Guillen goals power OPRF past Young
Huskies win Argo Regional final 2-0, advance to face Morton
By Dave Owen
SUMMIT – Ill winds, pivotal calls and talented Oak Park and River Forest exchange student Jaime Guillen combined to end Young’s successful season in Saturday’s Class 3A Argo Regional final.
A junior from Spain, Guillen’s two goals in the final 13:37 of the first half proved to be the difference as the Huskies (17-3-2 and ranked 10th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25) advanced to Tuesday’s Riverside-Brookfield sectional semifinal against Morton with a 2-0 win over the Dolphins (15-5-2).
The projected close battle between four-seed OPRF and no. 5-seed Young tilted into the Huskies’ favor in the 27th minute, when Brody Bliss’ right side rush resulted in a tackle at the edge of the box.
After conferring, officials awarded OPRF a penalty kick, and Guillen’s low drive inside the right post broke the scoreless tie.
“The first 10 minutes we didn’t play very good,” said Guillen, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match. “We were losing 50-50 balls, and we couldn’t take possession of the ball.
“The first goal was a really good play from Brody. The refs at first called a free kick, and then they said it was inside (the box).”
That decision was one source of postgame consternation for Young coach Ian McCarthy.
“Obviously in the first half, there were a couple of non-calls or bad calls,” McCarthy said. “(The officials) let Oak Park play a very physical game, and we weren’t allowed to. That was unfortunate. But our guys left it on the field. I just wish it could be settled on the field rather than with a whistle or a flag.
“A similar play (to the PK) happens against us, shoulder to shoulder, and no call. Unfortunately that’s the nature of the game. It’s imperfect. And they (OPRF) took advantage. But they’re a very good team. I don’t want to take anything away from Oak Park and how well they played.”
Young responded quickly to the 1-0 deficit. The Dolphins threatened in the 29th minute with a Gabriel Regalado high, end line cross caught by OPRF goalkeeper Sam Pecenka. In the 31st minute after an Aidan Chapman indirect kick, Jake Gerenraich's 19-yard shot deflected wide by a Huskies defender.
But as the Dolphins battled for the equalizer, an OPRF rush in the 36th minute doubled the Huskies lead.
Passes by Bliss and Mateja Tadic set up Collin McKitrick for a left side drive and shot that was denied on a sliding save by Young goalkeeper Leo Juarez.
But McKitrick retrieved the rebound and sent a cross to Guillen, who tucked his straight-on, low 12-yard shot just inside the right post for a 2-0 lead 4:09 before halftime.
“Collin came from the bench and changed the game,” Guillen said. “He got the MVP of the game for our team. He was making good runs the whole time, and finally on that run I took the ball and got the goal.”
While McKitrick gave the Huskies a lift on Saturday, Young’s converted sophomore forward Juarez was a late-season savior with his play at goalkeeper.
“Our no. 1 (senior goalkeeper Dan Moderhack) went down, and our backup goalie had quit,” McCarthy said. “Leo’s a forward that when we knew Dan was out, he said he would play there.
“So coach (Juventino) Cano started training him, and Leo has good reflexes. He gets the coach’s award for stepping in and being the man the last couple of games.”
Thrust into goal under postseason pressure, Juarez was the winning goalkeeper as Young defeated Argo on penalty kicks in the regional semifinals. Again Saturday, his solid effort kept the Dolphins in the match.
“Me stepping up to goalie, I didn’t mind,” Juarez said. “I actually had never played goalie competitively, and I wasn’t used to it. It was hard, but I tried my best.”
Juarez came up big during another OPRF flurry 30 seconds before halftime with a nice one-handed punch out of the crease of a shot attempt. Paul Garcia’s ensuing left-side rebound angled just wide of the right post.
That play and the two-goal outburst that preceded it were part of a strong end to the half for the Huskies.
“I think our shape was a little off for the first 15-20 minutes of the game,” OPRF coach Jason Fried said. “We struggled with possession a little bit, and obviously you have to give them (Young) credit for their pressure.
“But as we got into the game a little bit and got over the fact that it was extremely windy, I thought we kind of took over possession and did a good job. We created a lot of opportunities, and it was huge to get two goals going into the wind.”
The swirling winds did no favors for Young at times -- one Dolphins corner kick send was caught in the unpredictable jetstream and sailed 25 yards away from the net.
The Dolphins produced a quality chance in the 37th minute when a Regalado corner kick curled to the back post, where Nicholas Sosnivka’s header went just wide and hit the side of the net.
Four minutes in the second half, Young produced an early attack by Chapman and Gerenraich that was broken up by a Guillen block and Blake Soto clear.
OPRF’s response three minutes later was met by Juarez, who first deflected Tadic’s nice back post send wide and then made the save on the ensuing corner kick.
Young would produce four corner kicks in the next 20 minutes, part of the Dolphins’ 5-3 edge in corners in the second half.
Sophomore Esme McCarthy’s left side rush produced a corner with 27 minutes left. That led to Jonathan Perez's shot over the net.
A sequence of two-straight Young corner kicks started with 21:50 left and featured great hustle on a far sideline save and run to the end line by Patrick Moran, but OPRF goalkeeper Pecenka’s deflection of the corner cross and a McCarthy shot wide were the closest results from that threat.
