Edwardsville survives St. Patrick rally
Weller's 2 goals pace Tigers in 3-2 victory in third place game
By Patrick Z. McGavin
HOFFMAN ESTATES — Games always play on a certain order or logic. The third place game at the state finals is always a blank slate, the lingering disappointment of coming up short in the semifinals remains lodged in the mind.
Often times it comes down to which team is quicker to accept the terms. Edwardsville was clearly that team here.
“We were all tired, but we were also very excited just to get here to the Final Four,” Edwardsville forward Cooper Nolan said.
“It showed on the field we were more mentally prepared to get back out there.”
The Tigers program had played previously in the third place game in 2009 and 2010.
“No matter how things go in the first game, you always want to end on a positive note,” Edwardsville coach Mark Heiderscheid said.
The players affirmed that feeling of closure for the Tigers, who finished the regular season ranked fifth in Chicagoland Soccer's Illinois 10 poll.
“There are only two teams in 3A that end the season with a win, and we are one of them,” Nolan said.
“Getting to the state finals for us was incredible. At the start of the year we didn’t know we were going to get anywhere.”
Junior forward Brennan Weller scored twice and among keeper Gabe Noll's numerous saves was a crucial denial on a St. Patrick penalty kick that loomed large in the Tigers’ 3-2 victory in the Class 3A third place game Saturday night.
Edwardsville (21-5-1) scored all of its goals in the first half. St. Patrick made the game very interesting, shaking off its malaise in the last 11 minutes to try to go out in a blaze of glory.
Star junior Joshua Torres made a brilliant left stutter step to score in the 69th minute and created another textbook goal for Aaron Moreno-Lopez in the 72nd minute.
“Honestly we just kind of gave up at the end,” all-purpose Shamrocks’ star Jonathan Rodriguez said. “I think everybody was still thinking about the game [Friday against Morton]. We shouldn’t do that.
“We had to forget that game and move onto the next game, and I think we just felt like we didn’t want to play any more.”
In 2017, playing in the Class AA third place game, St. Patrick followed up a solid semifinal effort with a disheartening 5-1 loss against Wheaton Academy.
The first half conjured memories of that game. The Shamrocks (25-4-3) were present, but they seemed largely disconnected. Fiery defender Adam Przytula was out of the game after acquiring two yellow cards against in the 4-2 Morton semifinal loss Friday.
In that game, Morton blitzed St. Patrick with two goals in the first five minutes. Against Edwardsville, the Shamrocks lacked their customary verve, and flamboyant and lyrical playing style, the quick touches and fluid passing game that was often a piece of staggering beauty.
St. Patrick remained on edge, volatile and moody, reflected in a foul inside the box that yielded a penalty kick goal for Tigers’ defender Kadin Lieberman in the 16th minute.
The defining sequence came late in the first half. Weller, a balletic and angular 6-foot-3 forward, is a very skilled athlete. He is also a standout basketball player.
He combines a physical style with a sharp touch. He scored two goals against Lincoln-Way West in the supersectional win Tuesday.
In the 32nd minute, Weller ran a beautiful pirouette move in concert with midfielder Jakob Doyle, who controlled the ball and made a quick half circle that drew a defender and allowed Weller to run free on the right wing.
He blasted the ball inside the near post for the 2-0 Tigers’ lead.
St. Patrick, ranked fourth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, was a bit dazed. The Shamrocks maintained their forward push and appeared to finally catch the necessary break after a foul inside the box off a long throw-in from Rodriguez.
In the stare down with Aaron Moses-Lopez, the Shamrocks’ shooter, Tigers’ keeper Gabe Noll won the individual battle. He dove sharply to his right and knocked the attempt off the near post.
“We work on it all the time in practice,” Noll said. “It came to the real moment, and it was a real turning point that I was able to make the save.
“I saw his eyes looking the other way, and I almost went that way. I thought to myself, there's no way he is going this way. I went to the right. It was crazy.”
The play took on a magnified importance after Weller broke free on the left wing in the 38th minute. Shamrocks’ keeper Jorge Cebreo scattered off his line to try and take away the angle.
Weller got there first and put away the shot for the stunning 3-0 halftime lead by the Tigers.
“It was a game-changer,” he said.
“That (PK) would have put us on our heels, and put them back in the game and given them confidence. Eventually it led to me scoring and gave us a cushion. By the end of the game we needed that cushion, so it was a big save.”
For the second-straight game, St. Patrick was trapped by the wrong narrative and trailed by three goals to start the second half.
“The same thing two years ago,” Rodriguez said. “We usually play way better than this. It just wasn’t our day.
