Galvan helps Meadows tie Stevenson
Goalkeeper returns to lineup, makes his presence felt in 1-1 draw
By Dave Owen
GLENVIEW – Better fortune with injuries and free kicks produced a nice bounce back for Rolling Meadows on Wednesday.
Goalkeeper Matt Galvan’s excellent first start of 2019 and a lucky bounce on a well-struck Ryan Stubisch long distance corner kick helped the Mustangs (1-1-2) forge a 1-1 tie against Stevenson (2-1-1) in the Glenbrook South Titan Invite second round.
The draw was a nice switch from a 5-0 loss to St. Patrick, ranked no. 6 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, in Monday’s tournament opener. And it was senior Galvan’s presence in the net that was a big difference maker.
“Matt played well in his first full game back,” Mustangs coach Brett Olson said. “He had a hip pointer and missed the first part of the season.
“Yesterday he played in the second half for a little bit. We knew that (his goalkeeping) was going to be a strong point for us.”
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match Galvan’s presence was especially vital in the second half, when Stevenson peppered the net with redirects off corner kicks – and Galvan was in the right spot for the save every time.
Locating the ball in the crowd in front on set pieces can be daunting, but Galvan barely blinked.
“It can be hard, but I wasn’t fazed today,” Galvan said. “Obviously I made some big saves, but mostly it’s a team effort.
“We like to force teams out wide, and we did a pretty good defensively just holding them. They (Stevenson) got a lot of shots and are a good team, but we were standing up and winning some balls in the air.
“But I know we have to improve on some things, especially in the midfield defensively. We just need to communicate more – I think that’s our biggest issue.”
Rolling Meadows’ offense had the first quality chance of the match. In the 17th minute, Luis Marquez’s right side shot was denied on a leaping one-handed deflection over the crossbar by Stevenson goalkeeper Itay Gozahani.
Stevenson began to assert itself on its corner kick in the 23rd minute – Alem Duratovic’s header in front appeared headed for the net, Mustangs junior Edwin Fuentes cleared the ball off the line to keep the score 0-0.
Plays like that have been the early season norm for Fuentes and a few other Mustangs.
“Joao (Sanchez) in the middle keeps impressing us,” Olson said, “and Edwin Fuentes is a little motorboat. He just runs like crazy. He does so much for us in there and never stops going. And he challenges for the ball.
“He and Joao are our two staples. We’re going to go how those two and Adan (Ramirez) generally play.”
Stevenson didn’t let Fuentes’ goal-saving clear deter them.
Just 37 seconds later, Rei Kubota’s cross in front went past one potential Stevenson shooter to Camron Mahdavian, whose point-blank putaway put his team in front.
“Rei was on the side coming with speed,” Mahdavian said, “and that goal was all Alem Duratovic, number 7. I told him to dummy the ball, and he left it. They did all the work, and I just had to put it in the back of the net.”
Duratovic was more than a decoy on chances in the 25th and 29th minutes, sending two shots just over the net. And in the 31st minute, Mahdavian sent a header off a corner kick just over frame.
But if Stevenson appeared to be taking control, Rolling Meadows defender Stubisch changed that just 1:25 before halftime.
The junior launched a free kick from the seemingly harmless 55-yard distance. But his well-struck send into the box resulted in an errant leaping header by a Stevenson defender, as the skulled ball sailed backward and under the crossbar to tie the game 1-1.
“That’s just unlucky,” Stevenson coach Mark Schartner said. “I feel bad for the kid, but that’s just part of being a defender. Those things happen.”
But Stubisch’s nice long-distance drive made things happen for the Mustangs.
“He’s becoming a leader quickly,” Olson said, “for a second-year varsity guy who’s a junior. He’s a smart player, and he’s really stepping up.
“We worked a lot on those (free kicks) Monday, and we talked about where we want the ball to be and where we want our runners to be going. He put the ball where it needed to be. We didn’t have the runners, but sometimes you take that (goal) whether you deserve it or not.”
In the second half, the match became a tale of Stevenson threats – and Galvan saves.
Galvan’s first test came two minutes into the stanza. Off a Patriots corner kick, he was on the spot to grab a Mahdavian deflection in-front.
The Mustangs netminder had alloy assistance (as in alloy steel) with 29:15 left, when Duratovic lined a 15-yard shot off the crossbar.
The teams then traded chances the next 10 minutes. Galvan’s high block save and catch on an Anthony Skordilis right-side shot was followed by a 30-yard high drive by Roling Meadow’s Arnulfo Mora that curled just wide of the left post.
Galvan’s would then be right place, right time on several late-game threats.
With 18:05 left, he made a point-blank catch of another Mahdavian header in front off a corner kick.
To Stevenson’s Schartner, it was both good goalkeeping and unlucky aim.
“We had so many chances,” Schartner said. “We hit five corner kick headers into the goalie’s belly button. We’re still snakebit. We’re serving the ball really well (on corners) and getting the first touch.”
With 7:15 left, a Mahdavian rush was denied first by an Isaac San Ronan blocked shot, then Galvan dived on the loose ball near the crease.
