Yorkville’s late rally taints
Plainfield South’s Senior Night
Cougars fall in PK shootout for 4th time this fall
By Chris Walker
PLAINFIELD – With a halftime lead and a presentation recognizing its nine seniors, Plainfield South was looking and probably feeling pretty good against visiting Yorkville during the final Southwest Prairie Conference game of the season for both teams.
Unfortunately for the Cougars, there was still a full second half to play, and the Foxes, itching to break a lengthy losing streak, ultimately had their say. The visitors rallied to tie the game and then took the lead before the hosts netted the equalizer to send the 2-2 game to overtime.
After neither team could find the back of the net in the extra periods, the Foxes outshot the Cougars in the decisive PK shootout, 4-1, to earn to spoil the host's Senior Day celebration.
“Tonight was kind of a microcosm of our season,” Cougars coach Bryant Williams said. “We got a really good goal there, but then we have breakdowns defensively where I don’t feel we make teams earn their goals. And they’re not little breakdowns, but massive breakdowns where we defend well for 89 minutes and 15 seconds and then we have 45 seconds of bad defense that leads to three or four goals in the game. It’s something we’ve got to try to find an answer for. If I had an answer right now it wouldn’t be happening.”
Plainfield South (5-13-0, 4-7) also lost PK shootouts to Bremen on Aug. 27 (1-1 score, 6-5 shootout), Oswego East on Sept. 12 (1-1, 4-2) and Plainfield North on Sept. 26 (0-0, 3-0).
Yorkville’s Preston Huitron, J.C. Noyola, Edgar Barrientos and K.J. Calder all buried their PKs in succession to lead the Foxes to the victory. Plainfield South’s Maxwell Treptow was the only Cougars player to bury his attempt. Two teammates were either stopped by Yorkville goalkeeper Nathan Sandon or overshot the frame.
Yorkville (6-13-0, 2-8) was able to snap a 10-game losing streak and won for the first time since the Foxes beat Plainfield Central on Sept. 16.
“They (the Yorkville shooters) dominated in the penalty kicks,” Yorkville coach Chris Palmisano said. “That’s not easy to do either. There’s a lot of pressure there.”
Plainfield South enjoyed a 1-0 lead at halftime thanks to freshman David Sanchez’s goal from Josue Jimenez with 13:13 left in the first half.
“It was amazing, and I was happy to score it,” Sanchez said. “It was the third goal now for my team, so I just went out there to play for them. I know the seniors really wanted to win tonight. I’m obviously disappointed for the whole team, but we played well overall. We dominated possession by far in the first half, but (Yorkville) came out stronger in the second half. We didn’t expect it. It caught us off guard.”
Yorkville sent in the equalizer with 15:31 left in the game when K.J. Calder was left wide open and had no problem finishing his shot to make it 1-1.
The Foxes then took their first lead of the game with 8:27 left when Preston Huitron was able to break free and fire in a shot just inside the opposite post for a 2-1 advantage.
Huitron who scored, had an assist and converted a PK in the shootout was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
“Me and J.C. (Noyola) have been able to link up a lot throughout the season,” Huitron said. “And that showed in the second half with me being able to get by some defenders off his pass and finish. Big respect to Plainfield South for fighting. Usually when teams go down in the last 10 minutes, they give up. These guys fought for the full 100 minutes.”
It remained 2-1 until Sanchez saved the day, albeit briefly, when he tied the game at 2-2 with just 1:25 remaining.
“I was happy to score that goal that got us into overtime, and I know my teammates were excited about it,” he said. “We were just frustrated, because we knew we were better than our opposition, but our luck just wasn’t there, I guess.”
While it was the seniors' day, Sanchez continued to impress as a freshman.
“They’ve accepted me on the team,” he said. “It’s been really nice playing (on varsity). It’s a good experience with a lot of older guys and a new style of soccer. It’s been a really good experience overall.”
The wind really picked up at the end of regulation and especially into the OTs.
The Foxes had the better opportunities in the first overtime period. Huitron turned and shot just a bit too high and slightly wide right with 2:52 remaining, and Tim DeWit got a foot on a shot and sent it right to the keeper in the final seconds of the overtime period.
In the second and final overtime period, Huitron had a short free kick chance and also was able to create an opportunity with just under three minutes left by turning and shooting but his shot sailed too high and wide right.
Melchizedek Mensah blasted a shot right wide right midway through the second overtime. Ernesto Cortino fired one right to the keeper with a few minutes left, and Tyler Whitmire rolled one right to the keeper in the final seconds, but neither team could end the game in overtime so once again a PK shootout was necessary.
“We’re for sure going to have to come out even stronger than ever before to try to get that win next time,” Sanchez said. “I’m happy to be here and want to keep the season going.”
As part of the Senior Night festivities, Plainfield South’s seniors reminisced about their favorite high school soccer memory while sharing their plans for beyond high school, which included the following:
“Playing sting pong with my teammates during our team dinners as well as beating everyone in FIFA,” said Fabian Alvarado.
