Impressive week continues for St. Ignatius
Wolfpack tops Hubbard 3-0 after narrow loss to no. 4 Morton
By Dave Owen
OAK BROOK -- Going west has St. Ignatius’ reputation heading straight up.
The Wolfpack (3-1-1) put together an impressive second half Thursday in a 3-0 win over Hubbard (0-2-0) in White Group play in Hinsdale Central's Red Devil Cup. And that followed a huge litmus test that St. Ignatius passed with flying colors on their trek from its Chicago campus to the western suburbs.
Facing off against perennial state power and 4th-ranked Morton on Tuesday, the Wolfpack tied the game 1-1 midway through the second half on a Keith Bevans goal (assisted by A.J. Capitanini).
Only a Mustangs deflection that was ruled to have narrowly crossed the goal line late in the game would make the difference, as St. Ignatius hung tough with Morton in the 2-1 loss.
“We played really well,” St. Ignatius coach Ryan Kearns said of the battle with Morton. “Every guy on the field and every guy off the bench did what they needed to do. We played well behind the ball, we possessed well at times and put some pressure on them. I think we frustrated them in their possession, because they had a hard time getting forward.
“I was very disappointed with that loss, because we were in that game for 80 minutes. That was a lot of fun.”
The Wolfpack came out ready for their biggest test of the early season and seldom wavered.
“It was 0-0 at half,” Kearns said, “On their first goal we turned the ball over because we were out of position in possession, and they used their speed and came right at us 1-v.-1 and put it in past the keeper. We equalized (on Bevans’ goal), and then the next 10 mnutes we played 1-1 until about 12 minutes left.
“Their second goal, we didn’t clear the ball -- clearance went off a defender straight up in the air. Orest (Sison) the keeper came out and tried to punch it away and didn’t get enough on it. I believe one of their players headed it back towards goal, and then Orest got back in position, and he said the ball didn’t cross the line. The second official said it did.”
Being that close to tying Morton is understandably a huge statement game, and confidence builder, for the Wolfpack.
“Normally heading into the Morton game we’re expecting to lose,” said St. Ignatius senior midfielder Rudy Bieglmeier. “This year we actually came out trying to play our game, came out aggressively. And even though they possessed pretty well for a good part of the game, we were able to stay right there with them.
“It was a 50-50 game,” Bieglmeier added. “And I think being able to find the back of the net (on Bevans’ goal) and put them on their heels really gave us the confidence that we can hang with anybody in the state right now.
“Obviously they’re nationally ranked, so to hang with them makes a statement. But we still have to pull out the ‘W,’ and I think now that we have that experience we’ll be more likely to do that down the road.”
St. Ignatius seniors Owen Allen and Danny Kacey both attended grade school in nearby Clarendon Hills. The great battle with Morton was a highlight in their homecoming.
“This year we’ve gone and played our own game,” Kacey said. “We came out (against Morton), came hard and we knew that we could play with them and beat them. I think it was confidence, and we’re a good team. I think we’re a lot better connected than last year.”
Co-captain Allen has been a versatile driving force in the Wolfpack’s strong start. Against Hubbard, his second half goal and effective shift from striker to defender in the final 40 minutes helped turn a shaky start into a 3-0 win.
“We actually used A.J. and Brendan (Lynch) at center backs Tuesday, and we were without them today,” Kearns said. “So I slotted Sachin (Medler) and Carlos (Sierra) in there and wanted Owen to go back there and make sure they were doing what they needed to do and make sure they were communicating.
“Owen really holds guys accountable to work hard, and he’s such a danger. Even from left back he made that run up and scored that (second) goal. It’s nice to have him.”
Against Hubbard, Allen noticed a huge drop in intensity from the Morton match in a sluggish first half.
“We came out (against Morton) kind of the opposite of today,” Allen said. “We were ready for it, we were up for it.
“We still lost, so while it’s a confidence booster knowing we can play with them, obviously we have to push for a full 80 minutes rather than tonight coming out for a half.”
Hubbard came out Thursday with the fire that St. Ignatius displayed against Morton on Tuesday.
After denying quality chances in the first 11 minutes by the Wolfpack’s Bevans (an end line shot saved at the post) and Quinn Troy (a back post touch off an Allen cross, blocked by Hubbard goalkeeper Pedro Padilla), Hubbard answered with its own huge threats.
The best came 22:50 before halftime, a well-struck Bryan Gonzalez send from right of the box rattled off the right post before being cleared from the crease by Sierra.
