York chases perfection in win over OPRF
Gawne’s hat-trick keys Dukes big 3-0 conferencewin
By Gary Larsen
OAK PARK - It’s impossible to play a truly perfect soccer game, but York sure gave it a try on Thursday against Oak Park and River Forest.
The Duke’s 3-0 road win over Chicagoland Soccer’s 14th-ranked team featured a hat-trick from Parker Gawne, a pair of assists from Joe Meade, exceptional defense from
York’s backline, and a steady effort from keeper Kyle Johnson guided the Dukes to the shutout.
But it was York’s overall attack that broke the applause meter. The Dukes used crisp passing, overlapping runs, triangulation, give-and-goes, multiple set pieces, quality shots in the run of play -- if York had stopped the game and pulled a rabbit out of a hat at midfield, it wouldn’t have surprised anyone.
“It was a great performance,” Gawne said. “We had so many chances, and we possessed the ball so well. And our defenders were outstanding. I’m very happy with the way we played.”
And it wasn’t that Oak Park and River Forest (13-3-2, 3-2-0) played a bad game in the West Suburban Conference Silver Division tilt. Sure, coach Jason Fried would have liked to see his boys match York’s opening intensity, and obviously a few finishes on the Huskies’ scoring chances would have been nice.
But on some nights, you just have to give credit where it's most due. The effort kept the Dukes (10-4-1, 3-1-0) alive in the league race but all but eliminated Oak Park and River Forest.
“Hats off to them. They played a great game,” Fried said of York. “I wish we’d played a little better but at the same time, we did a lot of good things. So we just have to move on.”
Gawne set the tone early, spinning on a ball Ethan Oder sent near the post on the left side and ripping it inside the far post from point-blank range at six minutes. Gawne’s second goal came six minutes later when he fired from just outside the 18 and the ball skipped fortuitously high off a defender and over the head of Huskies keeper Sam Pacenka.
The hat-trick was completed at 51 minutes after running on to a Meade pass on the left side and knocking it in off the far post from 14 yards.
“I don’t think I’ve ever scored a hat-trick in my life,” Gawne said. “Maybe when I was little but I don’t remember it. In our last game I couldn’t finish so it was nice to score today.”
Gawne now has seven goals on the year, and earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors on Thursday.
“Parker has been pressing, and it was nice to see him unload like that,” York coach Lukasz Majewski said. “He was ready to go today, and it showed.”
York’s fast start and Gawne’s two finishes by the 12th minute had the Huskies reeling. York midfielders Jack Musial, Paolo Favuzzi, Antonio Lepore, and Ethan Oder shined from the outset.
“You can’t ask for more than they gave us,” Majewski said. “Favuzzi just shutting things down, back-tackling, the outside boys working hard; we had possession. Everything clicked.”
After Gawne’s second score, Pacenka saved a Meade header at 13 minute, and Johnson hit the turf to save a shot from the hosts' Brody Bliss at 18 minutes.
The next 20 minutes to halftime featured cohesive attacking build-ups that began with York’s backline. Every time Oak Park and River Forest got the ball anywhere deep in York’s end, the Dukes’ backline took care of business.
The best backlines don’t simply clear balls out, they play balls out of the back with purpose to put their team right back on the attack. The Dukes’ back four of Edwardo DelCarmen, Josh Borzello, Jonathan Milani, and Jacob Kresnicka put on a clinic through 40 minutes.
York has struggled to find sharpness in recent games, so the Dukes aimed to right the ship against Oak Park.
“We just talked about communicating and being there for each other, and supporting each other,” DelCarmen said. “I just told them this would be a hard game, and we had to focus. That’s what we did, and it showed on the field. We got the job done.”
Oak Park’s Jaime Guillen hit a shot off a defender that Johnson saved at 47 minutes, before Gawne’s finish at 51 minutes finished the day’s scoring. Johnson punched away a corner kick at 54 minutes, and Guillen hit a post on a freekick attempt a minute later.
Pacenka saved shots from York’s Oder, DelCarmen, and Meade from there. Chasing three goals, the Huskies never quit.
Oak Park and River Forest earned a good handful of corner kicks and free kicks on York’s end down the stretch, but couldn’t find a finish.
