Huge Homecoming crowd fuels
Lyons win over St. Edward (Ohio)
Throng of 1,000 watches Lions post 3rd-straight shutout win
By Dave Owen
WESTERN SPRINGS – At least for one night, state bragging rights of sorts go to Illinois over Ohio.
And when it comes to Homecoming soccer crowds, Lyons set a standard hard to beat Friday night against St. Edward of suburban Cleveland.
The Lions (12-4-1) used an explosive second half offense to roll to a 4-0 win over the Eagles (4-5-2), who made a 350-mile trek from the Buckeye State for weekend matches at Lyons and Fenwick.
But the nearly 1,000 fans who made a much shorter trip to watch the action added yet another special element to Friday’s intriguing intrastate battle.
“From an atmosphere standpoint, any time you can play in front of 1,000 people at a high school level it’s tremendous,” St. Edward coach Tony Dore said. “For most of our boys it’s probably the most they’ll ever play in front of. We’re really appreciative to be able to play on their Homecoming evening.”
How that came about was actually 13 years in the making.
“I met Tony, their coach, when they had come to Chicagoland a long time ago (in 2008) for the Pepsi Showdown,” Lyons coach Paul Labbato said, “and his company now makes our custom uniforms so we talk all the time.
“He basically said ‘We’re coming to Chicago, do you want to get a game?’ I looked at the weekend (they were coming) and asked, ‘It’s our Homecoming. Do you want to play at night in front of a bigger crowd?’”
A warm October night added the final perfect element, and a unique matchup was born.
“Anytime we can play good teams it’s great,” Dore said. “And I know Paul, he’s a class-act guy and (Lyons) has a reputation for being good sports in the soccer community, so that’s the type of team you want to play.
“This trip is team building, playing great competition out of Ohio, and a Homecoming night. I think it checks a lot of boxes.”
The Lions, ranked ninth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, checked three important boxes themselves: a Homecoming win, their 12th shutout of the season, and a Senior Night win.
“When this many people come out to watch you, it really makes the game that much more important,” Lyons goalkeeper Luke Stockbridge said. “And Homecoming weekend you obviously want to win. You don’t want to think about the loss the day after.
“Senior Night is a huge game, and we lost our (last home) game against (top rival Hinsdale) Central so it made this one even more important. We had to win tonight for the fans and for our team morale.”
Defender Jackson Sullivan summed up the packed house in one word, then nicely expounded.
“Awesome,” Sullivan said. “That had to be a little intimidating for the other team, traveling eight hours and then playing against that big crowd. That definitely helped us out.
“You go to football games on Friday nights and you’re like ‘Wow, this would be awesome.’ Then when we get to have that kind of atmosphere – I couldn’t ask for anything more.
“I feel like we had a great mindset going out for this game,” Sullivan added. “Especially having all these people here, a different atmosphere.”
After pregame festivities that included a pep rally and introductions of the Homecoming court, the Lions took the field with a first half rotation of exclusively their 12 seniors.
The results over the first 40 minutes were relentless Lyons pressure on the St. Edward defense, one tough break, then one nice goal.
The threats began in the 5th minute with a strong Sullivan throw-in that was grabbed by a reaching Eagles goalkeeper Brenden Moher.
Moher faced three moderate tests in the first 10 minutes, then come up big in the 16th minute with a one-handed block of Zack Steck’s 8-yard drive after Steck’s burst into the box.
Stockbridge made his best play of the night just 45 seconds before Steck’s chance. On a Weston Jonke run to the end line, Stockbridge soared off the goal line to snare Jonke’s cross to the crease in midair.
Then came a 40-second span of soccer later in the half that was a microcosm of Lyons’ success and persistence on the night.
After a would-be Lions goal was denied by an offside call in the 26th minute, the hosts weren’t reeling from any disappointment for long.
“We just had to push through it and get our heads back in the game,” Lyons Finn Mahaney said.
The senior provided that push through less than a minute after the offside call, putting away an Aidan Hilling cross to the box for his sixth goal of 2021.
“We were just working hard up-top,” Mahaney said of the Lions’ offensive effort. “We definitely had lots of chances we could have scored, and eventually Hilling hit one down, crossed it and I just ran through the ball and finished it.”
With Lyons up 1-0, the defense did its part the next few minutes (and all night) to preserve the lead and shutout.
