Barrington ‘barrage’ blasts Streamwood
Broncos roll to 7-0 scoreline, third place finish in own tourney
By Tom Hamilton II
BARRINGTON -- The Incredible Hulk famously tells would-be foes that they wouldn’t like him when he is angry.
The same could be said of Barrington on Saturday.
Coming off a disappointing 3-1 loss to Lake Zurich in the semifinal of the host Broncos’ own tournament Thursday, the Barrington boys were left seething.
Barrington head coach Scott Steib succinctly summarized his squad’s sentiments heading into Saturday’s third place match against the young, talented Streamwood Sabres.
“We were not happy,” noted Steib.
And in true Hulk fashion, Steib’s Broncos smashed.
They harnessed that anger to truly devastating effect, erupting for seven goals en route to a 7-0 victory over the Sabres.
The balanced Barrington attack was led by junior striker Jack Peterson, who tallied a brace and two assists, and senior midfielder Kieren Londergan, who produced a brace of his own. Senior midfielder Will Asplin added a goal and an assist, and senior midfielder Jonathan Li and sophomore defender Adam Walocha chipped in a goal apiece.
“The outpouring of goals is a little surprising,” said Steib. “We haven’t been a team that’s been that explosive for a couple years now, probably about five. And we played tonight without our two top scorers [seniors David Gomez and Ben Yaney, both out with injuries]. So that barrage of goals is great for us.”
The game got off to the kind of frenetic start that typifies tournament play. Barrington earned a quick corner within the opening seconds, and moments later Streamwood saw a shot of its own sail past the upright after a breathtakingly quick counterattack. Both teams sought to smother their respective opponents with immediate pressure, and it paid off for the Broncos early.
In the eighth minute of play, junior defender Mathew Klujian produced a tremendous tackle to win the ball off a Streamwood attacker and sent a lovely upfield pass that a Sabres defender was forced to clear out of play. Facing relentless pressure on the ensuing throw-in, the Sabres managed to knock the ball out for a Barrington corner kick.
Senior midfielder Jeremiah Gascho whipped in a beautiful cross from the corner in the 10th minute, and although the Sabres managed to get to the ball first, the subsequent clearance only made it as far as Klujian, who won an aerial duel with a Sabres attacker and sent it right back to Gascho. In the blink of an eye, the senior settled the ball and crossed it to the back post, where Peterson nodded it home after a perfectly timed run.
The big, athletic Broncos earned their second goal just three minutes later after a similar display of aerial dominance. After earning a free kick near the midline, the dynamic Klujian sent a pinpoint long pass -- one of many for the junior on the evening -- straight to Li, who nodded it into the net with a powerful header to double the Broncos’ lead.
Barrington showed no signs of letting up despite playing their fourth game in six days, and Streamwood struggled to pass their way out of the relentless Bronco pressure. In midfield, Gascho, Li, and senior Kyle Horak were absolutely imperious in winning virtually every 50/50 challenge for the Broncos, while Peterson’s pace and tenacity up-top led to a number of nervy moments for the Sabres and sophomore goalkeeper Jason Ramirez (three saves).
It was that relentless pressure that led to the third goal. Peterson nearly deflected the ball into the Streamwood net after rushing at full speed to block an attempted clearance from Ramirez, resulting in a Sabre goal kick. The Broncos won the ball back high upfield and quickly swarmed the Streamwood penalty area. The ball came to Barrington’s Asplin, who slotted a low pass across the Streamwood box for fellow substitute Londergan to smash hard and low into the net for his first goal of the young season.
The young Sabres responded with impressive character, creating a couple of half-chances of their own near the end of the first half. After working hard to string together a quick sequence of short passes, Streamwood’s technically gifted freshman midfielder Jairo Sanchez picked the ball up about 35 yards from the Barrington goal and fired off a hopeful shot, which the Broncos’ junior keeper Alex Hackney (one save) caught comfortably.