Then with 14:05 until the break, Wolfpack goalkeeper Sison made a nice low save on Bryan Guzman’s 1-v.-1 shot from 15 yards.
“Orest has been fantastic in the net,” Kearns said. “He’s been very consistent working very hard. (Three-year Wolfpack starter) Bryant Hales is playing at St. Louis now, and Orest came up out of the woodwork a little bit and has worked really hard to get better. He’s very good.
“And Keenan Troy (in goal in the second half) has been solid. His work ethic and physicality are there, and his smartness tactically too.”
After enduring Hubbard’s two great chances, the Wolfpack were back on the attack with a Misha Simon shot after nice passes by Bieglmeier and Kacey (saved by Padilla in the 26th minute).
Then with 7:51 left in the first half, Bieglmeier took it upon himself to end St. Ignatius’ growing frustration.
The senior smartly and aggressively pressed the Hubbard backline. After stealing the ball 20 yards out, he dribbled in right and pounded an unassisted goal inside the left post to put the Wolfpack up 1-0.
“I saw from the way the defender was facing the center back that he was going to play a flat pass along the back line,” said Bieglmeier, whose momentum-turning strike earned him Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“Then the center back had his back turned to me, so I figured I would put pressure on him and try to cut off the pass. He got a touch on it but I was able to take it away, and I was in on the keeper.”
The play was a combination of great anticipation and execution for Bieglmeier, and horrible timing for Hubbard.
“One of our captains no. 4 Jonathan (Lopez) has had a torn meniscus and ACL,” Hubbard coach Franco O'Campo said. “He missed the last two seasons and is now back, but we had to sub him out because he was feeling sore. That was when they had the takeaway, and it all snowballed from there.”
Hubbard tried to answer late in the half (Sison’s nice save on an 8-yard shot with 6:15 left in the half, and a Juan Valencia 22-yarder just wide of the left post), while the Wolfpack kept up the heat with chances in the final three minutes of the half for Troy (end line attack blocked and cleared) and Bevans (15-yarder over the net). Both came off Bieglmeier passes.
Then in the second half, St. Ignatius settled down – and settled the issue.
“At halftime we talked about how frantic we were playing through the middle,” Kearns said. “We weren’t checking our shoulders or looking for open players wide, and we weren’t telling each other to turn. So basically communication was down.
“We had to pick up the pace of play, and possess more together as a unit rather than just play quick through the middle and go 1-v.-1, 1-v.-2. If that happens, we leave the middle open, and they counter. We tried to avoid that in the second half, and that helped a lot with possession.”
Allen’s play helped the Wolfpack all over the field. His shift to the back didn’t prevent him from launching a midfield free kick with 27:40 left that Jason Pratt headed just wide.
Then 15 minutes into the half, Allen provided an insurance goal. After his end line cross off a Brock Hurst corner kick was punched away by Padilla at 24:40, Allen’s next try would not be denied.
Off a Troy pass from the right side, Allen drove a low 12-yard left side shot into the back of the net for a 2-0 lead with 24:11 to go.
“Owen Allen has just been a constant presence, and I can use him almost anywhere on the field,” Kearns said. “He plays wing for us, then I slid him back to right back to kind of solidify that and work with some of the backs. Juan Carlos Sierra has a decent amount of experience (at center back), but he’s used to working with A.J. and A.J. wasn’t here.”
From his variety of vantage points, Allen saw a huge second half difference in the Wolfpack.
“We just turned up the energy,” said Allen, who was narrowly denied a second goal by Padilla’s lunging swat of his 25-yard free kick with 18:25 left. “The first half we came out really flat. Our coach obviously wasn’t too happy with the way we played.
“We knew we had to play our style, knock it around and possess and just work it. We’d get one if we played that way.”
While Allen played positions all over the field, Kacey and Bieglmeier seemed to be everywhere as well with their high-energy play.
“I really like how Rudy’s playing in that attacking (midfielder) role,” Kearns said. “He played very well on Tuesday and played well here.
“And Danny Kacey is a workhorse. He doesn’t take no for an answer; he isn’t afraid of anyone.”
Said Kacey: “Every game for me I guess is turn up the energy. I run as fast as I can and try to get the ball to my teammates, because I know they can put it away.”
Kacey was key to the Wolfpack’s first big chance of the second half. His header across the crease off a Quinn Troy pass barely eluded Jason Pratt open in front with 35:20 to play.