Moher’s powerful punts routinely reached the other side of the field. Lyons Dom Panopoulos nicely clearing one that bounded all the way to the top of the box in the 30th minute.
“When their keeper is kicking it long constantly, we know one drop back and one is on (the player),” Sullivan said. “Our communication really helped us today.
“The core of our defense has been playing together for a long time, and I feel like our communication is really good. Even if one of us messes up, like in the first half I stepped over a ball, but our other center back Dom was like ‘I got you, I got you, cover for me.’”
Sullivan was far from messing up on two other plays late in the half. In the 33rd minute, he blocked and cleared a Dean Ali shot try. Then in the 36th minute, Sullivan muscled a St. Edward attacker off the ball at the edge of the box to ignite a Lyons counterattack.
The Lions’ offense was on the all-out attack in the last minute of the first half, starting with a Fisher Daniels straight-on, low 25-yard rocket that Moher dove to deflect wide right.
Two Lyons corner kicks followed to end the half. Sullivan’s header deflected wide by a St. Edward defender marked the best chance on those set pieces.
“I was really proud of our seniors,” Labbato said. “They’ve worked really hard, and this is a big game for them.
“You have an unknown team coming with no common games, and you never know what you’re going to get. I think we were all a little worried and pressured whether we would be able to handle them and do the things we wanted to do. But we settled in nicely and moved the ball well.
“We played seniors for the majority of the game,” Labbato added. “We had one (substitute) in the first half, and everyone played pretty great. Then after a little time in the second half, we started moving the juniors and sophomores in to allow them some time on the field on Homecoming.”
The senior corps started the second half with a bang.
Just 30 seconds in, forward Anthony Curran raced in on the left side and lined a 15-yarder inside the post for an instant Lyons momentum boost and a 2-0 edge.
“Getting that quick one definitely helped us out,” Sullivan said. “We started to calm down and move the ball quicker to exploit their outsides. We had a lot of success that way.”
The Lions’ attack began to take its toll on what seemed to be a tiring St. Edward side.
“We knew coming into it we would be up against a really strong opponent tonight,” Dore said. “And due to scheduling, no excuses, but we had to play a game last night in Cleveland against a really good team (a 1-0 loss nine-win Wooster). But we’re using this trip as an opportunity to bond a bit and play against good teams.”
And just how good was Lyons compared to Ohio competition?
“I would say they’re very similar,” Dore said. “The strongest team we play is St. Ignatius (Cleveland), number one in the country, and they beat us 6-0 (on Sept. 15).
“These guys (the Lions) would match up nicely physically against them. I think it would be a pretty good game, and I think (Lyons) is as good as any top 10 team in Ohio.”
Up 2-0, the Lions continued to earn the visitors’ respect. Just 60 seconds after Curran’s goal, Ryan Herchenroether was fouled to set up a Hilling 23-yard free kick.
That set piece was headed away by the St. Edward defense. Two more Hilling free kicks with 24:20 and 22 minutes left produced first a header on goal by Patrick Kracker, then a Sullivan header over the net.
With 19:44 to go, two Lyons juniors combined to add to the Homecoming celebration.
Larry Martinez made a nice left-side run and sent a cross to the front, where Liam Carolan was there for the putaway in the crease and a 3-0 lead.
Then with 7:57 left, a Will Swicionis throw-in from 20 yards found Kracker, who planted a 15-yard straight-on shot inside the right post to wrap up the 4-0 win.
The Lyons’ defensive effort was epitomized with 13:45 to play. Battling to try to dribble into the box, St. Edward’s Matthew Skladany was cut off at every bid for an opening by a double team and eventually launched a 25-yard try over the net.
“Defensively I think we’re doing a much better job with communication and pressure cover,” goalkeeper Stockbridge said. “I had two or three plays that whole game.
“The defense was awesome, and it also helps when our attackers get goals. We don’t normally have games where we get more than two goals. It takes a lot of pressure off you when the offense does their job.”
Connor Schmitt took over at goalkeeper for Stockbridge for the final 13:30 of the match, while two Lions defensive stalwarts never rested.
“Jackson Sullivan and Dom Panopoulos in the back,” Labbato said. “I kept them in the whole game, because they’re so difficult to beat. They’re calm with the ball, and they just do a great job overall.”
