Troy's big save clinches 3rd for St. Ignatius
After 1-1 regulation tie, Wolfpack win 4-2 in shootout over Gibault
By Gary Larsen
Nobody can actually tell the future at St. Ignatius but coaches and players have known for some time that this year’s soccer team could be special. So they weren’t all that surprised to find themselves hoisting a Class AA third place trophy on their shoulders at season’s end.
Heck, head coach Ryan Kearns suspected as much as far back as 2013, when St. Ignatius placed second in state and Kearns was an assistant under long-time coach Jim Luzzi.
“I knew we’d be back in the next five years,” Kearns said. “We were talking state finals even before the season began. In the spring we saw guys playing with their club teams, getting in the weight room on their own, and with all the stuff they did over the summer we saw it developing. So we knew.”
The Wolfpack played exceptional soccer but lost their state semifinal in a shootout to state power Notre Dame (Peoria) on Friday in Hoffman Estate. Less than 24 hours later, Kearns’ boys took the field against another downstate giant, Gibault.
They used the medium of the oft underappreciated third place game to show the stuff they’re made from.
“Last night in group chat we were all just talking about how excited we were, and how very few teams get to end their season with a win,” junior Tal Malven said. “So it’s pretty special to be one of those teams. We knew it had to be done.”
Malven figured this would be a special season two years ago, when this year’s group of 15 seniors went 20-1-0 at the sophomore level.
“We couldn’t wait until this year,” Malven said. “We knew we were going to do good things.”
The box score for Saturday’s match shows that Malven scored a goal in the first half, and Gibault’s Logan Doerr scored late in the second half to force a shootout. The game when straight to PKs and the 2018 AA third place trophy hung in the balance.
That’s when St. Ignatius senior keeper Keenan Troy grabbed the spotlight. Troy got the start on Saturday after a stellar performance by Friday’s starting keeper, classmate Alec Beckwith.
With a dive to his right on Gibault’s very first PK attempt, Troy got his hand on the offering and slapped it away into history. Ultimately, four St. Ignatius kickers converted their penalty kicks to clinch the victory.
But those kickers — Malven, Jack Galante, Christian Telles, and Jaden Rice — had “the penalty king” to thank for his big save in net.
“I jokingly told my coaches ‘I’m the penalty king. So if we ever go to penalties, put me in,’” Troy said. “I obviously didn’t get to play last night, but it was nice to show that I am the 'penalty king,' so to speak.”
Gibault hit the crossbar with their fourth kick in the shootout, setting up Rice's game-clinching conversion.
With seven losses, St. Ignatius entered the weekend with the most defeats of the eight teams entering the AA and 3A semifinals. But AA teams underestimated the Wolfpack at their own risk. Kearns loaded his schedule with large-school division teams to make his boys better.
“We played Hinsdale (Central), Evanston, New Trier. We’re not a team that likes to lose, but we learned a lot from those losses,” senior forward Keith Bevans said.
“When we lost, we thought really deep about every little thing that happened. Then we tried to work around it the next game, and come out with that attitude that we need to put the next (opponent) in the ground. We always came back after those losses, and we were happy and excited to play.”
In their third trip downstate in program history, St. Ignatius first took on a Notre Dame (Peoria) program with four state titles to its name and one making its 15th appearance at the state finals.
“We saw their record, scores, their high ranking,” Bevans said. “It took a little bit for us to calm the nerves. But coach (Jim) Luzzi calmed us down.”
What did Luzzi say?
“He said ‘You don’t play the reputation; you play the team on the field’” Troy said.
The Wolfpack matched the highly-touted Irish throughout the game. A 1-1 tie in regulation gave way to two scoreless overtimes, and then a shootout that ended the Wolfpack’s state title dream.
In Gibault (17-6-5), St. Ignatius took on a program making its 12th state finals appearance, and fourth straight, chasing its fifth state title. The Hawks placed second at last year’s state finals.
Hawks senior and four-year varsity starter Logan Doerr led the way with 23 goals this year.
“The program is strong because it’s like the main sport at the school. We just work really hard every year and the goal is state,” Doerr said. “We’re just finding ways to put the ball in the back of the net and get stops on defense to get back here every year.
“It’s a community thing for Gibault. It’s a small town, everybody knows everybody, and we always have people coming out to the games. We all grew up together in the same area. We’re just a big family.”
St. Ignatius struck first at 28 minutes, after a tip-save over the bar by Gibault keeper Connor Olson on a head shot from Brock Hurst. The ensuing corner kick was cleared 30 yards out to Malven, who chested it down and let it fly.
“I took like a half-volley right off the bounce, and I could just see it going to the corner,” Malven said. “That’s where I typically stand on corners because when it gets cleared, that’s the perfect opportunity.”
Through 40 minutes, St. Ignatius had the edge in energy and more of the ball. That continued to start the second half, but Gibault’s program had too much pride to go out with a whimper.