“Playing soccer everyday with my homies,” said Jimenez.
“The laughs and good times with friends,” said Trinidad Vazquez.
“When we went to Oswego East my freshman year, I was messing around dancing (Hit Dem Folks) while standing up on the bus. I fell back, and I smacked my head on the bus,” said Whitmire.
The Foxes host Batavia in a regional quarterfinal on Saturday while the Cougars take on Waubonsie Valley (11-5-4) next Wednesday in a regional semifinal with the winner most likely getting Oswego (16-4-1).
“Oswego beat us 3-1, and 4-2 and both games were a lot closer than the two-goal difference would suggest,” Williams said. “I feel like if we could just find some answers and button down those key mistakes we could play with anybody.”
Injuries certainly haven’t helped Plainfield South’s cause either, but few teams are feelings really healthy physically after the long grind of the season at this point, but it’s certainly frustrated the Cougars.
"We’re dealing with some injuries now,” Williams said. “A kid with a heart condition, another with a broken wrist, one with a high ankle sprain and those are three senior starters that we would’ve liked to have on the field. And Ryan Kabaker is a fourth senior who got hurt today and missed the second half. So that’s been our bugaboo lately. We’ve been snakebit with injuries.”
Starting lineups
Yorkville
GK Nathan Sandon
D Luke Granholm
D Ryan Schwarz
D Evan Torok
M Matt Angerame
M K.J. Calder
M Preston Huitron
M J.C. Noyola
M Edgar Barrientos
M Tim DeWit
F Alvaro Castro
Plainfield South
GK Robin Coetzee
D Ryan Kabakar
D Zachary Kolb
D Trinidan Vazquez
D Tyler Whitmire
M Leonel Amado
M Josue Jimenez
M Owen O’Shea
M David Sanchez
F Haris Pabedinskas
F Maxwell Treptow
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Preston Huitron, jr., MF, Yorkville
Scoring summary
Yorkville 2, Plainfield South 2 (Yorkville wins PK 4-1/4)
Yorkville 0 2 0 0 – 2
Plainfield South 1 1 0 0 – 2
First half
Plainfield South – David Sanchez (Jose Jimenez) 13:13
Second half
Yorkville – K.J. Calder (Preston Huitron) 15:31
Yorkville – Preston Huitron (J.C. Noyola) 8:27
Plainfield South – David Sanchez ( Melchizedek Mensah) 1:25
Plainfield South’s Senior Night
Cougars fall in PK shootout for 4th time this fall
By Chris Walker
PLAINFIELD – With a halftime lead and a presentation recognizing its nine seniors, Plainfield South was looking and probably feeling pretty good against visiting Yorkville during the final Southwest Prairie Conference game of the season for both teams.
Unfortunately for the Cougars, there was still a full second half to play, and the Foxes, itching to break a lengthy losing streak, ultimately had their say. The visitors rallied to tie the game and then took the lead before the hosts netted the equalizer to send the 2-2 game to overtime.
After neither team could find the back of the net in the extra periods, the Foxes outshot the Cougars in the decisive PK shootout, 4-1, to earn to spoil the host's Senior Day celebration.
“Tonight was kind of a microcosm of our season,” Cougars coach Bryant Williams said. “We got a really good goal there, but then we have breakdowns defensively where I don’t feel we make teams earn their goals. And they’re not little breakdowns, but massive breakdowns where we defend well for 89 minutes and 15 seconds and then we have 45 seconds of bad defense that leads to three or four goals in the game. It’s something we’ve got to try to find an answer for. If I had an answer right now it wouldn’t be happening.”
Plainfield South (5-13-0, 4-7) also lost PK shootouts to Bremen on Aug. 27 (1-1 score, 6-5 shootout), Oswego East on Sept. 12 (1-1, 4-2) and Plainfield North on Sept. 26 (0-0, 3-0).
Yorkville’s Preston Huitron, J.C. Noyola, Edgar Barrientos and K.J. Calder all buried their PKs in succession to lead the Foxes to the victory. Plainfield South’s Maxwell Treptow was the only Cougars player to bury his attempt. Two teammates were either stopped by Yorkville goalkeeper Nathan Sandon or overshot the frame.
Yorkville (6-13-0, 2-8) was able to snap a 10-game losing streak and won for the first time since the Foxes beat Plainfield Central on Sept. 16.
“They (the Yorkville shooters) dominated in the penalty kicks,” Yorkville coach Chris Palmisano said. “That’s not easy to do either. There’s a lot of pressure there.”
Plainfield South enjoyed a 1-0 lead at halftime thanks to freshman David Sanchez’s goal from Josue Jimenez with 13:13 left in the first half.