“It’s obviously frustrating that we didn’t get another goal,” Mahdavian said, “but there’s a lot of things we can build on. I think offensively we moved the ball well, but in the final third we were just a hair off. So it was one of those games.”
Galvan also saved a Ben Dixon 25-yard shot late, and Stevenson had a 23-yard free kick (3:45 left) and a 30-yard one-timer (1:30 to go) sail just wide of the net.
“We could have had a lot of goals, Schartner said, “and I think our goalie had one save. That shows you how well our defense played and how hard we work.
“It’s what we do. The Stevenson way is to outwork the opponent, and we did that a lot better today than we did last night (in a 4-3 loss to Glenbard West). That’s really positive.”
For Rolling Meadows, Mora’s left-side attack generated a corner kick with 11:40 left. But that restart produced a Stevenson clear and a long one-hop send on goal by Stubisch.
“We made a statement tying Crystal Lake South (2-2 on Aug. 30),” Olson said “but as well as we played in that game, we haven’t built on that.
“We’re not finishing in there, and like I said at the beginning of the season, that’s something we were going to search for. We don’t have the bangers that are going to put in a minimum 10 goals just by walking out on the field on a daily basis.
“We’re getting contributions from guys,” Olson added. “Now it’s just a matter of being consistent with our effort.
“And we’re getting guys healthy. Fabian (Sarabia) was out today with a nagging quad and that hurts us on the outside because he’s dangerous out there, but we have a big roster and everyone needs to contribute. We had that for the most part today.”
Having Galvan back for a full match was a huge lift.
“I definitely feel we’ve made a big improvement over where we’ve been at the last few years,” Galvan said. “We have great chemistry compared to the last three years, and I think we’re doing big things going forward.”
Starting lineups
Rolling Meadows
GK: Matt Galvan
D: Nikolay Pavlov
D: Ryan Stubisch
D: Jesus Padilla
D: Isaac San Ronan
M: Erik Martens
M: Adan Ramirez
M: Nikolay Pavlov
M: Ethan Kakavetsis
M: Joao Sanchez
F: Tyler Dawson
Stevenson
GK: Itay Gozahani
D: Rei Kubota
D: Ryan Allen
D: Kevin Yan
M: Nick Brickman
M: Ben Dixon
M: Camron Mahdavian
M: Evan Paldrmic
M: Anthony Skordilis
F: Alem Duratovic
F: Segi Odongo
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Matt Galvan, sr. GK, Rolling Meadows
Scoring summary
First half
Stev- Camron Mahdavian (Rei Kubota), 23rd min
RM- own goal (Ryan Stubisch free kick deflection), 34th min
Second half
No scoring
Goalkeeper returns to lineup, makes his presence felt in 1-1 draw
By Dave Owen
GLENVIEW – Better fortune with injuries and free kicks produced a nice bounce back for Rolling Meadows on Wednesday.
Goalkeeper Matt Galvan’s excellent first start of 2019 and a lucky bounce on a well-struck Ryan Stubisch long distance corner kick helped the Mustangs (1-1-2) forge a 1-1 tie against Stevenson (2-1-1) in the Glenbrook South Titan Invite second round.
The draw was a nice switch from a 5-0 loss to St. Patrick, ranked no. 6 in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, in Monday’s tournament opener. And it was senior Galvan’s presence in the net that was a big difference maker.
“Matt played well in his first full game back,” Mustangs coach Brett Olson said. “He had a hip pointer and missed the first part of the season.
“Yesterday he played in the second half for a little bit. We knew that (his goalkeeping) was going to be a strong point for us.”
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match Galvan’s presence was especially vital in the second half, when Stevenson peppered the net with redirects off corner kicks – and Galvan was in the right spot for the save every time.
Locating the ball in the crowd in front on set pieces can be daunting, but Galvan barely blinked.
“It can be hard, but I wasn’t fazed today,” Galvan said. “Obviously I made some big saves, but mostly it’s a team effort.
“We like to force teams out wide, and we did a pretty good defensively just holding them. They (Stevenson) got a lot of shots and are a good team, but we were standing up and winning some balls in the air.
“But I know we have to improve on some things, especially in the midfield defensively. We just need to communicate more – I think that’s our biggest issue.”
Rolling Meadows’ offense had the first quality chance of the match. In the 17th minute, Luis Marquez’s right side shot was denied on a leaping one-handed deflection over the crossbar by Stevenson goalkeeper Itay Gozahani.
Stevenson began to assert itself on its corner kick in the 23rd minute – Alem Duratovic’s header in front appeared headed for the net, Mustangs junior Edwin Fuentes cleared the ball off the line to keep the score 0-0.
Plays like that have been the early season norm for Fuentes and a few other Mustangs.
“Joao (Sanchez) in the middle keeps impressing us,” Olson said, “and Edwin Fuentes is a little motorboat. He just runs like crazy. He does so much for us in there and never stops going. And he challenges for the ball.
“He and Joao are our two staples. We’re going to go how those two and Adan (Ramirez) generally play.”
Stevenson didn’t let Fuentes’ goal-saving clear deter them.
Just 37 seconds later, Rei Kubota’s cross in front went past one potential Stevenson shooter to Camron Mahdavian, whose point-blank putaway put his team in front.