But Kacey would later literally have a hand in the Wolfpack’s third goal with 9:46 left. His throw-in initiated the play, and Christian Telles’ pinpoint send from 40 yards out found Simon left of the box.
Simon nicely chipped a 15-yarder into the right corner of the net, and St. Ignatius’ 3-0 win was sealed.
Between the battle with Morton and the strong finish against Hubbard, Kearns has been impressed with his team’s depth and ability to face challenges.
“This team is very deep,” he said. “We have a lot of options. And we had three starters unavailable today (Lynch, Capitanini and Eduardo Lopez). Honestly everyone’s been playing well.
“I’ve been very impressed with everyone 1 through 20. I have so much confidence in these guys, and it’s great going into games with that confidence.”
Other standout second half plays for the Wolfpack included two midfield steals by Hurst, and Medler’s block of a cross to the front with 1:35 left to deny Hubbard’s last bid to snap the shutout.
Keenan Troy’s second half role in the combined shutout included a nice block and cover of a low 18-yarder by Hubbard standout Gonzalez with 12 minutes left.
Offensively, an offside call denied Daniel Fernandez’s header goal off an Allen free kick with 20:25 to play. And the attack continued to the end, as Jack Galante had a header off a corner kick go over frame in the last 10 seconds.
For Hubbard, the early challenges haven’t dimmed hope.
“This is only our second game of the season, so we have room for improvement,” O'Campo said. “They’re mistakes that can be fixed. We’re touching the ball well, and it’s still a pretty young team. The final score didn’t necessarily reflect it, but I thought it was a good game.
“It was nice to see both teams playing clean, touching the ball – good soccer.”
Starting lineups
Hubbard:
GK Pedro Padilla
D Alexander Liszka
D Jonathan Lopez
D Oliver Aranda
D Matthew Murillo
M Cristofer Zavala
M Bryan Gonzalez
M Daniel Rodriguez
M Steven Maravilla
F Uriel Santillanes
F Juan Valencia
St. Ignatius
GK Orest Sison
D Carlos Sierra
D Jack Galante
D Sachin Medler
D Connor Broeking
M Jason Pratt
M Rudy Bieglmeier
M Daniel Fernandez
M Keith Bevans
F Quinn Troy
F Owen Allen
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Rudy Bieglmeier, sr., MF, St. Ignatius
Wolfpack tops Hubbard 3-0 after narrow loss to no. 4 Morton
By Dave Owen
OAK BROOK -- Going west has St. Ignatius’ reputation heading straight up.
The Wolfpack (3-1-1) put together an impressive second half Thursday in a 3-0 win over Hubbard (0-2-0) in White Group play in Hinsdale Central's Red Devil Cup. And that followed a huge litmus test that St. Ignatius passed with flying colors on their trek from its Chicago campus to the western suburbs.
Facing off against perennial state power and 4th-ranked Morton on Tuesday, the Wolfpack tied the game 1-1 midway through the second half on a Keith Bevans goal (assisted by A.J. Capitanini).
Only a Mustangs deflection that was ruled to have narrowly crossed the goal line late in the game would make the difference, as St. Ignatius hung tough with Morton in the 2-1 loss.
“We played really well,” St. Ignatius coach Ryan Kearns said of the battle with Morton. “Every guy on the field and every guy off the bench did what they needed to do. We played well behind the ball, we possessed well at times and put some pressure on them. I think we frustrated them in their possession, because they had a hard time getting forward.
“I was very disappointed with that loss, because we were in that game for 80 minutes. That was a lot of fun.”
The Wolfpack came out ready for their biggest test of the early season and seldom wavered.
“It was 0-0 at half,” Kearns said, “On their first goal we turned the ball over because we were out of position in possession, and they used their speed and came right at us 1-v.-1 and put it in past the keeper. We equalized (on Bevans’ goal), and then the next 10 mnutes we played 1-1 until about 12 minutes left.
“Their second goal, we didn’t clear the ball -- clearance went off a defender straight up in the air. Orest (Sison) the keeper came out and tried to punch it away and didn’t get enough on it. I believe one of their players headed it back towards goal, and then Orest got back in position, and he said the ball didn’t cross the line. The second official said it did.”
Being that close to tying Morton is understandably a huge statement game, and confidence builder, for the Wolfpack.
“Normally heading into the Morton game we’re expecting to lose,” said St. Ignatius senior midfielder Rudy Bieglmeier. “This year we actually came out trying to play our game, came out aggressively. And even though they possessed pretty well for a good part of the game, we were able to stay right there with them.