“The last 25 or 30 minutes of the game, we had one chance after another but too many of them didn’t end up on net,” Fried said. “We had chances but their defense was fantastic. You have to test the goalie, and we never did.
“But we’ve been playing really well, and it’s been a really good season. Our guys will bounce back, I have no doubt in my mind.”
Fried applauded Dylan Whitney for the fight he showed at midfield, and several other Huskies shined Thursday.
“In the last 25 minutes we put Zeke Rivera up-top, and I thought he changed the pace of the game for us,” Fried said. “He did a great job of holding off two guys, playing it off to people, so I have to give him a ton of credit. He’s a good player and a tough kid. And I thought (Jai) Hsieh-Bailey, our outside right back, played fantastic today. He had another good game.”
Majewski also got quality efforts up and down the pitch.
“No matter who we put in today, they brought the intensity,” Majewski said. “You can’t ask for anything better.”
York plays Riverside-Brookfield, Glenbard West, and Hinsdale South before opening regional play on Oct. 16. The Dukes are seeded third at the Class 3A Addison Trail Sectional and open regional play at Hoffman Estates against the winner between no. 15 Elk Grove and no. 19 Wheaton Warrenville South.
Oak Park and River Forest plays Hinsdale Central and Fenwick before they open as the no. 4 seed in the Riverside-Brookfield Sectional. The Huskies play no. 13 Juarez in their regional semifinal at Argo.
Starting lineups
Oak Park and River Forest
GK Sam Pacenka
D Bram Lebovitz
D Blake Soto
D Ryan Stutz
D Jai Hsieh-Bailey
MF Jaime Guillen
MF Brody Bliss
MF Dylan Whitney
F Grant Kindler
F Collin McKitrick
F Paul Garcia
York
GK Kyle Johnson
D Jonathan Milani
D Edwardo DelCarmen
D Josh Borzello
D Jacob Kresnicka
MF Paolo Favuzzi
MF Jack Musial
MF Antonio Lepore
MF Ethan Oder
F Parker Gawne
F Joe Meade
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match - Parker Gawne, jr., F, York
Scoring summary
First half
York - Gawne (Oder) 6 minutes
York - Gawne (Meade) 12 minutes
Second half
York - Gawne (Meade) 51 minutes
Gawne’s hat-trick keys Dukes big 3-0 conferencewin
By Gary Larsen
OAK PARK - It’s impossible to play a truly perfect soccer game, but York sure gave it a try on Thursday against Oak Park and River Forest.
The Duke’s 3-0 road win over Chicagoland Soccer’s 14th-ranked team featured a hat-trick from Parker Gawne, a pair of assists from Joe Meade, exceptional defense from
York’s backline, and a steady effort from keeper Kyle Johnson guided the Dukes to the shutout.
But it was York’s overall attack that broke the applause meter. The Dukes used crisp passing, overlapping runs, triangulation, give-and-goes, multiple set pieces, quality shots in the run of play -- if York had stopped the game and pulled a rabbit out of a hat at midfield, it wouldn’t have surprised anyone.
“It was a great performance,” Gawne said. “We had so many chances, and we possessed the ball so well. And our defenders were outstanding. I’m very happy with the way we played.”
And it wasn’t that Oak Park and River Forest (13-3-2, 3-2-0) played a bad game in the West Suburban Conference Silver Division tilt. Sure, coach Jason Fried would have liked to see his boys match York’s opening intensity, and obviously a few finishes on the Huskies’ scoring chances would have been nice.
But on some nights, you just have to give credit where it's most due. The effort kept the Dukes (10-4-1, 3-1-0) alive in the league race but all but eliminated Oak Park and River Forest.
“Hats off to them. They played a great game,” Fried said of York. “I wish we’d played a little better but at the same time, we did a lot of good things. So we just have to move on.”
Gawne set the tone early, spinning on a ball Ethan Oder sent near the post on the left side and ripping it inside the far post from point-blank range at six minutes. Gawne’s second goal came six minutes later when he fired from just outside the 18 and the ball skipped fortuitously high off a defender and over the head of Huskies keeper Sam Pacenka.
The hat-trick was completed at 51 minutes after running on to a Meade pass on the left side and knocking it in off the far post from 14 yards.
“I don’t think I’ve ever scored a hat-trick in my life,” Gawne said. “Maybe when I was little but I don’t remember it. In our last game I couldn’t finish so it was nice to score today.”
