Washington uses direct path to defeat Taft
2 Julian Martinez goals deliver 3-1 win, ticket to CPL final
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- The surname fits Suriel Vital.
The pronunciation is different, but he is vitally important to what the Eagles do. The all-purpose performer is Taft’s best player.
He missed much of the regular season due to complications from a hamstring injury.
His return has coincided with the resurgence of the Eagles’ attack. Taft won just one out of its first 12 games. It went 3-1-1 in its last five.
“If we had a goal scorer, we’d have a much different record,” coach Jeff Lucco said.
The Eagles are a different team with Vital. His creativity, speed and ball distribution optimize the forward attack.
The Eagles played one of their best games in a 3-0 victory over Senn on Thursay to capture their group play pool.
That put them in the quarterfinals against Washington on Saturday. Vital and his Eagles used the platform to show what the they were capable of.
Trailing 1-0 in the 38th minute, he blasted a ball from about 20 yards from the left wing that Washington keeper Bryan Lozano deflected.
Forward Gabriel Vidaurre was ideally positioned and smashed home the rebound from 16 yards for the Eagles’ equalizer.
“It came in off the back,” Vidaurre said. “I saw that Uriel was looking to take up the shot, and there was a lot of open space there.
“I just ran up and took the shot.”
That was the lone scoring highlight for the Eagles.
Perennial power Washington capitalized on two late goals by forward Julian Martinez for the 3-1 victory at Eckersall Stadium.
The Patriots (12-3-2) advance to the second semifinal against Young at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at Lane Stadium.
Washington won the city title in 2017 and lost a legendary overtime game to Solorio in 2018.
Washington captured the title of the Premier Division South title during the conference regular-season
“They’re good,” Lucco said. “They took first in the South, which I thought was probably stronger than the North Division.”
Taft (4-7-6) now turns its focus to the state playoffs.
Washington took the lead in the game in the 15th minute off a terrific sequence.
Advancing down the left edge, defender Christian Ramirez found a cutting Angelo Williams.
Williams slotted the ball to forward Leonardo Solis.
He took a jab step toward his right and blasted a low liner from 19 yards for the opening goal.
“I saw Angelo cutting through the middle,” Solis said. “I saw a route to the left, and I took it.
“Angelo sent the through-ball for the back shot.”
Lucco said the Eagles were slow to get started.
“Our legs were tired,” he said. “I don’t think we have played a team that plays that direct the whole year.
“Our outside backs tend to attack, so it takes that away and throws a wrench into everything that we do.”
Taft had more space to work thanks to Vital’s ability to create out of the back. It opened up the middle for Matej Sokola and forward Alex Mietka.
The pair’s combination of size and power created a new dimension for the Eagles. Matched with Vital, the two jolted the Eagles’ attack.
Sophomore midfielder Milton Valenzuela had several tantalizing opportunities in the second half, using his quickness and speed to the ball to get to the edge.
Valenzuela is quick and explosive with the ball. He was most effective working the right wing, using his speed and acceleration to create compelling angles.
Lozano made several striking saves.
“I thought in the first half we had a lot of quality chances that kind of died off in the second half,” Lucco said.
Vital’s precision and touch on set pieces and free kicks provided a wrinkle that was missing previously.
“We struggled to complete passes earlier this season,” Lucco said.
Vital was the missing link.
“Basically I always try to aim for the back post,” he said. “I signal them with my arms if it’s going short.
“Like the goal we scored, it showed how strong we are off of rebounds.”
Much of the second half played out a tactical contrast between the two. Washington’s direct style proved to be too much for the Eagles.
Julian Martinez is the Patriots’ most dangerous offensive threat.
He scored his team-leading 17th and 18th goals.
In the 69th minute, he worked the middle of the box.
Operating off a throw-in from the left edge, midfielder Gabriel Fluentes got the first touch and centered the ball to Martinez.
“Our no. 20, Gabriel, played it into the box,” Martinez said. “I waited for it to see if the defender would make a mistake, and he did.
“I just pounced on the ball and put it into the back of the net.”
