Fresh Aurora Central outlook
leads to win over Westmont
Contreras scores twice in 4-1 Metro Red victory
By C. Walker
AURORA – Aurora Central did some talking before Tuesday’s Metro Suburban Conference Red Division game against visiting Westmont. The discussion had a lot to do with exactly what they were doing.
“We were just talking to each other in one of the classrooms saying we’ve got to communicate more,” Chargers junior Edrick Contreras said. “We have been slacking a little bit in practice, and we were talking about that.
“We’ve been a little bit negative on the field, I’m sad to say. But we talked about it, and we’re going to fix that. That will help us a lot with our game in the long run, because we have to be most positive on the field.”
Plenty of positives emerged against Westmont. Among them, Contreras scored twice and the Chargers celebrated a 4-1 victory.
For his efforts, the midfielder earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match accolades.
“We should never be negative on each other,” Contreras said. “We should always bring each other up. We’re all brothers. We’re like family so we shouldn’t be negative on each other.
“People have bad days. Maybe they didn’t get enough sleep last night or got a bad grade, but there’s no excuse for not keeping your head up. We’ve got to keep our heads up.”
Aurora Central (3-9-2, 1-2-0) jumped ahead 1-0 just seven minutes into the action. Senior captain Michael Incandela gave the Chargers that all-important early lead.
“You could tell (Westmont) kind of lost it, after we went up a couple of goals,” Incandela said. “We have that same problem.”
Incandela pounced on a rebound after a corner kick, retrieving the ball at the top of the box and placing his shot perfectly.
“He was coming in, running right in and took the shot to the left side of the goal,” Aurora Central coach Enrique Anaya said. “It was a beautiful goal and at a very good time. It was definitely nice to be ahead.”
Contreras then scored on a header in the 17th minute, combining his efforts with sophomore Jake McVey.
“We always practice those kind of headers and practice corners, and I always get that position,” Contreras said. “I go all the way to the side, and I just always ask for (the ball from McVey). I touch my head first to let him know I’m open, because we can see an open lane.
“Sometimes his kicks are a little off, but usually he has them accurate. I just pat my head and tell him that I have a goal, and right there I had a really lucky goal.”
Westmont’s Rokas Ziulys will never forget this game. He pulled his team within 2-1 with his first high school goal.
The sophomore is in his first season at Westmont. He showed some fancy footwork before finding the back of the net with 21:51 remaining in the first half.
“I just kind of saw one kid step to me. He stuck his foot out as I faked it to one side, and I just crossed over to the other,” Zuilys said. “I just tried slicing through them, and then I pushed them off and just kind of ran through.”
Opportunities like that one for the visitors were limited. The Chargers were stingy.
“I think a big thing that they did correctly was press the ball, like immediately when you got it,” Ziulys said. “That’s why I kind of tried to dribble as much as I could.
“I tried to get around them, because every single time I got the ball there was always a guy behind me not letting me turn or something like that.”
Westmont (3-6-0, 2-3-0) was forced to adjust to playing without leading scorer Abe Johnson, who was out due to COVID protocols.
“It’s a different game plan with that, but that’s no excuse whatsoever. I told them that from the beginning,” Westmont coach Francisco Delgado said. “We still have Adondray (Glashin), and we have Valdet (Dalipi). … I told them that I believe you guys can come out and make this a game. It just didn’t go our way.”
Aurora Central appeared to come out with more enthusiasm, and the early goal from Incandela boosted their confidence and put some doubt in the minds of their guests.
“I would say (Aurora Central) did a really good job once they got the ball up-top, and they took care of their chances,” Delgado said. “They definitely came out with a little bit more energy than we did. In the second half we felt pretty good about it, but as soon as that quick goal went in, it felt like the air just went out.”
With senior starting center back Sam Lillwitz banged up and his minutes limited, Aurora Central had to maneuver a bit with their personnel. Those called to duty rose to the occasion.
“We were patient, and we weren’t rushing as much,” Incandela said. “I feel like the team played really well under the pressure. With (Lillwitz) out we moved some swing players from JV to varsity, and they came in and played well. That’s always good to see.”
The strong collective effort from the Chargers can be traced back to that classroom where they convened before heading out to the stadium to play.