The Lions’ offense is starting to do great things, having scored 18 goals over their current three-game winning streak.
“We started off the year a little uneasy,” Mahaney said. “We couldn’t really finish the ball. But this last week or two we’re getting our forwards up and finishing our chances more. We’re getting more goals than usual.”
The strong defense and emerging offense will both be needed next week. The Lions’ Homecoming weekend is followed by major WSC Silver battles against Oak Park and River Forest on Tuesday and York on Thursday.
“A big week, two really good teams,” Labbato said. “We’re looking forward to it. Both of those teams are rolling, and we’ve had what I don’t want to call stumbles, but we’ve played some great teams and lost 1-0 (to current no. 8 Benet Sept. 25) or on PKs (to honorable mention rival Hinsdale Central and no. 5 New Trier). We’ll be feeling the pressure to come out and play with teams at the top of their game.”
Lyons is in a four-way tie for second in the conference at 2-1-x. Oak Park and River Forest leads at 3-1-x.
“I think we just have to keep the momentum going and keep taking shots,” Stockbridge said. “Our shooting has been a lot better lately. We’ve been creating more opportunities, our set pieces have been better run. Those were a bit sloppy earlier on in the year.
“The defense just has to keep communicating, and I don’t think people are going to get past us.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK Luke Stockbridge
D Radule Bozovic (honorary starter)
D Dom Panopoulos
D Jackson Sullivan
D Fisher Daniels
M Aidan Hilling
M Ryan Herchenroether
M Stefan Soldat
M Ethan Wheeler
F Finn Mahaney
F Zach Steck
F Anthony Curran
St. Edward (Ohio)
GK Brenden Moher
D Lucas Waters
D Mason Chunuk
D Klein Mitchell
D Dakota Jonke
M Bradley Eaton
M Ethan Poore
M Dean Ali
M Weston Jonke
F Braden Hunker
F Matthew Skladany
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jackson Sullivan, sr. D, Lyons
Scoring summary
First half
L- Finn Mahaney (Aidan Hilling), 27’
Second half
L- Anthony Curran (unassisted), 41’
L- Liam Carolan (Larry Martinez), 61’
L- Patrick Kracker (Will Swicionis), 73’
Lyons win over St. Edward (Ohio)
Throng of 1,000 watches Lions post 3rd-straight shutout win
By Dave Owen
WESTERN SPRINGS – At least for one night, state bragging rights of sorts go to Illinois over Ohio.
And when it comes to Homecoming soccer crowds, Lyons set a standard hard to beat Friday night against St. Edward of suburban Cleveland.
The Lions (12-4-1) used an explosive second half offense to roll to a 4-0 win over the Eagles (4-5-2), who made a 350-mile trek from the Buckeye State for weekend matches at Lyons and Fenwick.
But the nearly 1,000 fans who made a much shorter trip to watch the action added yet another special element to Friday’s intriguing intrastate battle.
“From an atmosphere standpoint, any time you can play in front of 1,000 people at a high school level it’s tremendous,” St. Edward coach Tony Dore said. “For most of our boys it’s probably the most they’ll ever play in front of. We’re really appreciative to be able to play on their Homecoming evening.”
How that came about was actually 13 years in the making.
“I met Tony, their coach, when they had come to Chicagoland a long time ago (in 2008) for the Pepsi Showdown,” Lyons coach Paul Labbato said, “and his company now makes our custom uniforms so we talk all the time.
“He basically said ‘We’re coming to Chicago, do you want to get a game?’ I looked at the weekend (they were coming) and asked, ‘It’s our Homecoming. Do you want to play at night in front of a bigger crowd?’”
A warm October night added the final perfect element, and a unique matchup was born.
“Anytime we can play good teams it’s great,” Dore said. “And I know Paul, he’s a class-act guy and (Lyons) has a reputation for being good sports in the soccer community, so that’s the type of team you want to play.
“This trip is team building, playing great competition out of Ohio, and a Homecoming night. I think it checks a lot of boxes.”
The Lions, ranked ninth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, checked three important boxes themselves: a Homecoming win, their 12th shutout of the season, and a Senior Night win.
“When this many people come out to watch you, it really makes the game that much more important,” Lyons goalkeeper Luke Stockbridge said. “And Homecoming weekend you obviously want to win. You don’t want to think about the loss the day after.