“It was a 50-50 game,” Bieglmeier added. “And I think being able to find the back of the net (on Bevans’ goal) and put them on their heels really gave us the confidence that we can hang with anybody in the state right now.
“Obviously they’re nationally ranked, so to hang with them makes a statement. But we still have to pull out the ‘W,’ and I think now that we have that experience we’ll be more likely to do that down the road.”
St. Ignatius seniors Owen Allen and Danny Kacey both attended grade school in nearby Clarendon Hills. The great battle with Morton was a highlight in their homecoming.
“This year we’ve gone and played our own game,” Kacey said. “We came out (against Morton), came hard and we knew that we could play with them and beat them. I think it was confidence, and we’re a good team. I think we’re a lot better connected than last year.”
Co-captain Allen has been a versatile driving force in the Wolfpack’s strong start. Against Hubbard, his second half goal and effective shift from striker to defender in the final 40 minutes helped turn a shaky start into a 3-0 win.
“We actually used A.J. and Brendan (Lynch) at center backs Tuesday, and we were without them today,” Kearns said. “So I slotted Sachin (Medler) and Carlos (Sierra) in there and wanted Owen to go back there and make sure they were doing what they needed to do and make sure they were communicating.
“Owen really holds guys accountable to work hard, and he’s such a danger. Even from left back he made that run up and scored that (second) goal. It’s nice to have him.”
Against Hubbard, Allen noticed a huge drop in intensity from the Morton match in a sluggish first half.
“We came out (against Morton) kind of the opposite of today,” Allen said. “We were ready for it, we were up for it.
“We still lost, so while it’s a confidence booster knowing we can play with them, obviously we have to push for a full 80 minutes rather than tonight coming out for a half.”
Hubbard came out Thursday with the fire that St. Ignatius displayed against Morton on Tuesday.
After denying quality chances in the first 11 minutes by the Wolfpack’s Bevans (an end line shot saved at the post) and Quinn Troy (a back post touch off an Allen cross, blocked by Hubbard goalkeeper Pedro Padilla), Hubbard answered with its own huge threats.
The best came 22:50 before halftime, a well-struck Bryan Gonzalez send from right of the box rattled off the right post before being cleared from the crease by Sierra.
Then with 14:05 until the break, Wolfpack goalkeeper Sison made a nice low save on Bryan Guzman’s 1-v.-1 shot from 15 yards.
“Orest has been fantastic in the net,” Kearns said. “He’s been very consistent working very hard. (Three-year Wolfpack starter) Bryant Hales is playing at St. Louis now, and Orest came up out of the woodwork a little bit and has worked really hard to get better. He’s very good.
“And Keenan Troy (in goal in the second half) has been solid. His work ethic and physicality are there, and his smartness tactically too.”
After enduring Hubbard’s two great chances, the Wolfpack were back on the attack with a Misha Simon shot after nice passes by Bieglmeier and Kacey (saved by Padilla in the 26th minute).
Then with 7:51 left in the first half, Bieglmeier took it upon himself to end St. Ignatius’ growing frustration.
The senior smartly and aggressively pressed the Hubbard backline. After stealing the ball 20 yards out, he dribbled in right and pounded an unassisted goal inside the left post to put the Wolfpack up 1-0.
“I saw from the way the defender was facing the center back that he was going to play a flat pass along the back line,” said Bieglmeier, whose momentum-turning strike earned him Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors.
“Then the center back had his back turned to me, so I figured I would put pressure on him and try to cut off the pass. He got a touch on it but I was able to take it away, and I was in on the keeper.”
The play was a combination of great anticipation and execution for Bieglmeier, and horrible timing for Hubbard.
“One of our captains no. 4 Jonathan (Lopez) has had a torn meniscus and ACL,” Hubbard coach Franco O'Campo said. “He missed the last two seasons and is now back, but we had to sub him out because he was feeling sore. That was when they had the takeaway, and it all snowballed from there.”
Hubbard tried to answer late in the half (Sison’s nice save on an 8-yard shot with 6:15 left in the half, and a Juan Valencia 22-yarder just wide of the left post), while the Wolfpack kept up the heat with chances in the final three minutes of the half for Troy (end line attack blocked and cleared) and Bevans (15-yarder over the net). Both came off Bieglmeier passes.
Then in the second half, St. Ignatius settled down – and settled the issue.
“At halftime we talked about how frantic we were playing through the middle,” Kearns said. “We weren’t checking our shoulders or looking for open players wide, and we weren’t telling each other to turn. So basically communication was down.