The Patriots’ history of success has allowed the team to overcome the difficulties of last spring’s pandemic season. The team was hard hit with health and safety protocols.
Now they are healthy and dangerous.
“We are a family, and we keep each other up.”
That go-ahead goal also exposed a recurring problem for Taft.
“We have struggled marking on those the whole year,” Lucco said.
“I thought it was a good game. We had chances. They finished theirs, and we didn’t.”
Taft had to push numbers forward in the final 10 minutes, leaving them vulnerable to the counter.
Martinez put the game away with a fluke goal in the 75th minute. He blasted a ball from 28 yards from the right wing. It took a weird bounce off a Taft defender for the final goal.
Julian Martinez earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match for his two-goal performance.
Taft has begun its preparation for the state tournament.
“We are going to work on trying to improve more as a team in communications,” Vital said.
“That’s the reason we ended up conceding.”
Taft also sharpened the resolve of the Patriots.
“When they scored, it partly motivated us to keep on going,” Christian Ramirez said.
“It’s lose or go home right now. You have to leave it all on the field. You can’t stop working. We just wanted to keep playing the ball simple.”
Starting lineups
Taft
GK: Sean Ocampo
D: Suriel Vital
D: Edwin Alanis
D: Victor Lewicki
D: Adrian Grden
MF: Milton Valenzuela
MF: Roy Molina
MF: Matej Sokola
F: Ricardo Gonzalez
F: Hansel Calix
F: Alex Mietka
Washington
GK: Bryan Lozano
D: Christian Ramirez
D: Cesar Martinez
D: Christian Aparicio
D: Sebastian Ramirez
MF: Angel Larios
MF: Gabriel Fluentes
MF: Brian Soto
MF: Angelo Williams
F: Leonardo Solis
F: Julian Martinez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Julian Martinez, sr., F, Washington
Scoring summary
First half
Washington—Leonardo Solis (Angelo Williams), 15th minute
Taft—Gabriel Vidaurre (Suriel Vital), 38th minute
Second half
Washington—Julian Martinez (Gabriel Fluentes), 68th minute
Washington—Martinez (unassisted), 75th minute
2 Julian Martinez goals deliver 3-1 win, ticket to CPL final
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- The surname fits Suriel Vital.
The pronunciation is different, but he is vitally important to what the Eagles do. The all-purpose performer is Taft’s best player.
He missed much of the regular season due to complications from a hamstring injury.
His return has coincided with the resurgence of the Eagles’ attack. Taft won just one out of its first 12 games. It went 3-1-1 in its last five.
“If we had a goal scorer, we’d have a much different record,” coach Jeff Lucco said.
The Eagles are a different team with Vital. His creativity, speed and ball distribution optimize the forward attack.
The Eagles played one of their best games in a 3-0 victory over Senn on Thursay to capture their group play pool.
That put them in the quarterfinals against Washington on Saturday. Vital and his Eagles used the platform to show what the they were capable of.
Trailing 1-0 in the 38th minute, he blasted a ball from about 20 yards from the left wing that Washington keeper Bryan Lozano deflected.
Forward Gabriel Vidaurre was ideally positioned and smashed home the rebound from 16 yards for the Eagles’ equalizer.
“It came in off the back,” Vidaurre said. “I saw that Uriel was looking to take up the shot, and there was a lot of open space there.
“I just ran up and took the shot.”
That was the lone scoring highlight for the Eagles.
Perennial power Washington capitalized on two late goals by forward Julian Martinez for the 3-1 victory at Eckersall Stadium.
The Patriots (12-3-2) advance to the second semifinal against Young at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at Lane Stadium.
Washington won the city title in 2017 and lost a legendary overtime game to Solorio in 2018.
Washington captured the title of the Premier Division South title during the conference regular-season
“They’re good,” Lucco said. “They took first in the South, which I thought was probably stronger than the North Division.”
Taft (4-7-6) now turns its focus to the state playoffs.
Washington took the lead in the game in the 15th minute off a terrific sequence.
Advancing down the left edge, defender Christian Ramirez found a cutting Angelo Williams.
Williams slotted the ball to forward Leonardo Solis.
