referee: Dimitrios G. Panagiotidis
Scoring summary
First half
Morton: Moreno (Carranza, Franco) 19'
Second half
Morton: Moreno (Villalobos, Franco) 60'
R-B: own goal, Moreno (Carranza, Franco) 62
Moreno brace paces 3-0 win
By Mike Garofola
BERWYN -- Five days after its less than sparkling effort at East Aurora, manager Jim Bageanis' Morton club arrived at Hoffman Field on Tuesday afternoon with the clear intention to take the game to visiting Riverside-Brookfield.
With Morton staring at a potential fourth-consecutive defeat to its high-scoring and undefeated neighbor, the Mustangs put to rest the memory of their 2-1 loss to East Aurora with a well-deserved and comfortable 3-0 victory at its home park.
Everything changed in this nonconference contest when the opener came with the most straight-forward of tap-ins by Adriana Moreno at 19 minutes. The first of two goals from the sophomore highlighted a wonderful first 40 minutes from the Mustangs.
"We were not very good against East Aurora last week," admitted Bageanis, whose club is now back level at 3-3-0.
"The effort wasn't very good, our energy level was way low and maybe the girls were feeling the effect of those back-to-back losses to Glenbrook South and Andrew (in the Windy City Ram Classic).
"Whatever it was, it went away today with a terrific first half. Now hopefully we can carry it on through to Thursday when we play Argo before going on spring break."
What the home side showed from the opening whistle is that it can play attractive, free-flowing attacking soccer. Much of it goes through the effervescent and creative Melanie Carranza, who Bageanis stationed in the middle alongside freshman Mayte Gongora.
With Carranza running the show, her frontline mates Medelin Loza and Moreno became the recepients of her distribution, along with the Mustangs outside-mids and a backline which joined the attack to give Riverside-Brookfield manager Ivek Halic tactical issues throughout the contest.
"Morton is very technical," said Halic. "They have some girls who can play and who like to attack. With us giving them too much space, especially on the outside, it proved to be our downfall today."
The Bulldogs, who came off a 7-0 thrashing of Romeoville that kept its spring record near perfect at 5-0-1, had outscored its previous opponents 24-2. But on this day, the Riverside-Brookfield was unable to find the back of the net against keeper Dayanna Gonzalez and a water-tight unit in front of her.
"One of my roles in the back is to keep us organized and to have most of the play in front of us," said co-captain Nayelly Villalobos with a bit of a wry smile; she knew she spent plenty of time getting forward to add numbers. "But at the same time, I like to get forward to join the attack when I can."
"Nayelly is so solid for us in the back, Bageanis said. "She's a great defender, and because of her speed and skill on the ball it's like we have another weapon for our attack."
The visitors had trouble getting out of their own end during the first quarter hour and was therefore unable to find either of their top players Taylor Kosiak or Grace Larson.
Much of this was due to the Mustangs work rate in the midfield and, of course, Villalobos and her backline mates: Lorena Jaimes, Joanna Solano and Esperanza Aranda, herself a terrific two-footed player who made her way into the attack from time to time.
Some nice exchanges in the early going from Moreno, Loza and Carranza saw the homeside go close in the 10th minute. Moments later, a quality cross from Carranza nearly found Jessica Franco at the back post.
With the Morton attack gaining confidence with each build-up through quick touches, purpose and use of width, it did not come as a surprise when Moreno finished at the back post in the 19th minute.
Villalobos, Loza and Carranza finished a well-executed combo down the right side to set up the goal when Carranza whipped a low cross through the box.
The goal was most deserving after 20 minutes of having a high percentage of the possession but if not for a strong tackle by Jaimes on Kosiak at 33 minutes, the Riverside-Brookfield star may have found herself inside the box along with Dayanna Gonzalez.
"No doubt, Morton had most of, if not all of the play in that first half," began Halic.
"But in soccer, that's not everything. If we put one in, and late, it's 1-1 at the break, and maybe it's a different second half for both of us."
"Yes, I agree," Bageanis said. "We had some chances to add to our lead, and that's something we'll have to continue to work on, especially after dominating the play in the first half."