“We didn’t play how we were supposed to.”
St. Patrick generated 23 shots, with 11 going on frame. Noll was credited with eight saves. Forward John Matthews also made a crucial clearance.
St. Patrick showed greater urgency and purpose in the second half, similar to the Morton game. Unfortunately, the upward climb was again too great.
The team never folded. Ending well proved a meaningful objective.
“Earlier in the game, like when I missed the penalty kick, we were down [emotionally],” Moreno-Lopez said. “Going into the second half we wanted to play with heart and end the season on a good note, for ourselves, our reputation and for the team.”
Torres showed more resolve and greater freedom. He got free on a header off a beautiful free kick, only to be undone by bad luck, his clean ball directed right at Noll.
Torres scored two goals against Morton as a demonstration of resolve. The individual pieces — like forwards LuisAngel Saucedo and Jonathan Buelvas and the midfielders Sebastian Modrzejewski and Angel Adame — created more dynamic and sustained pressure.
“Everyone thought this was the year we were going to win state,” Torres said. “We didn’t, so I feel like next year we have to work harder.”
Context is crucial. The Shamrocks created some dynamic pressure as part of their furious rally. The ending is bittersweet. The larger picture is worth pondering.
When the senior class of Rodriguez and Moreno-Lopez entered the Northwest Side Catholic school program four years ago, the team had gone 6-35-4 the previous two years combined.
St. Patrick won 83 games in their career, and the Shamrocks put the first two pieces of state hardware in the school trophy case. They won three-straight sectionals.
St. Patrick tied East Suburban Catholic Conference rival and eventual Class AA state champion Benet 1-1. They beat Class 3A state champion West Chicago 1-0.
The sting of the fourth place finish is not likely to go away because this was a team poised to make history. The achievements are staggering.
“We accomplished a lot,” Rodriguez said. “I am proud of this team. I am proud of myself, and I am proud of the other four seniors. (The year) before we came in, the team only won two games, I believe.
“Our freshman year we ended up winning 11 games. It was a good accomplishment, but we wanted more. Our sophomore year we sent to state for AA, and that was a big accomplishment.
“I think if we play the way usually play, we could beat any team.”
St. Patrick certainly made an impression.
“We were nervous at the end, but our team stayed in it,” Noll said. “Our defense showed well.”
Noll exited the game in the 68th minute. He returned for the final six and a half minutes after the intense St. Patrick pressure made the contest a one-goal game.
“I thought it was important to keep our heads up,” Noll said. “We had to accept what happened.”
They survived. Edwardsville won the eighth state trophy in the history of the program. Heiderscheid teams have won two state titles -- in his first year in 2000, and 2013.
This iteration of the Tigers certainly had a knack for dramatic play. The Tigers beat Moline 3-2 in the sectional final on a goal with 1.2 seconds remaining.
“Every team is different,” said Heiderscheid, who won his 319th career game. “The 2000 group, that was a whole different look and feel. We had a guy with 38 goals on that team, and a couple of strikers who were phenoms.
“Each team defines itself. I look here, and it’s somewhere in between. We don’t have that great individual player. You look at Cooper Nolan, he has 20 goals. You have a team with some connectedness. It’s very senior-laden, and juniors that played together.
“We have a combination of staunch defending and really good goalkeeping. The backline has been very good. We had two really good quality goalkeepers this year. That is helpful. You always want to go and give the most and make sure the players go out on a high note.”
Starting lineups
St. Patrick
GK: Jorge Cebrero
D: Jonathan Rodriguez
D: Juan Leon
D: Collin Kroeger
D: Narcizo Ibarra
MF: Sebastian Modrzejewski
MF: Aaron Moreno-Lopez
MF: Angel Adame
F: LuisAngel Saucedo
F: Joshua Torres
F: Jaden Buelvas
Edwardsville
GK: Gabe Noll
D: Jack Heiderscheid
D: Parker Matthews
D: Kadin Lieberman
D: Logan Loftus
MF: Alan Ebert
MF: Jakob Doyle
MF: Adam Sneed
MF: Kurt Wright
F: Cooper Nolan
F: Brennan Weller
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Brennan Weller, jr., F, Edwardsville
Scoring summary
First half
Edwardsville—Kadin Lieberman (penalty kick), 16th minute
Edwardsville—Brennan Weller (Jakob Doyle), 32nd minute
Edwardsville—Weller (unassisted), 39th minute
Second half
St. Patrick—Joshua Torres (unassisted), 69th minute
St. Patrick—Aaron Moreno-Lopez (Torres), 72nd minute
Weller's 2 goals pace Tigers in 3-2 victory in third place game
By Patrick Z. McGavin
HOFFMAN ESTATES — Games always play on a certain order or logic. The third place game at the state finals is always a blank slate, the lingering disappointment of coming up short in the semifinals remains lodged in the mind.