Minutes later, Streamwood had another chance to get on the scoresheet when sophomore defender and captain Bryan Huerta surged forward with pace and purpose on a Streamwood counterattack. Huerta looked set to blow by the last Barrington defender before he was hauled down, earning the Sabres a free kick 40 yards from the Barrington goal. With a three-goal deficit, Streamwood’s junior midfielder Aaron Taboada opted to go directly for goal with a hard and low shot towards the back post, but it drifted a couple yards wide and out of play.
Both squads changed goalkeepers entering the second half, with junior Iker Villagomez (one save) and freshman Antonio Gorner (two saves) taking over for the Broncos and Sabres, respectively. The Sabres came out with more purpose and determination in the second half, with creative junior attacker Michael Garcia nearly wriggling his way past the entire Barrington defense after a mazy dribbling run. Garcia and Sanchez continued hustling to provide passing outlets for their teammates, who continued to face unyielding pressure from the likes of Barrington’s Li, Gascho, and Peterson.
Despite the improvement in the Sabres’ performance to start the second half, they just couldn’t find enough space to get shots off. Barrington’s senior center backs Kyle Wanca and Michael Vitale proving themselves to be particularly impenetrable on the evening. The Barrington defense limited the Sabres to speculative efforts from range, including a couple from the lively Sanchez.
“I told some people [Sanchez] reminds me of a player I had, Nestor Ascencio, a few years back, who was one of the top players in the state,” said Streamwood head coach Matt Polovin in praise of his freshman playmaker. “Same type of makeup: lefty, and just very skilled, very quick with the ball.”
Barrington found the net once again in the 61st minute. After another spell of persistent pressure allowed the Broncos to win the ball near the Streamwood byline, the energetic Peterson latched onto a loose ball and squared the ball across the penalty area for Londergan to pound into the net.
The floodgates remained open just as the rain started coming down, and the Broncos tallied a pair of goals in quick succession minutes later.
Peterson’s driven corner kick found Walocha for a towering header from 12 yards in the 66th minute, and Asplin rifled an absolutely stunning 20-yard free kick into the upper 90 just a minute later for the Broncos’ sixth goal.
With the Sabres reeling, the Broncos refused to let up, and Londergan -- sporting a soft cast on his wrist and putting forth an absolutely unrelenting effort on the night -- nearly scored a sensational goal when his overhead strike from a Barrington corner kick smacked off the crossbar.
“He’s been working hard,” noted Steib in praise of the senior, “and he could have had three or four tonight.”
Ultimately, it would be Peterson who rounded out the scoring for the Broncos. After a sensational 73 minutes in which he created chance after chance with unceasing pressure, exceptional vision and slick ball control, Peterson burst forward with searing pace to latch onto a long ball. After powering his way past the last defender, he cut inside and smashed a piledriver into the roof of the net, capping off Peterson’s dream evening and sending the vociferous Barrington student section into a frenzy.
“Coming off a tough loss in the semifinal I think we all fought together, fought really hard,” reflected Peterson, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match. “Credit to my teammates. It’s just an awesome game.”
Peterson was pleased with the team’s effort, but he notes that the Broncos have more work to do to achieve their ambitions.
“I think we’re just going to keep working hard in practice,” he explained. “We’re coming off four games in six days. We’re ready to get back on the practice field. I’m really excited to see what’s next, just a lot of wins, and hopefully a lot of shots and a lot of goals.”
Despite the wide margin in the scoreline, both teams’ coaches were able to find positives.
“They have some players with some ability,” Steib noted. “I think Streamwood is a better attacking team than a defending team. They’ll get goals against teams. They will. I told our boys in the postgame: that’s a quality shutout.”
Although Steib was quick to note that his team would have been happier had they been playing in the championship match, he made sure to praise the team’s growth after Thursday’s setback.
