Scarpelli’s hat-trick drives
Waubonsie past Metea in valley battle
Senior’s 2nd 3-goal game of season ends 4-game winless streak
By Matt Le Cren
AURORA – After suffering a pair of lopsided losses, Waubonsie Valley had the unenviable task of taking a trip up Eola Road to face DuPage Valley Conference rival Metea Valley on Tuesday.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game today,” Waubonsie Valley senior forward Gean Riberio Scarpelli said. “We were coming off two losses.
“We’ve been working a lot on set pieces. Today we used that a lot.”
And the Warriors – particularly Scarpelli – used them to great advantage. Waubonsie Valley scored all four of its goals off set pieces and PKs, with Scarpelli bagging a hat-trick in an impressive, and unprecedented, 4-1 victory.
The Warriors snapped a seven-game winless streak against Metea that dated to 2016. The three-goal margin of victory tied their largest ever against the Mustangs; the four goals was the most they’ve ever scored in the rivalry.
“It was a great game, and I was proud of these boys,” Waubonsie Valley coach Jose Garcia said. “We had some tough games over the weekend, but I know we’ve been working hard.
“They played hard, and our boys played hard too. So, it was a good competitive game, which we love to see.”
Waubonsie Valley’s record of 3-6-1, 1-1-0, record is deceptive. Each loss and the tie have come against teams who were either ranked or listed as honorable mention in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
Metea Valley coach Josh Robinson, whose team had been 5-0-2 in its last seven matches against Waubonsie Valley, was not enamored with what he saw.
“We gave away four set-piece goals,” Robinson said. “It’s unacceptable.
“We’re better than that. We had a good weekend and then this is a big step back for us.”
Scarpelli has taken a big step forward this season after Garcia moved him from the midfield to forward. He leads the Warriors in scoring with 10 goals, including his pair of hat-tricks.
Scarpelli got things started at the 33:55 mark of the first half. Michael Cullen’s throw-in from the left side of the box bounced free in the middle of the box, where Scarpelli poked an eight-yard shot inside the left post.
Senior midfielder Daniel Wilkinson kick-started the offense for Mustangs (4-7-0, 0-2-0) about 10 minutes later. He barely missed scoring on a counterattack with 23:40 left, slithering a shot from the right side of the box wide of the far post.
Wilkinson got another chance exactly two minutes later, gathering a bouncing ball in the box but again missing wide left.
The third time proved to be the charm, though. Wilkinson buried the equalizer from eight yards off an Arjo Basu corner kick with 20:19 remaining.
Things settled down after that and the sides went to intermission tied at 1-1. It seemed to be anyone’s game.
It became Waubonsie’s game when the Warriors scored on three-consecutive shots, the last two in a span of 1:47.
Scarpelli gave the visitors the lead for good when he scored on a penalty kick at the 33:55 mark of the second half – coincidentally the same time that he scored during the first half.
The game was still up for grabs until 18 minutes later when Waubonsie senior defender Tate Deasy bagged his first varsity goal with what was meant to be a header off Lachlan Ladd’s corner kick.
“It actually hit my shoulder, but it went in,” Deasy said. “(Ladd” is putting a lot of good balls in. We practice that every day.
“It felt good to help the team win. I can’t really say that too much, because I don’t put the ball in the net, usually. It felt good to feel like a hero today.”
But the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor went to Scarpelli, who got another chance to step to the spot when Metea Valley goalkeeper Orlando Velazquez had to leave the game after receiving a yellow card for a foul in the box.
Backup goalkeeper Ravi Shah came in cold off the bench to face Scarpelli, who ripped the penalty up the middle for a 4-1 lead with 13:58 to go.
“I’m not the PK taker, but today was a special day for me. So, they let me take the PKs,” Scarpelli said. “Last season I always played in the midfield.
“Coach said I’ll be putting you up-top this season, and I think I’m way more confident at that position. I’m scoring a lot of goals now.”
People are taking notice, most notably Scarpelli’s teammates.
‘I think he’s one of the best in the DVC,” Deasy said. “He puts in the work every day.
“It’s tough going against him at practice; but it makes me better, and it makes everybody else better. He helps the team out all-around.”