“Senior Night is a huge game, and we lost our (last home) game against (top rival Hinsdale) Central so it made this one even more important. We had to win tonight for the fans and for our team morale.”
Defender Jackson Sullivan summed up the packed house in one word, then nicely expounded.
“Awesome,” Sullivan said. “That had to be a little intimidating for the other team, traveling eight hours and then playing against that big crowd. That definitely helped us out.
“You go to football games on Friday nights and you’re like ‘Wow, this would be awesome.’ Then when we get to have that kind of atmosphere – I couldn’t ask for anything more.
“I feel like we had a great mindset going out for this game,” Sullivan added. “Especially having all these people here, a different atmosphere.”
After pregame festivities that included a pep rally and introductions of the Homecoming court, the Lions took the field with a first half rotation of exclusively their 12 seniors.
The results over the first 40 minutes were relentless Lyons pressure on the St. Edward defense, one tough break, then one nice goal.
The threats began in the 5th minute with a strong Sullivan throw-in that was grabbed by a reaching Eagles goalkeeper Brenden Moher.
Moher faced three moderate tests in the first 10 minutes, then come up big in the 16th minute with a one-handed block of Zack Steck’s 8-yard drive after Steck’s burst into the box.
Stockbridge made his best play of the night just 45 seconds before Steck’s chance. On a Weston Jonke run to the end line, Stockbridge soared off the goal line to snare Jonke’s cross to the crease in midair.
Then came a 40-second span of soccer later in the half that was a microcosm of Lyons’ success and persistence on the night.
After a would-be Lions goal was denied by an offside call in the 26th minute, the hosts weren’t reeling from any disappointment for long.
“We just had to push through it and get our heads back in the game,” Lyons Finn Mahaney said.
The senior provided that push through less than a minute after the offside call, putting away an Aidan Hilling cross to the box for his sixth goal of 2021.
“We were just working hard up-top,” Mahaney said of the Lions’ offensive effort. “We definitely had lots of chances we could have scored, and eventually Hilling hit one down, crossed it and I just ran through the ball and finished it.”
With Lyons up 1-0, the defense did its part the next few minutes (and all night) to preserve the lead and shutout.
Moher’s powerful punts routinely reached the other side of the field. Lyons Dom Panopoulos nicely clearing one that bounded all the way to the top of the box in the 30th minute.
“When their keeper is kicking it long constantly, we know one drop back and one is on (the player),” Sullivan said. “Our communication really helped us today.
“The core of our defense has been playing together for a long time, and I feel like our communication is really good. Even if one of us messes up, like in the first half I stepped over a ball, but our other center back Dom was like ‘I got you, I got you, cover for me.’”
Sullivan was far from messing up on two other plays late in the half. In the 33rd minute, he blocked and cleared a Dean Ali shot try. Then in the 36th minute, Sullivan muscled a St. Edward attacker off the ball at the edge of the box to ignite a Lyons counterattack.
The Lions’ offense was on the all-out attack in the last minute of the first half, starting with a Fisher Daniels straight-on, low 25-yard rocket that Moher dove to deflect wide right.
Two Lyons corner kicks followed to end the half. Sullivan’s header deflected wide by a St. Edward defender marked the best chance on those set pieces.
“I was really proud of our seniors,” Labbato said. “They’ve worked really hard, and this is a big game for them.
“You have an unknown team coming with no common games, and you never know what you’re going to get. I think we were all a little worried and pressured whether we would be able to handle them and do the things we wanted to do. But we settled in nicely and moved the ball well.
“We played seniors for the majority of the game,” Labbato added. “We had one (substitute) in the first half, and everyone played pretty great. Then after a little time in the second half, we started moving the juniors and sophomores in to allow them some time on the field on Homecoming.”
The senior corps started the second half with a bang.
Just 30 seconds in, forward Anthony Curran raced in on the left side and lined a 15-yarder inside the post for an instant Lyons momentum boost and a 2-0 edge.
“Getting that quick one definitely helped us out,” Sullivan said. “We started to calm down and move the ball quicker to exploit their outsides. We had a lot of success that way.”
The Lions’ attack began to take its toll on what seemed to be a tiring St. Edward side.
“We knew coming into it we would be up against a really strong opponent tonight,” Dore said. “And due to scheduling, no excuses, but we had to play a game last night in Cleveland against a really good team (a 1-0 loss nine-win Wooster). But we’re using this trip as an opportunity to bond a bit and play against good teams.”