He took a jab step toward his right and blasted a low liner from 19 yards for the opening goal.
“I saw Angelo cutting through the middle,” Solis said. “I saw a route to the left, and I took it.
“Angelo sent the through-ball for the back shot.”
Lucco said the Eagles were slow to get started.
“Our legs were tired,” he said. “I don’t think we have played a team that plays that direct the whole year.
“Our outside backs tend to attack, so it takes that away and throws a wrench into everything that we do.”
Taft had more space to work thanks to Vital’s ability to create out of the back. It opened up the middle for Matej Sokola and forward Alex Mietka.
The pair’s combination of size and power created a new dimension for the Eagles. Matched with Vital, the two jolted the Eagles’ attack.
Sophomore midfielder Milton Valenzuela had several tantalizing opportunities in the second half, using his quickness and speed to the ball to get to the edge.
Valenzuela is quick and explosive with the ball. He was most effective working the right wing, using his speed and acceleration to create compelling angles.
Lozano made several striking saves.
“I thought in the first half we had a lot of quality chances that kind of died off in the second half,” Lucco said.
Vital’s precision and touch on set pieces and free kicks provided a wrinkle that was missing previously.
“We struggled to complete passes earlier this season,” Lucco said.
Vital was the missing link.
“Basically I always try to aim for the back post,” he said. “I signal them with my arms if it’s going short.
“Like the goal we scored, it showed how strong we are off of rebounds.”
Much of the second half played out a tactical contrast between the two. Washington’s direct style proved to be too much for the Eagles.
Julian Martinez is the Patriots’ most dangerous offensive threat.
He scored his team-leading 17th and 18th goals.
In the 69th minute, he worked the middle of the box.
Operating off a throw-in from the left edge, midfielder Gabriel Fluentes got the first touch and centered the ball to Martinez.
“Our no. 20, Gabriel, played it into the box,” Martinez said. “I waited for it to see if the defender would make a mistake, and he did.
“I just pounced on the ball and put it into the back of the net.”
The Patriots’ history of success has allowed the team to overcome the difficulties of last spring’s pandemic season. The team was hard hit with health and safety protocols.
Now they are healthy and dangerous.
“We are a family, and we keep each other up.”
That go-ahead goal also exposed a recurring problem for Taft.
“We have struggled marking on those the whole year,” Lucco said.
“I thought it was a good game. We had chances. They finished theirs, and we didn’t.”
Taft had to push numbers forward in the final 10 minutes, leaving them vulnerable to the counter.
Martinez put the game away with a fluke goal in the 75th minute. He blasted a ball from 28 yards from the right wing. It took a weird bounce off a Taft defender for the final goal.
Julian Martinez earned the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match for his two-goal performance.
Taft has begun its preparation for the state tournament.
“We are going to work on trying to improve more as a team in communications,” Vital said.
“That’s the reason we ended up conceding.”
Taft also sharpened the resolve of the Patriots.
“When they scored, it partly motivated us to keep on going,” Christian Ramirez said.
“It’s lose or go home right now. You have to leave it all on the field. You can’t stop working. We just wanted to keep playing the ball simple.”
Starting lineups
Taft
GK: Sean Ocampo
D: Suriel Vital
D: Edwin Alanis
D: Victor Lewicki
D: Adrian Grden
MF: Milton Valenzuela
MF: Roy Molina
MF: Matej Sokola
F: Ricardo Gonzalez
F: Hansel Calix
F: Alex Mietka
Washington
GK: Bryan Lozano
D: Christian Ramirez
D: Cesar Martinez
D: Christian Aparicio
D: Sebastian Ramirez
MF: Angel Larios
MF: Gabriel Fluentes
MF: Brian Soto
MF: Angelo Williams
F: Leonardo Solis
F: Julian Martinez
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Julian Martinez, sr., F, Washington
Scoring summary
First half
Washington—Leonardo Solis (Angelo Williams), 15th minute
Taft—Gabriel Vidaurre (Suriel Vital), 38th minute
Second half
Washington—Julian Martinez (Gabriel Fluentes), 68th minute
Washington—Martinez (unassisted), 75th minute