Garcia noticed something about Scarpelli last year that led to the position switch.
“He’s been isolated a little more, higher,” Garcia said. “I’ve been pushing him higher to get him 1-on-1s against those defenders.
“I think that’s his strength. He’s really good 1-on-1. When he’s got you, he’ll turn you, and he’s been playing well for us.”
The Warriors are hoping this win will be a turning point in their season.
“It was really hard to lose those two back-to-back and then to come in here and play another team in the conference,” Deasy said. “It was a must-win game. We knew that and we kept the energy high.
“We have another game tomorrow so it’s great to go into that with a win.”
The game came smack dab in the middle of the Plainfield Classic, which concludes with games Wednesday and Saturday. It was also part of the Aurora Cup series where the Warriors now hold a 2-1-0 record.
Metea Valley, which lost its first game of the Aurora Cup, doesn’t play again until Monday, which means they have five full days to mull over and fix what went wrong. After a promising 3-1-0 start with wins against Maine South and St. Charles North, the Mustangs have lost five of their last six matches.
“This is our longest break of the year, so now we’ve got some time to train and hopefully we’ll bounce back,” Robinson said. “We’ve got to keep working to get better.”
Forden is confident the Mustangs will do just that.
“We need to keep training hard and just be mentally ready for the next game, not concede the way that we did,” Forden said. “I believe in the team. We can bounce back.”
And it wasn’t like nothing went right for the Mustangs.
Wilkinson was constantly dangerous in the attack, and Metea had several great chances. Senior forward Erick Mena hit the right post with a header with 9:00 left in the second half. That came 20 minutes after Wilkinson broke free in the right side of the box but had shot stopped by a diving Abrahm Tibercio, who finished with five saves for Waubonsie.
Then there was Shah, who stayed in the game after conceding the penalty kick to Scarpelli.
“Same thing happened last year in the regional finals,” Shah said. “Senior goalkeeper came out for one minute, I go in and they get a goal right away.
“It feels really bad, especially when you’re just going in for a couple minutes. You feel like you have an obligation to the team that you need to step up and make that save, but with the pens, they’re tough.
“It’s a guessing game for me. He looked to his left, I dove that way, and he hit straight down the middle.”
But Shah rebounded four minutes later with a terrific safe to deny Scarpelli a fourth goal. He dove to his left to knock Scarpelli’s point-blank shot wide of the right post.
“That was a really tough save,” Shah said. “He was up inside the six-yard box, and he hit it to the side.
“I feel like that’s one of those moments where instinct just takes over. I saw his foot open up, I saw his eyes go one way and dove before he even shot the ball.
“I got my hand down in time and was lucky I got there.”
Luck, though, had nothing to do with Waubonsie’s victory
“We’re starting to figure out what works for us – it’s our set plays,” Garcia said. “We played to our strengths, so we really focus on that and see where it takes us.
“Today it was to our benefit.”
Starting lineups
Waubonsie Valley
GK: Abrahm Tibercio
D: Nick Cerilli
D: Beckett Stotlar
D: Cade Valek
D: Tate Deasy
M: Michael Cullen
M: Yahir Rodriguez
M: Angel Gallegos
F: Lachlan Ladd
F: Gean Riberio Scarpelli
F: Amiel Nichani
Metea Valley
GK: Orlando Velazquez
D: Aiden Pufundt
D: Julian Ordaz
D: Tony Cuautle
D: Arjo Basu
D: Cameron Leys
M: Christian Tai
M: Daniel Wilkinson
M: Anthony Hildreth
M: Michael Senese
F: Erick Mena
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Gean Riberio Scarpelli, sr., F, Waubonsie Valley
Scoring summary
First half
Waubonsie Valley – Gean Riberio Scarpelli (Michael Cullen) 33:55 remaining
Metea Valley – Daniel Wilkinson (Arjo Basu) 20:19 remaining
Second half
Waubonsie Valley – Scarpelli (PK) 33:55 remaining
Waubonsie Valley – Tate Deasy (Ladd) 15:45 remaining
Waubonsie Valley – Scarpelli (PK) 13:58 remaining
Waubonsie past Metea in valley battle
Senior’s 2nd 3-goal game of season ends 4-game winless streak
By Matt Le Cren
AURORA – After suffering a pair of lopsided losses, Waubonsie Valley had the unenviable task of taking a trip up Eola Road to face DuPage Valley Conference rival Metea Valley on Tuesday.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game today,” Waubonsie Valley senior forward Gean Riberio Scarpelli said. “We were coming off two losses.