Often times it comes down to which team is quicker to accept the terms. Edwardsville was clearly that team here.
“We were all tired, but we were also very excited just to get here to the Final Four,” Edwardsville forward Cooper Nolan said.
“It showed on the field we were more mentally prepared to get back out there.”
The Tigers program had played previously in the third place game in 2009 and 2010.
“No matter how things go in the first game, you always want to end on a positive note,” Edwardsville coach Mark Heiderscheid said.
The players affirmed that feeling of closure for the Tigers, who finished the regular season ranked fifth in Chicagoland Soccer's Illinois 10 poll.
“There are only two teams in 3A that end the season with a win, and we are one of them,” Nolan said.
“Getting to the state finals for us was incredible. At the start of the year we didn’t know we were going to get anywhere.”
Junior forward Brennan Weller scored twice and among keeper Gabe Noll's numerous saves was a crucial denial on a St. Patrick penalty kick that loomed large in the Tigers’ 3-2 victory in the Class 3A third place game Saturday night.
Edwardsville (21-5-1) scored all of its goals in the first half. St. Patrick made the game very interesting, shaking off its malaise in the last 11 minutes to try to go out in a blaze of glory.
Star junior Joshua Torres made a brilliant left stutter step to score in the 69th minute and created another textbook goal for Aaron Moreno-Lopez in the 72nd minute.
“Honestly we just kind of gave up at the end,” all-purpose Shamrocks’ star Jonathan Rodriguez said. “I think everybody was still thinking about the game [Friday against Morton]. We shouldn’t do that.
“We had to forget that game and move onto the next game, and I think we just felt like we didn’t want to play any more.”
In 2017, playing in the Class AA third place game, St. Patrick followed up a solid semifinal effort with a disheartening 5-1 loss against Wheaton Academy.
The first half conjured memories of that game. The Shamrocks (25-4-3) were present, but they seemed largely disconnected. Fiery defender Adam Przytula was out of the game after acquiring two yellow cards against in the 4-2 Morton semifinal loss Friday.
In that game, Morton blitzed St. Patrick with two goals in the first five minutes. Against Edwardsville, the Shamrocks lacked their customary verve, and flamboyant and lyrical playing style, the quick touches and fluid passing game that was often a piece of staggering beauty.
St. Patrick remained on edge, volatile and moody, reflected in a foul inside the box that yielded a penalty kick goal for Tigers’ defender Kadin Lieberman in the 16th minute.
The defining sequence came late in the first half. Weller, a balletic and angular 6-foot-3 forward, is a very skilled athlete. He is also a standout basketball player.
He combines a physical style with a sharp touch. He scored two goals against Lincoln-Way West in the supersectional win Tuesday.
In the 32nd minute, Weller ran a beautiful pirouette move in concert with midfielder Jakob Doyle, who controlled the ball and made a quick half circle that drew a defender and allowed Weller to run free on the right wing.
He blasted the ball inside the near post for the 2-0 Tigers’ lead.
St. Patrick, ranked fourth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, was a bit dazed. The Shamrocks maintained their forward push and appeared to finally catch the necessary break after a foul inside the box off a long throw-in from Rodriguez.
In the stare down with Aaron Moses-Lopez, the Shamrocks’ shooter, Tigers’ keeper Gabe Noll won the individual battle. He dove sharply to his right and knocked the attempt off the near post.
“We work on it all the time in practice,” Noll said. “It came to the real moment, and it was a real turning point that I was able to make the save.
“I saw his eyes looking the other way, and I almost went that way. I thought to myself, there's no way he is going this way. I went to the right. It was crazy.”
The play took on a magnified importance after Weller broke free on the left wing in the 38th minute. Shamrocks’ keeper Jorge Cebreo scattered off his line to try and take away the angle.
Weller got there first and put away the shot for the stunning 3-0 halftime lead by the Tigers.
“It was a game-changer,” he said.
“That (PK) would have put us on our heels, and put them back in the game and given them confidence. Eventually it led to me scoring and gave us a cushion. By the end of the game we needed that cushion, so it was a big save.”
For the second-straight game, St. Patrick was trapped by the wrong narrative and trailed by three goals to start the second half.
“The same thing two years ago,” Rodriguez said. “We usually play way better than this. It just wasn’t our day.