“We had to pick up the pace of play, and possess more together as a unit rather than just play quick through the middle and go 1-v.-1, 1-v.-2. If that happens, we leave the middle open, and they counter. We tried to avoid that in the second half, and that helped a lot with possession.”
Allen’s play helped the Wolfpack all over the field. His shift to the back didn’t prevent him from launching a midfield free kick with 27:40 left that Jason Pratt headed just wide.
Then 15 minutes into the half, Allen provided an insurance goal. After his end line cross off a Brock Hurst corner kick was punched away by Padilla at 24:40, Allen’s next try would not be denied.
Off a Troy pass from the right side, Allen drove a low 12-yard left side shot into the back of the net for a 2-0 lead with 24:11 to go.
“Owen Allen has just been a constant presence, and I can use him almost anywhere on the field,” Kearns said. “He plays wing for us, then I slid him back to right back to kind of solidify that and work with some of the backs. Juan Carlos Sierra has a decent amount of experience (at center back), but he’s used to working with A.J. and A.J. wasn’t here.”
From his variety of vantage points, Allen saw a huge second half difference in the Wolfpack.
“We just turned up the energy,” said Allen, who was narrowly denied a second goal by Padilla’s lunging swat of his 25-yard free kick with 18:25 left. “The first half we came out really flat. Our coach obviously wasn’t too happy with the way we played.
“We knew we had to play our style, knock it around and possess and just work it. We’d get one if we played that way.”
While Allen played positions all over the field, Kacey and Bieglmeier seemed to be everywhere as well with their high-energy play.
“I really like how Rudy’s playing in that attacking (midfielder) role,” Kearns said. “He played very well on Tuesday and played well here.
“And Danny Kacey is a workhorse. He doesn’t take no for an answer; he isn’t afraid of anyone.”
Said Kacey: “Every game for me I guess is turn up the energy. I run as fast as I can and try to get the ball to my teammates, because I know they can put it away.”
Kacey was key to the Wolfpack’s first big chance of the second half. His header across the crease off a Quinn Troy pass barely eluded Jason Pratt open in front with 35:20 to play.
But Kacey would later literally have a hand in the Wolfpack’s third goal with 9:46 left. His throw-in initiated the play, and Christian Telles’ pinpoint send from 40 yards out found Simon left of the box.
Simon nicely chipped a 15-yarder into the right corner of the net, and St. Ignatius’ 3-0 win was sealed.
Between the battle with Morton and the strong finish against Hubbard, Kearns has been impressed with his team’s depth and ability to face challenges.
“This team is very deep,” he said. “We have a lot of options. And we had three starters unavailable today (Lynch, Capitanini and Eduardo Lopez). Honestly everyone’s been playing well.
“I’ve been very impressed with everyone 1 through 20. I have so much confidence in these guys, and it’s great going into games with that confidence.”
Other standout second half plays for the Wolfpack included two midfield steals by Hurst, and Medler’s block of a cross to the front with 1:35 left to deny Hubbard’s last bid to snap the shutout.
Keenan Troy’s second half role in the combined shutout included a nice block and cover of a low 18-yarder by Hubbard standout Gonzalez with 12 minutes left.
Offensively, an offside call denied Daniel Fernandez’s header goal off an Allen free kick with 20:25 to play. And the attack continued to the end, as Jack Galante had a header off a corner kick go over frame in the last 10 seconds.
For Hubbard, the early challenges haven’t dimmed hope.
“This is only our second game of the season, so we have room for improvement,” O'Campo said. “They’re mistakes that can be fixed. We’re touching the ball well, and it’s still a pretty young team. The final score didn’t necessarily reflect it, but I thought it was a good game.
“It was nice to see both teams playing clean, touching the ball – good soccer.”
Starting lineups
Hubbard:
GK Pedro Padilla
D Alexander Liszka
D Jonathan Lopez
D Oliver Aranda
D Matthew Murillo
M Cristofer Zavala
M Bryan Gonzalez
M Daniel Rodriguez
M Steven Maravilla
F Uriel Santillanes
F Juan Valencia
St. Ignatius
GK Orest Sison
D Carlos Sierra
D Jack Galante
D Sachin Medler
D Connor Broeking
M Jason Pratt
M Rudy Bieglmeier
M Daniel Fernandez
M Keith Bevans
F Quinn Troy
F Owen Allen
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Rudy Bieglmeier, sr., MF, St. Ignatius