“We’ve been working a lot on set pieces. Today we used that a lot.”
And the Warriors – particularly Scarpelli – used them to great advantage. Waubonsie Valley scored all four of its goals off set pieces and PKs, with Scarpelli bagging a hat-trick in an impressive, and unprecedented, 4-1 victory.
The Warriors snapped a seven-game winless streak against Metea that dated to 2016. The three-goal margin of victory tied their largest ever against the Mustangs; the four goals was the most they’ve ever scored in the rivalry.
“It was a great game, and I was proud of these boys,” Waubonsie Valley coach Jose Garcia said. “We had some tough games over the weekend, but I know we’ve been working hard.
“They played hard, and our boys played hard too. So, it was a good competitive game, which we love to see.”
Waubonsie Valley’s record of 3-6-1, 1-1-0, record is deceptive. Each loss and the tie have come against teams who were either ranked or listed as honorable mention in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
Metea Valley coach Josh Robinson, whose team had been 5-0-2 in its last seven matches against Waubonsie Valley, was not enamored with what he saw.
“We gave away four set-piece goals,” Robinson said. “It’s unacceptable.
“We’re better than that. We had a good weekend and then this is a big step back for us.”
Scarpelli has taken a big step forward this season after Garcia moved him from the midfield to forward. He leads the Warriors in scoring with 10 goals, including his pair of hat-tricks.
Scarpelli got things started at the 33:55 mark of the first half. Michael Cullen’s throw-in from the left side of the box bounced free in the middle of the box, where Scarpelli poked an eight-yard shot inside the left post.
Senior midfielder Daniel Wilkinson kick-started the offense for Mustangs (4-7-0, 0-2-0) about 10 minutes later. He barely missed scoring on a counterattack with 23:40 left, slithering a shot from the right side of the box wide of the far post.
Wilkinson got another chance exactly two minutes later, gathering a bouncing ball in the box but again missing wide left.
The third time proved to be the charm, though. Wilkinson buried the equalizer from eight yards off an Arjo Basu corner kick with 20:19 remaining.
Things settled down after that and the sides went to intermission tied at 1-1. It seemed to be anyone’s game.
It became Waubonsie’s game when the Warriors scored on three-consecutive shots, the last two in a span of 1:47.
Scarpelli gave the visitors the lead for good when he scored on a penalty kick at the 33:55 mark of the second half – coincidentally the same time that he scored during the first half.
The game was still up for grabs until 18 minutes later when Waubonsie senior defender Tate Deasy bagged his first varsity goal with what was meant to be a header off Lachlan Ladd’s corner kick.
“It actually hit my shoulder, but it went in,” Deasy said. “(Ladd” is putting a lot of good balls in. We practice that every day.
“It felt good to help the team win. I can’t really say that too much, because I don’t put the ball in the net, usually. It felt good to feel like a hero today.”
But the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor went to Scarpelli, who got another chance to step to the spot when Metea Valley goalkeeper Orlando Velazquez had to leave the game after receiving a yellow card for a foul in the box.
Backup goalkeeper Ravi Shah came in cold off the bench to face Scarpelli, who ripped the penalty up the middle for a 4-1 lead with 13:58 to go.
“I’m not the PK taker, but today was a special day for me. So, they let me take the PKs,” Scarpelli said. “Last season I always played in the midfield.
“Coach said I’ll be putting you up-top this season, and I think I’m way more confident at that position. I’m scoring a lot of goals now.”
People are taking notice, most notably Scarpelli’s teammates.
‘I think he’s one of the best in the DVC,” Deasy said. “He puts in the work every day.
“It’s tough going against him at practice; but it makes me better, and it makes everybody else better. He helps the team out all-around.”