“It’s a great response,” beamed Steib. “We had a really good thing going the first three or four games until we played Lake Zurich. We didn’t play badly in that game, but defensively I think we were soft in some spots. We really focused on that these last couple days, and I thought we were more organized than that.”
For Streamwood, Polovin put the match into perspective.
“We played against a team that probably has a great chance of winning state,” he said. “That’s how good Barrington is.
“The good thing about this group: they’re young, and they didn’t give up playing. They knew they were getting beat. They know it. Everyone saw it. But they still worked hard for all 80 minutes.
“That’s what I wanted, if anything. If they would have quit on me, or quit on the team, that’s a whole other story. But they didn’t. They knew what was in front of them for 80 minutes, and they played the best they could.”
Barrington will look to build on their momentum when it takes on Palatine on Wednesday in Mid-Suburban League play. Streamwood will look to bounce back on September 11, when they take on Auburn in the opening round of their Streamwood Soccer Fall Classic.
Starting lineups
Barrington (4-5-1)
GK Alex Hackney
D Mathew Klujian
D Michael Vitale
D Kyle Wanca
D Mattie Vitale
M Chris Kilayko
M Jonathan Li
M Jeremiah Gascho
M Kyle Horak
M Frankie Caballero
F Jack Peterson
Streamwood (4-3-3)
GK Jason Ramirez
D Trey Yi
D Bryan Huerta
D E.J. Satsatin
D Joel Benitez
M Jairo Sanchez
M Hugo Marquez
M Michael Garcia
F Aaron Toboada
F Ajdin Sabanovic
F Ricardo Aguilar
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jack Peterson, jr., F, Barrington
Scoring summary
First half
Barrington -- Peterson (Gascho), 10th minute
Barrington -- Li (Klujian), 13th minute
Barrington -- Londergan (Asplin), 23rd minute
Second half
Barrington -- Londergan (Peterson), 61st minute
Barrington -- Walocha (Peterson), 66th minute
Barrington -- Asplin (unassisted), 67th minute
Barrington -- Peterson (unassisted), 73rd minute
Broncos roll to 7-0 scoreline, third place finish in own tourney
By Tom Hamilton II
BARRINGTON -- The Incredible Hulk famously tells would-be foes that they wouldn’t like him when he is angry.
The same could be said of Barrington on Saturday.
Coming off a disappointing 3-1 loss to Lake Zurich in the semifinal of the host Broncos’ own tournament Thursday, the Barrington boys were left seething.
Barrington head coach Scott Steib succinctly summarized his squad’s sentiments heading into Saturday’s third place match against the young, talented Streamwood Sabres.
“We were not happy,” noted Steib.
And in true Hulk fashion, Steib’s Broncos smashed.
They harnessed that anger to truly devastating effect, erupting for seven goals en route to a 7-0 victory over the Sabres.
The balanced Barrington attack was led by junior striker Jack Peterson, who tallied a brace and two assists, and senior midfielder Kieren Londergan, who produced a brace of his own. Senior midfielder Will Asplin added a goal and an assist, and senior midfielder Jonathan Li and sophomore defender Adam Walocha chipped in a goal apiece.
“The outpouring of goals is a little surprising,” said Steib. “We haven’t been a team that’s been that explosive for a couple years now, probably about five. And we played tonight without our two top scorers [seniors David Gomez and Ben Yaney, both out with injuries]. So that barrage of goals is great for us.”
The game got off to the kind of frenetic start that typifies tournament play. Barrington earned a quick corner within the opening seconds, and moments later Streamwood saw a shot of its own sail past the upright after a breathtakingly quick counterattack. Both teams sought to smother their respective opponents with immediate pressure, and it paid off for the Broncos early.
In the eighth minute of play, junior defender Mathew Klujian produced a tremendous tackle to win the ball off a Streamwood attacker and sent a lovely upfield pass that a Sabres defender was forced to clear out of play. Facing relentless pressure on the ensuing throw-in, the Sabres managed to knock the ball out for a Barrington corner kick.