“We kind of hang our heads after we get scored on, and we had a meeting today and talked about not putting your head down, to keep going until the whistle, keep going until the end,” Anaya said. “They did a good job of that today, the defense especially.
“It’s one of those things where the kids in back played very smart today.
“This is senior Ryan (Nugent’s) first year playing. and he does a really good job; and freshman Nathan Diedrich has done a fantastic job,” Anaya said.
“Joseph Hernandez in back and some JV guys got a little bit more time. They all played fine and kept the momentum and did a good job, especially with Adam Hartford dropping down. And he’s never played defense before, he’s usually a wing up-top and has done a fantastic job so far.”
Michael O’Brien extended Aurora Central’s lead to 3-1 with 17:08 left in the first half after the Chargers quickly extinguished Westmont’s rally after scoring just five minutes prior.
Elijah Hartford sent a pass toward O’Brien. As the junior forward battled for possession with a couple of defenders and Westmont goalie Johnny Powell, the ball found its way into the back of the net.
Contreras added his second goal early in the second half after a cross from O’Brien to end the scoring.
Starting lineups
Westmont
GK Johnny Powell
D Carlos Martinez
D Alex Munsie
MF Andy Pecard
MF Surya Venkataraman
MF Rokas Ziulys
MF Mark Dold
MF Hamzah Bedeir
F John Naom
F Manuel Tojin
F Max Tolzyck
Aurora Central
GK Justin Cebulski
LB Nathan Diedrck
CB Sam Lillwitz
CB Michael Incandela
RB Ryan Nugent
LM Edrick Contreras
CM Jose Loza
CM Jake McVey
RM Joshua Hernandez
S Adam Hartford
S Michael O’Brien
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Edrick Contreras, jr., MF, Aurora Central
Scoring summary
First half
A: Michael Incandela (unassisted), 7th minute
A: Edrick Contreras (Jake McVey), 17th
W: Rokas Ziulys (unassisted), 19th
A: Michael O’Brien (Elijah Hartford), 22nd
Second half
A: Contreras (O’Brien), 48th minute
NOTE: The scoreboard malfunctioned throughout the game. The reported times of the goals scored may not be accurate.
leads to win over Westmont
Contreras scores twice in 4-1 Metro Red victory
By C. Walker
AURORA – Aurora Central did some talking before Tuesday’s Metro Suburban Conference Red Division game against visiting Westmont. The discussion had a lot to do with exactly what they were doing.
“We were just talking to each other in one of the classrooms saying we’ve got to communicate more,” Chargers junior Edrick Contreras said. “We have been slacking a little bit in practice, and we were talking about that.
“We’ve been a little bit negative on the field, I’m sad to say. But we talked about it, and we’re going to fix that. That will help us a lot with our game in the long run, because we have to be most positive on the field.”
Plenty of positives emerged against Westmont. Among them, Contreras scored twice and the Chargers celebrated a 4-1 victory.
For his efforts, the midfielder earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match accolades.
“We should never be negative on each other,” Contreras said. “We should always bring each other up. We’re all brothers. We’re like family so we shouldn’t be negative on each other.
“People have bad days. Maybe they didn’t get enough sleep last night or got a bad grade, but there’s no excuse for not keeping your head up. We’ve got to keep our heads up.”
Aurora Central (3-9-2, 1-2-0) jumped ahead 1-0 just seven minutes into the action. Senior captain Michael Incandela gave the Chargers that all-important early lead.
“You could tell (Westmont) kind of lost it, after we went up a couple of goals,” Incandela said. “We have that same problem.”
Incandela pounced on a rebound after a corner kick, retrieving the ball at the top of the box and placing his shot perfectly.
“He was coming in, running right in and took the shot to the left side of the goal,” Aurora Central coach Enrique Anaya said. “It was a beautiful goal and at a very good time. It was definitely nice to be ahead.”
Contreras then scored on a header in the 17th minute, combining his efforts with sophomore Jake McVey.
“We always practice those kind of headers and practice corners, and I always get that position,” Contreras said. “I go all the way to the side, and I just always ask for (the ball from McVey). I touch my head first to let him know I’m open, because we can see an open lane.
“Sometimes his kicks are a little off, but usually he has them accurate. I just pat my head and tell him that I have a goal, and right there I had a really lucky goal.”