“It was amazing, and I was happy to score it,” Sanchez said. “It was the third goal now for my team, so I just went out there to play for them. I know the seniors really wanted to win tonight. I’m obviously disappointed for the whole team, but we played well overall. We dominated possession by far in the first half, but (Yorkville) came out stronger in the second half. We didn’t expect it. It caught us off guard.”
Yorkville sent in the equalizer with 15:31 left in the game when K.J. Calder was left wide open and had no problem finishing his shot to make it 1-1.
The Foxes then took their first lead of the game with 8:27 left when Preston Huitron was able to break free and fire in a shot just inside the opposite post for a 2-1 advantage.
Huitron who scored, had an assist and converted a PK in the shootout was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.
“Me and J.C. (Noyola) have been able to link up a lot throughout the season,” Huitron said. “And that showed in the second half with me being able to get by some defenders off his pass and finish. Big respect to Plainfield South for fighting. Usually when teams go down in the last 10 minutes, they give up. These guys fought for the full 100 minutes.”
It remained 2-1 until Sanchez saved the day, albeit briefly, when he tied the game at 2-2 with just 1:25 remaining.
“I was happy to score that goal that got us into overtime, and I know my teammates were excited about it,” he said. “We were just frustrated, because we knew we were better than our opposition, but our luck just wasn’t there, I guess.”
While it was the seniors' day, Sanchez continued to impress as a freshman.
“They’ve accepted me on the team,” he said. “It’s been really nice playing (on varsity). It’s a good experience with a lot of older guys and a new style of soccer. It’s been a really good experience overall.”
The wind really picked up at the end of regulation and especially into the OTs.
The Foxes had the better opportunities in the first overtime period. Huitron turned and shot just a bit too high and slightly wide right with 2:52 remaining, and Tim DeWit got a foot on a shot and sent it right to the keeper in the final seconds of the overtime period.
In the second and final overtime period, Huitron had a short free kick chance and also was able to create an opportunity with just under three minutes left by turning and shooting but his shot sailed too high and wide right.
Melchizedek Mensah blasted a shot right wide right midway through the second overtime. Ernesto Cortino fired one right to the keeper with a few minutes left, and Tyler Whitmire rolled one right to the keeper in the final seconds, but neither team could end the game in overtime so once again a PK shootout was necessary.
“We’re for sure going to have to come out even stronger than ever before to try to get that win next time,” Sanchez said. “I’m happy to be here and want to keep the season going.”
As part of the Senior Night festivities, Plainfield South’s seniors reminisced about their favorite high school soccer memory while sharing their plans for beyond high school, which included the following:
“Playing sting pong with my teammates during our team dinners as well as beating everyone in FIFA,” said Fabian Alvarado.
“Playing soccer everyday with my homies,” said Jimenez.
“The laughs and good times with friends,” said Trinidad Vazquez.
“When we went to Oswego East my freshman year, I was messing around dancing (Hit Dem Folks) while standing up on the bus. I fell back, and I smacked my head on the bus,” said Whitmire.
The Foxes host Batavia in a regional quarterfinal on Saturday while the Cougars take on Waubonsie Valley (11-5-4) next Wednesday in a regional semifinal with the winner most likely getting Oswego (16-4-1).
“Oswego beat us 3-1, and 4-2 and both games were a lot closer than the two-goal difference would suggest,” Williams said. “I feel like if we could just find some answers and button down those key mistakes we could play with anybody.”
Injuries certainly haven’t helped Plainfield South’s cause either, but few teams are feelings really healthy physically after the long grind of the season at this point, but it’s certainly frustrated the Cougars.
"We’re dealing with some injuries now,” Williams said. “A kid with a heart condition, another with a broken wrist, one with a high ankle sprain and those are three senior starters that we would’ve liked to have on the field. And Ryan Kabaker is a fourth senior who got hurt today and missed the second half. So that’s been our bugaboo lately. We’ve been snakebit with injuries.”
Starting lineups
Yorkville
GK Nathan Sandon
D Luke Granholm
D Ryan Schwarz
D Evan Torok
M Matt Angerame
M K.J. Calder
M Preston Huitron
M J.C. Noyola
M Edgar Barrientos
M Tim DeWit
F Alvaro Castro
Plainfield South
GK Robin Coetzee
D Ryan Kabakar
D Zachary Kolb
D Trinidan Vazquez
D Tyler Whitmire
M Leonel Amado
M Josue Jimenez
M Owen O’Shea
M David Sanchez
F Haris Pabedinskas
F Maxwell Treptow
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Preston Huitron, jr., MF, Yorkville
Scoring summary
Yorkville 2, Plainfield South 2 (Yorkville wins PK 4-1/4)
Yorkville 0 2 0 0 – 2
Plainfield South 1 1 0 0 – 2
First half
Plainfield South – David Sanchez (Jose Jimenez) 13:13
Second half
Yorkville – K.J. Calder (Preston Huitron) 15:31
Yorkville – Preston Huitron (J.C. Noyola) 8:27
Plainfield South – David Sanchez ( Melchizedek Mensah) 1:25