Senior midfielder Jeremiah Gascho whipped in a beautiful cross from the corner in the 10th minute, and although the Sabres managed to get to the ball first, the subsequent clearance only made it as far as Klujian, who won an aerial duel with a Sabres attacker and sent it right back to Gascho. In the blink of an eye, the senior settled the ball and crossed it to the back post, where Peterson nodded it home after a perfectly timed run.
The big, athletic Broncos earned their second goal just three minutes later after a similar display of aerial dominance. After earning a free kick near the midline, the dynamic Klujian sent a pinpoint long pass -- one of many for the junior on the evening -- straight to Li, who nodded it into the net with a powerful header to double the Broncos’ lead.
Barrington showed no signs of letting up despite playing their fourth game in six days, and Streamwood struggled to pass their way out of the relentless Bronco pressure. In midfield, Gascho, Li, and senior Kyle Horak were absolutely imperious in winning virtually every 50/50 challenge for the Broncos, while Peterson’s pace and tenacity up-top led to a number of nervy moments for the Sabres and sophomore goalkeeper Jason Ramirez (three saves).
It was that relentless pressure that led to the third goal. Peterson nearly deflected the ball into the Streamwood net after rushing at full speed to block an attempted clearance from Ramirez, resulting in a Sabre goal kick. The Broncos won the ball back high upfield and quickly swarmed the Streamwood penalty area. The ball came to Barrington’s Asplin, who slotted a low pass across the Streamwood box for fellow substitute Londergan to smash hard and low into the net for his first goal of the young season.
The young Sabres responded with impressive character, creating a couple of half-chances of their own near the end of the first half. After working hard to string together a quick sequence of short passes, Streamwood’s technically gifted freshman midfielder Jairo Sanchez picked the ball up about 35 yards from the Barrington goal and fired off a hopeful shot, which the Broncos’ junior keeper Alex Hackney (one save) caught comfortably.
Minutes later, Streamwood had another chance to get on the scoresheet when sophomore defender and captain Bryan Huerta surged forward with pace and purpose on a Streamwood counterattack. Huerta looked set to blow by the last Barrington defender before he was hauled down, earning the Sabres a free kick 40 yards from the Barrington goal. With a three-goal deficit, Streamwood’s junior midfielder Aaron Taboada opted to go directly for goal with a hard and low shot towards the back post, but it drifted a couple yards wide and out of play.
Both squads changed goalkeepers entering the second half, with junior Iker Villagomez (one save) and freshman Antonio Gorner (two saves) taking over for the Broncos and Sabres, respectively. The Sabres came out with more purpose and determination in the second half, with creative junior attacker Michael Garcia nearly wriggling his way past the entire Barrington defense after a mazy dribbling run. Garcia and Sanchez continued hustling to provide passing outlets for their teammates, who continued to face unyielding pressure from the likes of Barrington’s Li, Gascho, and Peterson.
Despite the improvement in the Sabres’ performance to start the second half, they just couldn’t find enough space to get shots off. Barrington’s senior center backs Kyle Wanca and Michael Vitale proving themselves to be particularly impenetrable on the evening. The Barrington defense limited the Sabres to speculative efforts from range, including a couple from the lively Sanchez.
“I told some people [Sanchez] reminds me of a player I had, Nestor Ascencio, a few years back, who was one of the top players in the state,” said Streamwood head coach Matt Polovin in praise of his freshman playmaker. “Same type of makeup: lefty, and just very skilled, very quick with the ball.”
Barrington found the net once again in the 61st minute. After another spell of persistent pressure allowed the Broncos to win the ball near the Streamwood byline, the energetic Peterson latched onto a loose ball and squared the ball across the penalty area for Londergan to pound into the net.
The floodgates remained open just as the rain started coming down, and the Broncos tallied a pair of goals in quick succession minutes later.