“I knew we had to get something going soon, because they had the ball for the majority of the first half, and the start of the second half,” Doerr said. “Johnny (Adams) was working his butt off in the middle, and I knew he was going to spring some attacks and Karson (Huels) was as well. I just needed to continue making runs, and I knew we’d get something going.”
Gibault’s attack picked up steam to the 72nd minute, when Troy tipped a head shot over the bar. Gibault’s ensuing corner kick found Doerr’s foot, 25 yards away from the goal.
Doerr’s left-footed blast tore past the post to tie the game.
IN the shootout, Troy’s big save and Telles’ conversion followed, and the celebration for St. Ignatius began.
For his trophy-clinching save, Troy was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
“(Troy) is a great penalty keeper and a great keeper all-around, but he especially has this energy and ability to guess correctly,” Kearns said. “I had ultimate confidence in Keenan when we started those penalty kicks.”
Kearns has to say goodbye to 15 seniors from this year’s team, including keepers Beckwith and Troy, and Saturday starters Bevans, Galante, Telles, Ethan Belnap, Matt Griffin, Chris Braman, and Mark Kirby.
Seniors Dylan McClain, Billy Kacey, Brock Hurst, Kendall Rice, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Brian Anaya will also depart the program.
“I’ll miss the camaraderie,” Troy said. “Some of us have been playing together since we were freshmen. There’s an instant click when you hang out with 21 other guys for an hour and a half every day after school. Then you ride a bus together for games, and you really do become like a family together.
“That’s what I’ll miss, is being to go out after school every day and hang out with 21 people that I know everyone will say have become brothers over the course of the season.”
Starting lineups
St. Ignatius
GK Keenan Troy
D Christian Telles
D Jack Galante
D Ethan Belnap
MF Tal Malven
MF Daniel Fernandez
MF Jaden Rice
MF Chris Braman
MF Matt Kirby
F Matt Griffin
F Keith Bevans
Gibault
GK Connor Olson
D Tate Schilling
D Dylan Altadonna
D Adam Stearns
D Alex Bira
MF Ryan Swindle
MF Johnny Adams
MF Tripp Hasentstab
MF Antonio Pepe
MF Karson Huels
F Logan Doerr
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Keenan Troy, sr., GK, St. Ignatius
Scoring summary
First half
St. Ignatius — Malven (UA) 28 minutes
Second half
Gibault — Doerr (Huels) 72 minutes
PKs
Gibault: Huels (saved); Doerr (goal); Stearns (goal); Schilling (hit crossbar)
St. ignatius: Malven (goal): Galante (goal); Telles (goal); J. Rice (goal)
After 1-1 regulation tie, Wolfpack win 4-2 in shootout over Gibault
By Gary Larsen
Nobody can actually tell the future at St. Ignatius but coaches and players have known for some time that this year’s soccer team could be special. So they weren’t all that surprised to find themselves hoisting a Class AA third place trophy on their shoulders at season’s end.
Heck, head coach Ryan Kearns suspected as much as far back as 2013, when St. Ignatius placed second in state and Kearns was an assistant under long-time coach Jim Luzzi.
“I knew we’d be back in the next five years,” Kearns said. “We were talking state finals even before the season began. In the spring we saw guys playing with their club teams, getting in the weight room on their own, and with all the stuff they did over the summer we saw it developing. So we knew.”
The Wolfpack played exceptional soccer but lost their state semifinal in a shootout to state power Notre Dame (Peoria) on Friday in Hoffman Estate. Less than 24 hours later, Kearns’ boys took the field against another downstate giant, Gibault.
They used the medium of the oft underappreciated third place game to show the stuff they’re made from.
“Last night in group chat we were all just talking about how excited we were, and how very few teams get to end their season with a win,” junior Tal Malven said. “So it’s pretty special to be one of those teams. We knew it had to be done.”
Malven figured this would be a special season two years ago, when this year’s group of 15 seniors went 20-1-0 at the sophomore level.
“We couldn’t wait until this year,” Malven said. “We knew we were going to do good things.”
The box score for Saturday’s match shows that Malven scored a goal in the first half, and Gibault’s Logan Doerr scored late in the second half to force a shootout. The game when straight to PKs and the 2018 AA third place trophy hung in the balance.
That’s when St. Ignatius senior keeper Keenan Troy grabbed the spotlight. Troy got the start on Saturday after a stellar performance by Friday’s starting keeper, classmate Alec Beckwith.
With a dive to his right on Gibault’s very first PK attempt, Troy got his hand on the offering and slapped it away into history. Ultimately, four St. Ignatius kickers converted their penalty kicks to clinch the victory.
But those kickers — Malven, Jack Galante, Christian Telles, and Jaden Rice — had “the penalty king” to thank for his big save in net.
“I jokingly told my coaches ‘I’m the penalty king. So if we ever go to penalties, put me in,’” Troy said. “I obviously didn’t get to play last night, but it was nice to show that I am the 'penalty king,' so to speak.”
Gibault hit the crossbar with their fourth kick in the shootout, setting up Rice's game-clinching conversion.