Halic thought his club enjoyed a better second half, fueled by an increase in its energy level and a desire to go harder into tackles while connecting with more passes.
Kosiak went endline, then almost found Larson at the back post five minutes into the second period. After some slow early second half play, The homeside got back after it.
Mazzy Marcucci came to the rescue for R-B when a clever one-two combination by Jaimes and Carranza pried open the visitors near the six-yard box. That led to a trio of deep throws in which Morton was unable to get anything of quality on frame.
Loza went over the bar from 22 yards in the 54th minute. Moreno saw her half-volley snapshot saved by Reagan Peschke. Carranza ended the sequence with an attempt of her own.
Abigail Higgins unloaded a 25-yard blast just over the bar for the Bulldogs. It was Riverside-Brookfield's best chance at Gonzalez, who turned in a solid 80 minutes of work.
"Dayanna was out all of last season when she suffered an ACL injury playing volleyball. So we were really excited when she came back to start for us in her junior year," said Bageanis.
"She is very athletic, which you saw when she came off her line, or went side-to-side (coming) out for balls near the edge. She has very good skill with both of her feet, which makes her (like) another defender for us."
Moreno made it 2-0 on the hour when her powerful, 22-yard shot crashed into the back of the net just over the outstretched gloves of Peschke.
Two minutes later, an own goal produced mostly by the work of Franco, soon led Bageanis to bring on most of his reserves for the last quarter hour of play.
"We're getting better each time out, and today, I thought our ability to communicate better, possess, and move the ball around quickly to a lot of my teammates was very good," offered Carranza, who along with Villalobos, shared Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match honors.
Both Mustangs stars suggested the youngest player on the roster, Gongora impressed all afternoon, as did Franco, according to Carranza.
"We played really well to feet today, maybe the best we have this season so far," added Villalobos. "It was great that we scored three goals, especially after scoring just three in our last three games
For Riverside-Brookfield's Halic, there was much to gain from the Bulldogs first loss.
"We're missing a couple of players, but that's not an excuse, or meant to take anything away from Morton," he said. "(They) were the better team, and one that has some very talented players.
"But we learned a lot about ourselves, and that's okay with me. We'll take all of that going forward, and we'll be better for it."
The Bulldogs, who recently claimed first place at the Raider Invitational at Glenbard South, will take a few days off before getting back at it once again on April 1 (Monday) when it hosts Bolingbrook.
Morton, as mentioned earlier, will welcome Argo on Thursday, but at a new time, 4:30, not the previously published 6:30 start.
"(Winning) 3-0 is a good result for us, but we have to remember we created a handful of other chances to score, particularly in the first half," said Bageanis.
"Despite that, I was real pleased with the effort today, and with the way we competed, both in our attack and when defending. I'll be looking for the girls to do the same when we come out next time."
After a spring break in which Bageanis will have his club out training and improving its fitness level, the start of the PepsiCo Showdown will greet the Mustangs to the tune of four games in eight days.
Starting lineups
Riverside-Brookfield (4-4-2)
G- Reagan Peschke
D- Maddy Georgopoulos
D- Megan Riordan
D- Evie Roth
D- Isabel Rurka
M- Amanda DiForti
M- Kathy Acevedo
M- Abigail Higgins
M- Carmen Guerrero
F- Taylor Kosiak
F- Grace Larson
Morton (4-4-2)
G- Dayanna Gonzalez
D- Esperanza Aranda
D- Lorena Jaimes
D- Joanna Solano
D- Nayelly Villalobos
M- Julissa Solano
M- Melanie Carranza
M- Mayte Gongora
M- Jessica Franco
M- Adriana Moreno
M- Medelin Loza
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Nayelly Villalobos, sr., D, Morton
Melanie Carranza, jr., MF, Morton
Referee: Dimitrios G. Panagiotidis
Scoring summary
First half
Morton: Moreno (Carranza, Franco) 19'
Second half
Morton: Moreno (Villalobos, Franco) 60'
R-B: own goal, Moreno (Carranza, Franco) 62