“We didn’t play how we were supposed to.”
St. Patrick generated 23 shots, with 11 going on frame. Noll was credited with eight saves. Forward John Matthews also made a crucial clearance.
St. Patrick showed greater urgency and purpose in the second half, similar to the Morton game. Unfortunately, the upward climb was again too great.
The team never folded. Ending well proved a meaningful objective.
“Earlier in the game, like when I missed the penalty kick, we were down [emotionally],” Moreno-Lopez said. “Going into the second half we wanted to play with heart and end the season on a good note, for ourselves, our reputation and for the team.”
Torres showed more resolve and greater freedom. He got free on a header off a beautiful free kick, only to be undone by bad luck, his clean ball directed right at Noll.
Torres scored two goals against Morton as a demonstration of resolve. The individual pieces — like forwards LuisAngel Saucedo and Jonathan Buelvas and the midfielders Sebastian Modrzejewski and Angel Adame — created more dynamic and sustained pressure.
“Everyone thought this was the year we were going to win state,” Torres said. “We didn’t, so I feel like next year we have to work harder.”
Context is crucial. The Shamrocks created some dynamic pressure as part of their furious rally. The ending is bittersweet. The larger picture is worth pondering.
When the senior class of Rodriguez and Moreno-Lopez entered the Northwest Side Catholic school program four years ago, the team had gone 6-35-4 the previous two years combined.
St. Patrick won 83 games in their career, and the Shamrocks put the first two pieces of state hardware in the school trophy case. They won three-straight sectionals.
St. Patrick tied East Suburban Catholic Conference rival and eventual Class AA state champion Benet 1-1. They beat Class 3A state champion West Chicago 1-0.
The sting of the fourth place finish is not likely to go away because this was a team poised to make history. The achievements are staggering.
“We accomplished a lot,” Rodriguez said. “I am proud of this team. I am proud of myself, and I am proud of the other four seniors. (The year) before we came in, the team only won two games, I believe.
“Our freshman year we ended up winning 11 games. It was a good accomplishment, but we wanted more. Our sophomore year we sent to state for AA, and that was a big accomplishment.
“I think if we play the way usually play, we could beat any team.”
St. Patrick certainly made an impression.
“We were nervous at the end, but our team stayed in it,” Noll said. “Our defense showed well.”
Noll exited the game in the 68th minute. He returned for the final six and a half minutes after the intense St. Patrick pressure made the contest a one-goal game.
“I thought it was important to keep our heads up,” Noll said. “We had to accept what happened.”
They survived. Edwardsville won the eighth state trophy in the history of the program. Heiderscheid teams have won two state titles -- in his first year in 2000, and 2013.
This iteration of the Tigers certainly had a knack for dramatic play. The Tigers beat Moline 3-2 in the sectional final on a goal with 1.2 seconds remaining.
“Every team is different,” said Heiderscheid, who won his 319th career game. “The 2000 group, that was a whole different look and feel. We had a guy with 38 goals on that team, and a couple of strikers who were phenoms.
“Each team defines itself. I look here, and it’s somewhere in between. We don’t have that great individual player. You look at Cooper Nolan, he has 20 goals. You have a team with some connectedness. It’s very senior-laden, and juniors that played together.
“We have a combination of staunch defending and really good goalkeeping. The backline has been very good. We had two really good quality goalkeepers this year. That is helpful. You always want to go and give the most and make sure the players go out on a high note.”
Starting lineups
St. Patrick
GK: Jorge Cebrero
D: Jonathan Rodriguez
D: Juan Leon
D: Collin Kroeger
D: Narcizo Ibarra
MF: Sebastian Modrzejewski
MF: Aaron Moreno-Lopez
MF: Angel Adame
F: LuisAngel Saucedo
F: Joshua Torres
F: Jaden Buelvas
Edwardsville
GK: Gabe Noll
D: Jack Heiderscheid
D: Parker Matthews
D: Kadin Lieberman
D: Logan Loftus
MF: Alan Ebert
MF: Jakob Doyle
MF: Adam Sneed
MF: Kurt Wright
F: Cooper Nolan
F: Brennan Weller
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Brennan Weller, jr., F, Edwardsville
Scoring summary
First half
Edwardsville—Kadin Lieberman (penalty kick), 16th minute
Edwardsville—Brennan Weller (Jakob Doyle), 32nd minute
Edwardsville—Weller (unassisted), 39th minute
Second half
St. Patrick—Joshua Torres (unassisted), 69th minute
St. Patrick—Aaron Moreno-Lopez (Torres), 72nd minute