“Rei was on the side coming with speed,” Mahdavian said, “and that goal was all Alem Duratovic, number 7. I told him to dummy the ball, and he left it. They did all the work, and I just had to put it in the back of the net.”
Duratovic was more than a decoy on chances in the 25th and 29th minutes, sending two shots just over the net. And in the 31st minute, Mahdavian sent a header off a corner kick just over frame.
But if Stevenson appeared to be taking control, Rolling Meadows defender Stubisch changed that just 1:25 before halftime.
The junior launched a free kick from the seemingly harmless 55-yard distance. But his well-struck send into the box resulted in an errant leaping header by a Stevenson defender, as the skulled ball sailed backward and under the crossbar to tie the game 1-1.
“That’s just unlucky,” Stevenson coach Mark Schartner said. “I feel bad for the kid, but that’s just part of being a defender. Those things happen.”
But Stubisch’s nice long-distance drive made things happen for the Mustangs.
“He’s becoming a leader quickly,” Olson said, “for a second-year varsity guy who’s a junior. He’s a smart player, and he’s really stepping up.
“We worked a lot on those (free kicks) Monday, and we talked about where we want the ball to be and where we want our runners to be going. He put the ball where it needed to be. We didn’t have the runners, but sometimes you take that (goal) whether you deserve it or not.”
In the second half, the match became a tale of Stevenson threats – and Galvan saves.
Galvan’s first test came two minutes into the stanza. Off a Patriots corner kick, he was on the spot to grab a Mahdavian deflection in-front.
The Mustangs netminder had alloy assistance (as in alloy steel) with 29:15 left, when Duratovic lined a 15-yard shot off the crossbar.
The teams then traded chances the next 10 minutes. Galvan’s high block save and catch on an Anthony Skordilis right-side shot was followed by a 30-yard high drive by Roling Meadow’s Arnulfo Mora that curled just wide of the left post.
Galvan’s would then be right place, right time on several late-game threats.
With 18:05 left, he made a point-blank catch of another Mahdavian header in front off a corner kick.
To Stevenson’s Schartner, it was both good goalkeeping and unlucky aim.
“We had so many chances,” Schartner said. “We hit five corner kick headers into the goalie’s belly button. We’re still snakebit. We’re serving the ball really well (on corners) and getting the first touch.”
With 7:15 left, a Mahdavian rush was denied first by an Isaac San Ronan blocked shot, then Galvan dived on the loose ball near the crease.
“It’s obviously frustrating that we didn’t get another goal,” Mahdavian said, “but there’s a lot of things we can build on. I think offensively we moved the ball well, but in the final third we were just a hair off. So it was one of those games.”
Galvan also saved a Ben Dixon 25-yard shot late, and Stevenson had a 23-yard free kick (3:45 left) and a 30-yard one-timer (1:30 to go) sail just wide of the net.
“We could have had a lot of goals, Schartner said, “and I think our goalie had one save. That shows you how well our defense played and how hard we work.
“It’s what we do. The Stevenson way is to outwork the opponent, and we did that a lot better today than we did last night (in a 4-3 loss to Glenbard West). That’s really positive.”
For Rolling Meadows, Mora’s left-side attack generated a corner kick with 11:40 left. But that restart produced a Stevenson clear and a long one-hop send on goal by Stubisch.
“We made a statement tying Crystal Lake South (2-2 on Aug. 30),” Olson said “but as well as we played in that game, we haven’t built on that.
“We’re not finishing in there, and like I said at the beginning of the season, that’s something we were going to search for. We don’t have the bangers that are going to put in a minimum 10 goals just by walking out on the field on a daily basis.
“We’re getting contributions from guys,” Olson added. “Now it’s just a matter of being consistent with our effort.
“And we’re getting guys healthy. Fabian (Sarabia) was out today with a nagging quad and that hurts us on the outside because he’s dangerous out there, but we have a big roster and everyone needs to contribute. We had that for the most part today.”
Having Galvan back for a full match was a huge lift.
“I definitely feel we’ve made a big improvement over where we’ve been at the last few years,” Galvan said. “We have great chemistry compared to the last three years, and I think we’re doing big things going forward.”
Starting lineups
Rolling Meadows
GK: Matt Galvan
D: Nikolay Pavlov
D: Ryan Stubisch
D: Jesus Padilla
D: Isaac San Ronan
M: Erik Martens
M: Adan Ramirez
M: Nikolay Pavlov
M: Ethan Kakavetsis
M: Joao Sanchez
F: Tyler Dawson
Stevenson
GK: Itay Gozahani
D: Rei Kubota
D: Ryan Allen
D: Kevin Yan
M: Nick Brickman
M: Ben Dixon
M: Camron Mahdavian
M: Evan Paldrmic
M: Anthony Skordilis
F: Alem Duratovic
F: Segi Odongo
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Matt Galvan, sr. GK, Rolling Meadows
Scoring summary
First half
Stev- Camron Mahdavian (Rei Kubota), 23rd min
RM- own goal (Ryan Stubisch free kick deflection), 34th min
Second half
No scoring