With seven losses, St. Ignatius entered the weekend with the most defeats of the eight teams entering the AA and 3A semifinals. But AA teams underestimated the Wolfpack at their own risk. Kearns loaded his schedule with large-school division teams to make his boys better.
“We played Hinsdale (Central), Evanston, New Trier. We’re not a team that likes to lose, but we learned a lot from those losses,” senior forward Keith Bevans said.
“When we lost, we thought really deep about every little thing that happened. Then we tried to work around it the next game, and come out with that attitude that we need to put the next (opponent) in the ground. We always came back after those losses, and we were happy and excited to play.”
In their third trip downstate in program history, St. Ignatius first took on a Notre Dame (Peoria) program with four state titles to its name and one making its 15th appearance at the state finals.
“We saw their record, scores, their high ranking,” Bevans said. “It took a little bit for us to calm the nerves. But coach (Jim) Luzzi calmed us down.”
What did Luzzi say?
“He said ‘You don’t play the reputation; you play the team on the field’” Troy said.
The Wolfpack matched the highly-touted Irish throughout the game. A 1-1 tie in regulation gave way to two scoreless overtimes, and then a shootout that ended the Wolfpack’s state title dream.
In Gibault (17-6-5), St. Ignatius took on a program making its 12th state finals appearance, and fourth straight, chasing its fifth state title. The Hawks placed second at last year’s state finals.
Hawks senior and four-year varsity starter Logan Doerr led the way with 23 goals this year.
“The program is strong because it’s like the main sport at the school. We just work really hard every year and the goal is state,” Doerr said. “We’re just finding ways to put the ball in the back of the net and get stops on defense to get back here every year.
“It’s a community thing for Gibault. It’s a small town, everybody knows everybody, and we always have people coming out to the games. We all grew up together in the same area. We’re just a big family.”
St. Ignatius struck first at 28 minutes, after a tip-save over the bar by Gibault keeper Connor Olson on a head shot from Brock Hurst. The ensuing corner kick was cleared 30 yards out to Malven, who chested it down and let it fly.
“I took like a half-volley right off the bounce, and I could just see it going to the corner,” Malven said. “That’s where I typically stand on corners because when it gets cleared, that’s the perfect opportunity.”
Through 40 minutes, St. Ignatius had the edge in energy and more of the ball. That continued to start the second half, but Gibault’s program had too much pride to go out with a whimper.
“I knew we had to get something going soon, because they had the ball for the majority of the first half, and the start of the second half,” Doerr said. “Johnny (Adams) was working his butt off in the middle, and I knew he was going to spring some attacks and Karson (Huels) was as well. I just needed to continue making runs, and I knew we’d get something going.”
Gibault’s attack picked up steam to the 72nd minute, when Troy tipped a head shot over the bar. Gibault’s ensuing corner kick found Doerr’s foot, 25 yards away from the goal.
Doerr’s left-footed blast tore past the post to tie the game.
IN the shootout, Troy’s big save and Telles’ conversion followed, and the celebration for St. Ignatius began.
For his trophy-clinching save, Troy was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
“(Troy) is a great penalty keeper and a great keeper all-around, but he especially has this energy and ability to guess correctly,” Kearns said. “I had ultimate confidence in Keenan when we started those penalty kicks.”
Kearns has to say goodbye to 15 seniors from this year’s team, including keepers Beckwith and Troy, and Saturday starters Bevans, Galante, Telles, Ethan Belnap, Matt Griffin, Chris Braman, and Mark Kirby.
Seniors Dylan McClain, Billy Kacey, Brock Hurst, Kendall Rice, Ryan Fitzpatrick, and Brian Anaya will also depart the program.
“I’ll miss the camaraderie,” Troy said. “Some of us have been playing together since we were freshmen. There’s an instant click when you hang out with 21 other guys for an hour and a half every day after school. Then you ride a bus together for games, and you really do become like a family together.
“That’s what I’ll miss, is being to go out after school every day and hang out with 21 people that I know everyone will say have become brothers over the course of the season.”
Starting lineups
St. Ignatius
GK Keenan Troy
D Christian Telles
D Jack Galante
D Ethan Belnap
MF Tal Malven
MF Daniel Fernandez
MF Jaden Rice
MF Chris Braman
MF Matt Kirby
F Matt Griffin
F Keith Bevans
Gibault
GK Connor Olson
D Tate Schilling
D Dylan Altadonna
D Adam Stearns
D Alex Bira
MF Ryan Swindle
MF Johnny Adams
MF Tripp Hasentstab
MF Antonio Pepe
MF Karson Huels
F Logan Doerr
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Keenan Troy, sr., GK, St. Ignatius
Scoring summary
First half
St. Ignatius — Malven (UA) 28 minutes
Second half
Gibault — Doerr (Huels) 72 minutes
PKs
Gibault: Huels (saved); Doerr (goal); Stearns (goal); Schilling (hit crossbar)
St. ignatius: Malven (goal): Galante (goal); Telles (goal); J. Rice (goal)