And just how good was Lyons compared to Ohio competition?
“I would say they’re very similar,” Dore said. “The strongest team we play is St. Ignatius (Cleveland), number one in the country, and they beat us 6-0 (on Sept. 15).
“These guys (the Lions) would match up nicely physically against them. I think it would be a pretty good game, and I think (Lyons) is as good as any top 10 team in Ohio.”
Up 2-0, the Lions continued to earn the visitors’ respect. Just 60 seconds after Curran’s goal, Ryan Herchenroether was fouled to set up a Hilling 23-yard free kick.
That set piece was headed away by the St. Edward defense. Two more Hilling free kicks with 24:20 and 22 minutes left produced first a header on goal by Patrick Kracker, then a Sullivan header over the net.
With 19:44 to go, two Lyons juniors combined to add to the Homecoming celebration.
Larry Martinez made a nice left-side run and sent a cross to the front, where Liam Carolan was there for the putaway in the crease and a 3-0 lead.
Then with 7:57 left, a Will Swicionis throw-in from 20 yards found Kracker, who planted a 15-yard straight-on shot inside the right post to wrap up the 4-0 win.
The Lyons’ defensive effort was epitomized with 13:45 to play. Battling to try to dribble into the box, St. Edward’s Matthew Skladany was cut off at every bid for an opening by a double team and eventually launched a 25-yard try over the net.
“Defensively I think we’re doing a much better job with communication and pressure cover,” goalkeeper Stockbridge said. “I had two or three plays that whole game.
“The defense was awesome, and it also helps when our attackers get goals. We don’t normally have games where we get more than two goals. It takes a lot of pressure off you when the offense does their job.”
Connor Schmitt took over at goalkeeper for Stockbridge for the final 13:30 of the match, while two Lions defensive stalwarts never rested.
“Jackson Sullivan and Dom Panopoulos in the back,” Labbato said. “I kept them in the whole game, because they’re so difficult to beat. They’re calm with the ball, and they just do a great job overall.”
The Lions’ offense is starting to do great things, having scored 18 goals over their current three-game winning streak.
“We started off the year a little uneasy,” Mahaney said. “We couldn’t really finish the ball. But this last week or two we’re getting our forwards up and finishing our chances more. We’re getting more goals than usual.”
The strong defense and emerging offense will both be needed next week. The Lions’ Homecoming weekend is followed by major WSC Silver battles against Oak Park and River Forest on Tuesday and York on Thursday.
“A big week, two really good teams,” Labbato said. “We’re looking forward to it. Both of those teams are rolling, and we’ve had what I don’t want to call stumbles, but we’ve played some great teams and lost 1-0 (to current no. 8 Benet Sept. 25) or on PKs (to honorable mention rival Hinsdale Central and no. 5 New Trier). We’ll be feeling the pressure to come out and play with teams at the top of their game.”
Lyons is in a four-way tie for second in the conference at 2-1-x. Oak Park and River Forest leads at 3-1-x.
“I think we just have to keep the momentum going and keep taking shots,” Stockbridge said. “Our shooting has been a lot better lately. We’ve been creating more opportunities, our set pieces have been better run. Those were a bit sloppy earlier on in the year.
“The defense just has to keep communicating, and I don’t think people are going to get past us.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK Luke Stockbridge
D Radule Bozovic (honorary starter)
D Dom Panopoulos
D Jackson Sullivan
D Fisher Daniels
M Aidan Hilling
M Ryan Herchenroether
M Stefan Soldat
M Ethan Wheeler
F Finn Mahaney
F Zach Steck
F Anthony Curran
St. Edward (Ohio)
GK Brenden Moher
D Lucas Waters
D Mason Chunuk
D Klein Mitchell
D Dakota Jonke
M Bradley Eaton
M Ethan Poore
M Dean Ali
M Weston Jonke
F Braden Hunker
F Matthew Skladany
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jackson Sullivan, sr. D, Lyons
Scoring summary
First half
L- Finn Mahaney (Aidan Hilling), 27’
Second half
L- Anthony Curran (unassisted), 41’
L- Liam Carolan (Larry Martinez), 61’
L- Patrick Kracker (Will Swicionis), 73’