Peterson’s driven corner kick found Walocha for a towering header from 12 yards in the 66th minute, and Asplin rifled an absolutely stunning 20-yard free kick into the upper 90 just a minute later for the Broncos’ sixth goal.
With the Sabres reeling, the Broncos refused to let up, and Londergan -- sporting a soft cast on his wrist and putting forth an absolutely unrelenting effort on the night -- nearly scored a sensational goal when his overhead strike from a Barrington corner kick smacked off the crossbar.
“He’s been working hard,” noted Steib in praise of the senior, “and he could have had three or four tonight.”
Ultimately, it would be Peterson who rounded out the scoring for the Broncos. After a sensational 73 minutes in which he created chance after chance with unceasing pressure, exceptional vision and slick ball control, Peterson burst forward with searing pace to latch onto a long ball. After powering his way past the last defender, he cut inside and smashed a piledriver into the roof of the net, capping off Peterson’s dream evening and sending the vociferous Barrington student section into a frenzy.
“Coming off a tough loss in the semifinal I think we all fought together, fought really hard,” reflected Peterson, Chicagoland Soccer’s Man of the Match. “Credit to my teammates. It’s just an awesome game.”
Peterson was pleased with the team’s effort, but he notes that the Broncos have more work to do to achieve their ambitions.
“I think we’re just going to keep working hard in practice,” he explained. “We’re coming off four games in six days. We’re ready to get back on the practice field. I’m really excited to see what’s next, just a lot of wins, and hopefully a lot of shots and a lot of goals.”
Despite the wide margin in the scoreline, both teams’ coaches were able to find positives.
“They have some players with some ability,” Steib noted. “I think Streamwood is a better attacking team than a defending team. They’ll get goals against teams. They will. I told our boys in the postgame: that’s a quality shutout.”
Although Steib was quick to note that his team would have been happier had they been playing in the championship match, he made sure to praise the team’s growth after Thursday’s setback.
“It’s a great response,” beamed Steib. “We had a really good thing going the first three or four games until we played Lake Zurich. We didn’t play badly in that game, but defensively I think we were soft in some spots. We really focused on that these last couple days, and I thought we were more organized than that.”
For Streamwood, Polovin put the match into perspective.
“We played against a team that probably has a great chance of winning state,” he said. “That’s how good Barrington is.
“The good thing about this group: they’re young, and they didn’t give up playing. They knew they were getting beat. They know it. Everyone saw it. But they still worked hard for all 80 minutes.
“That’s what I wanted, if anything. If they would have quit on me, or quit on the team, that’s a whole other story. But they didn’t. They knew what was in front of them for 80 minutes, and they played the best they could.”
Barrington will look to build on their momentum when it takes on Palatine on Wednesday in Mid-Suburban League play. Streamwood will look to bounce back on September 11, when they take on Auburn in the opening round of their Streamwood Soccer Fall Classic.
Starting lineups
Barrington (4-5-1)
GK Alex Hackney
D Mathew Klujian
D Michael Vitale
D Kyle Wanca
D Mattie Vitale
M Chris Kilayko
M Jonathan Li
M Jeremiah Gascho
M Kyle Horak
M Frankie Caballero
F Jack Peterson
Streamwood (4-3-3)
GK Jason Ramirez
D Trey Yi
D Bryan Huerta
D E.J. Satsatin
D Joel Benitez
M Jairo Sanchez
M Hugo Marquez
M Michael Garcia
F Aaron Toboada
F Ajdin Sabanovic
F Ricardo Aguilar
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jack Peterson, jr., F, Barrington
Scoring summary
First half
Barrington -- Peterson (Gascho), 10th minute
Barrington -- Li (Klujian), 13th minute
Barrington -- Londergan (Asplin), 23rd minute
Second half
Barrington -- Londergan (Peterson), 61st minute
Barrington -- Walocha (Peterson), 66th minute
Barrington -- Asplin (unassisted), 67th minute
Barrington -- Peterson (unassisted), 73rd minute