Westmont’s Rokas Ziulys will never forget this game. He pulled his team within 2-1 with his first high school goal.
The sophomore is in his first season at Westmont. He showed some fancy footwork before finding the back of the net with 21:51 remaining in the first half.
“I just kind of saw one kid step to me. He stuck his foot out as I faked it to one side, and I just crossed over to the other,” Zuilys said. “I just tried slicing through them, and then I pushed them off and just kind of ran through.”
Opportunities like that one for the visitors were limited. The Chargers were stingy.
“I think a big thing that they did correctly was press the ball, like immediately when you got it,” Ziulys said. “That’s why I kind of tried to dribble as much as I could.
“I tried to get around them, because every single time I got the ball there was always a guy behind me not letting me turn or something like that.”
Westmont (3-6-0, 2-3-0) was forced to adjust to playing without leading scorer Abe Johnson, who was out due to COVID protocols.
“It’s a different game plan with that, but that’s no excuse whatsoever. I told them that from the beginning,” Westmont coach Francisco Delgado said. “We still have Adondray (Glashin), and we have Valdet (Dalipi). … I told them that I believe you guys can come out and make this a game. It just didn’t go our way.”
Aurora Central appeared to come out with more enthusiasm, and the early goal from Incandela boosted their confidence and put some doubt in the minds of their guests.
“I would say (Aurora Central) did a really good job once they got the ball up-top, and they took care of their chances,” Delgado said. “They definitely came out with a little bit more energy than we did. In the second half we felt pretty good about it, but as soon as that quick goal went in, it felt like the air just went out.”
With senior starting center back Sam Lillwitz banged up and his minutes limited, Aurora Central had to maneuver a bit with their personnel. Those called to duty rose to the occasion.
“We were patient, and we weren’t rushing as much,” Incandela said. “I feel like the team played really well under the pressure. With (Lillwitz) out we moved some swing players from JV to varsity, and they came in and played well. That’s always good to see.”
The strong collective effort from the Chargers can be traced back to that classroom where they convened before heading out to the stadium to play.
“We kind of hang our heads after we get scored on, and we had a meeting today and talked about not putting your head down, to keep going until the whistle, keep going until the end,” Anaya said. “They did a good job of that today, the defense especially.
“It’s one of those things where the kids in back played very smart today.
“This is senior Ryan (Nugent’s) first year playing. and he does a really good job; and freshman Nathan Diedrich has done a fantastic job,” Anaya said.
“Joseph Hernandez in back and some JV guys got a little bit more time. They all played fine and kept the momentum and did a good job, especially with Adam Hartford dropping down. And he’s never played defense before, he’s usually a wing up-top and has done a fantastic job so far.”
Michael O’Brien extended Aurora Central’s lead to 3-1 with 17:08 left in the first half after the Chargers quickly extinguished Westmont’s rally after scoring just five minutes prior.
Elijah Hartford sent a pass toward O’Brien. As the junior forward battled for possession with a couple of defenders and Westmont goalie Johnny Powell, the ball found its way into the back of the net.
Contreras added his second goal early in the second half after a cross from O’Brien to end the scoring.
Starting lineups
Westmont
GK Johnny Powell
D Carlos Martinez
D Alex Munsie
MF Andy Pecard
MF Surya Venkataraman
MF Rokas Ziulys
MF Mark Dold
MF Hamzah Bedeir
F John Naom
F Manuel Tojin
F Max Tolzyck
Aurora Central
GK Justin Cebulski
LB Nathan Diedrck
CB Sam Lillwitz
CB Michael Incandela
RB Ryan Nugent
LM Edrick Contreras
CM Jose Loza
CM Jake McVey
RM Joshua Hernandez
S Adam Hartford
S Michael O’Brien
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Edrick Contreras, jr., MF, Aurora Central
Scoring summary
First half
A: Michael Incandela (unassisted), 7th minute
A: Edrick Contreras (Jake McVey), 17th
W: Rokas Ziulys (unassisted), 19th
A: Michael O’Brien (Elijah Hartford), 22nd
Second half
A: Contreras (O’Brien), 48th minute
NOTE: The scoreboard malfunctioned throughout the game. The reported times of the goals scored may not be accurate.