Gawne now has seven goals on the year, and earned Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honors on Thursday.
“Parker has been pressing, and it was nice to see him unload like that,” York coach Lukasz Majewski said. “He was ready to go today, and it showed.”
York’s fast start and Gawne’s two finishes by the 12th minute had the Huskies reeling. York midfielders Jack Musial, Paolo Favuzzi, Antonio Lepore, and Ethan Oder shined from the outset.
“You can’t ask for more than they gave us,” Majewski said. “Favuzzi just shutting things down, back-tackling, the outside boys working hard; we had possession. Everything clicked.”
After Gawne’s second score, Pacenka saved a Meade header at 13 minute, and Johnson hit the turf to save a shot from the hosts' Brody Bliss at 18 minutes.
The next 20 minutes to halftime featured cohesive attacking build-ups that began with York’s backline. Every time Oak Park and River Forest got the ball anywhere deep in York’s end, the Dukes’ backline took care of business.
The best backlines don’t simply clear balls out, they play balls out of the back with purpose to put their team right back on the attack. The Dukes’ back four of Edwardo DelCarmen, Josh Borzello, Jonathan Milani, and Jacob Kresnicka put on a clinic through 40 minutes.
York has struggled to find sharpness in recent games, so the Dukes aimed to right the ship against Oak Park.
“We just talked about communicating and being there for each other, and supporting each other,” DelCarmen said. “I just told them this would be a hard game, and we had to focus. That’s what we did, and it showed on the field. We got the job done.”
Oak Park’s Jaime Guillen hit a shot off a defender that Johnson saved at 47 minutes, before Gawne’s finish at 51 minutes finished the day’s scoring. Johnson punched away a corner kick at 54 minutes, and Guillen hit a post on a freekick attempt a minute later.
Pacenka saved shots from York’s Oder, DelCarmen, and Meade from there. Chasing three goals, the Huskies never quit.
Oak Park and River Forest earned a good handful of corner kicks and free kicks on York’s end down the stretch, but couldn’t find a finish.
“The last 25 or 30 minutes of the game, we had one chance after another but too many of them didn’t end up on net,” Fried said. “We had chances but their defense was fantastic. You have to test the goalie, and we never did.
“But we’ve been playing really well, and it’s been a really good season. Our guys will bounce back, I have no doubt in my mind.”
Fried applauded Dylan Whitney for the fight he showed at midfield, and several other Huskies shined Thursday.
“In the last 25 minutes we put Zeke Rivera up-top, and I thought he changed the pace of the game for us,” Fried said. “He did a great job of holding off two guys, playing it off to people, so I have to give him a ton of credit. He’s a good player and a tough kid. And I thought (Jai) Hsieh-Bailey, our outside right back, played fantastic today. He had another good game.”
Majewski also got quality efforts up and down the pitch.
“No matter who we put in today, they brought the intensity,” Majewski said. “You can’t ask for anything better.”
York plays Riverside-Brookfield, Glenbard West, and Hinsdale South before opening regional play on Oct. 16. The Dukes are seeded third at the Class 3A Addison Trail Sectional and open regional play at Hoffman Estates against the winner between no. 15 Elk Grove and no. 19 Wheaton Warrenville South.
Oak Park and River Forest plays Hinsdale Central and Fenwick before they open as the no. 4 seed in the Riverside-Brookfield Sectional. The Huskies play no. 13 Juarez in their regional semifinal at Argo.
Starting lineups
Oak Park and River Forest
GK Sam Pacenka
D Bram Lebovitz
D Blake Soto
D Ryan Stutz
D Jai Hsieh-Bailey
MF Jaime Guillen
MF Brody Bliss
MF Dylan Whitney
F Grant Kindler
F Collin McKitrick
F Paul Garcia
York
GK Kyle Johnson
D Jonathan Milani
D Edwardo DelCarmen
D Josh Borzello
D Jacob Kresnicka
MF Paolo Favuzzi
MF Jack Musial
MF Antonio Lepore
MF Ethan Oder
F Parker Gawne
F Joe Meade
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match - Parker Gawne, jr., F, York
Scoring summary
First half
York - Gawne (Oder) 6 minutes
York - Gawne (Meade) 12 minutes
Second half
York - Gawne (Meade) 51 minutes