Garcia noticed something about Scarpelli last year that led to the position switch.
“He’s been isolated a little more, higher,” Garcia said. “I’ve been pushing him higher to get him 1-on-1s against those defenders.
“I think that’s his strength. He’s really good 1-on-1. When he’s got you, he’ll turn you, and he’s been playing well for us.”
The Warriors are hoping this win will be a turning point in their season.
“It was really hard to lose those two back-to-back and then to come in here and play another team in the conference,” Deasy said. “It was a must-win game. We knew that and we kept the energy high.
“We have another game tomorrow so it’s great to go into that with a win.”
The game came smack dab in the middle of the Plainfield Classic, which concludes with games Wednesday and Saturday. It was also part of the Aurora Cup series where the Warriors now hold a 2-1-0 record.
Metea Valley, which lost its first game of the Aurora Cup, doesn’t play again until Monday, which means they have five full days to mull over and fix what went wrong. After a promising 3-1-0 start with wins against Maine South and St. Charles North, the Mustangs have lost five of their last six matches.
“This is our longest break of the year, so now we’ve got some time to train and hopefully we’ll bounce back,” Robinson said. “We’ve got to keep working to get better.”
Forden is confident the Mustangs will do just that.
“We need to keep training hard and just be mentally ready for the next game, not concede the way that we did,” Forden said. “I believe in the team. We can bounce back.”
And it wasn’t like nothing went right for the Mustangs.
Wilkinson was constantly dangerous in the attack, and Metea had several great chances. Senior forward Erick Mena hit the right post with a header with 9:00 left in the second half. That came 20 minutes after Wilkinson broke free in the right side of the box but had shot stopped by a diving Abrahm Tibercio, who finished with five saves for Waubonsie.
Then there was Shah, who stayed in the game after conceding the penalty kick to Scarpelli.
“Same thing happened last year in the regional finals,” Shah said. “Senior goalkeeper came out for one minute, I go in and they get a goal right away.
“It feels really bad, especially when you’re just going in for a couple minutes. You feel like you have an obligation to the team that you need to step up and make that save, but with the pens, they’re tough.
“It’s a guessing game for me. He looked to his left, I dove that way, and he hit straight down the middle.”
But Shah rebounded four minutes later with a terrific safe to deny Scarpelli a fourth goal. He dove to his left to knock Scarpelli’s point-blank shot wide of the right post.
“That was a really tough save,” Shah said. “He was up inside the six-yard box, and he hit it to the side.
“I feel like that’s one of those moments where instinct just takes over. I saw his foot open up, I saw his eyes go one way and dove before he even shot the ball.
“I got my hand down in time and was lucky I got there.”
Luck, though, had nothing to do with Waubonsie’s victory
“We’re starting to figure out what works for us – it’s our set plays,” Garcia said. “We played to our strengths, so we really focus on that and see where it takes us.
“Today it was to our benefit.”
Starting lineups
Waubonsie Valley
GK: Abrahm Tibercio
D: Nick Cerilli
D: Beckett Stotlar
D: Cade Valek
D: Tate Deasy
M: Michael Cullen
M: Yahir Rodriguez
M: Angel Gallegos
F: Lachlan Ladd
F: Gean Riberio Scarpelli
F: Amiel Nichani
Metea Valley
GK: Orlando Velazquez
D: Aiden Pufundt
D: Julian Ordaz
D: Tony Cuautle
D: Arjo Basu
D: Cameron Leys
M: Christian Tai
M: Daniel Wilkinson
M: Anthony Hildreth
M: Michael Senese
F: Erick Mena
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match:
Gean Riberio Scarpelli, sr., F, Waubonsie Valley
Scoring summary
First half
Waubonsie Valley – Gean Riberio Scarpelli (Michael Cullen) 33:55 remaining
Metea Valley – Daniel Wilkinson (Arjo Basu) 20:19 remaining
Second half
Waubonsie Valley – Scarpelli (PK) 33:55 remaining
Waubonsie Valley – Tate Deasy (Ladd) 15:45 remaining
Waubonsie Valley – Scarpelli (PK) 13:58 remaining