A free kick off an OPRF hand ball with 17 minutes left produced another bid, but Gerenraich’s 32-yard drive going just wide.
The Dolphins’ offensive effort into a strengthened second half wind may not have produced any goals Saturday, but epitomized the drive that earned Young three more wins than in 2017.
“It was overall a very good season for our team,” Esme McCarthy said. “We feel like this has been our best team in a long time. Maybe not where we had the most talent compared to other teams, but in terms of being able to work together to become a better team.
“Today we just kind of came up short, but a lot of our guys were very dedicated throughout the season. Five days a week we practiced. We just came up short today, but there was a lot of hard work from these guys.”
The Young defense also stood tall against OPRF’s second half threats.
A left-side rush by Zaahir Hill with 15:30 left was denied by a block and clear by Young junior Alex Espino. Then with 10 minutes to go, Espino hustled back to block a Garcia cross to the box.
Juarez made another big save with 8:50 left, sliding to deny James Maguire’s 10-yard shot to keep the score 2-0.
But the OPRF defense was just as stingy late and wrapped up its eighth shutout of 2018.
Jai Hsieh-Bailey made a nice clear down the sideline with 7:30 to play then played good 1-v.-1 defense on an end line rush by Young’s Rilwan Shittu to produce a goal kick.
Finally with 30 seconds left, Gerenraich’s run inside midfield was denied by a tackle and send by OPRF’s Dylan Whitney.
“The guys worked hard,” Fried said, “and I thought we controlled the middle of the field much better after the first 20 (minutes).
“The one thing we have to work on is, we had a couple really good opportunities to score a goal that we probably should have put away, and we didn’t. But a regional final, a win is a win, you’ll take it.”
Said Guillen: “We came here and played 80 minutes the way we can, and it (the regional title) is a big trophy for us. And now we’re ready for Morton in our next game.”
For Young, the hard-fought setback ended the excellent prep careers of 10 seniors, including captains Gerenraich, Regalado and Perez and starting defender Jake Davidson.
“A few of the guys have been on the team since their sophomore year,” Ian McCarthy said, “so this is a little heartbreaking for them because they’ve been in this regional championship a couple times. They didn’t get any hardware (regional titles), but they put up some great numbers this year.
“Jake Gerenraich is an all-stater, and Pep (Perez) was all sectional, and obviously we have guys who have a future in college ball.”
And the seniors’ impact on the Young program will continue.
“They showed me how to play the game, and they were my mentors” Juarez said. “I appreciate them, and hopefully it goes well for them in the future.”
Said Esme McCarthy: “The seniors that we had this year were great leaders. We created a sense of brotherhood among our teammates because of these seniors. We’re definitely going to miss them, but they’ve prepared us well for next season, teaching us how to be good leaders.”
With seven of Saturday’s starters back next year, the future is bright.
“We have a lot of juniors coming back, so next year is going to be really promising,” Ian McCarthy said. “But we just couldn’t put the ball in the net enough. That’s what we’ll need to work on.”
Even with its unpredictable finish for him, 2018 will hold good memories for forward turned goalkeeper Juarez.
“This season was great,” he said. “We fought for every ball; we tried our best; we gave our all, and it was a fun season.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK Leo Juarez
D Jake Davidson
D Alex Espino
D Nate Dixon
D Jonathan Perez
M Jake Gerenraich
M Gabriel Regalado
M Owen Anderson
M Elias Guzman
F Aidan Chapman
F Rodney Bejabeng
Oak Park and River Forest
GK Sam Pecenka
D Bram Lebovitz
D Dylan Whitney
D Jai Hsieh-Bailey
D Blake Soto
M Ryan Stutz
M James Maguire
M Mateja Tadic
M Paul Garcia
F Jaime Guillen
F Brody Bliss
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jaime Guillen, jr. F, Oak Park and River Forest
Scoring summary
First half
OPRF- Jaime Guillen (PK), 27th minute
OPRF- Guillen (Collin McKitrick assist), 36th minute
Second half
No scoring
Huskies win Argo Regional final 2-0, advance to face Morton
By Dave Owen
SUMMIT – Ill winds, pivotal calls and talented Oak Park and River Forest exchange student Jaime Guillen combined to end Young’s successful season in Saturday’s Class 3A Argo Regional final.
A junior from Spain, Guillen’s two goals in the final 13:37 of the first half proved to be the difference as the Huskies (17-3-2 and ranked 10th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25) advanced to Tuesday’s Riverside-Brookfield sectional semifinal against Morton with a 2-0 win over the Dolphins (15-5-2).
The projected close battle between four-seed OPRF and no. 5-seed Young tilted into the Huskies’ favor in the 27th minute, when Brody Bliss’ right side rush resulted in a tackle at the edge of the box.
After conferring, officials awarded OPRF a penalty kick, and Guillen’s low drive inside the right post broke the scoreless tie.
“The first 10 minutes we didn’t play very good,” said Guillen, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match. “We were losing 50-50 balls, and we couldn’t take possession of the ball.
“The first goal was a really good play from Brody. The refs at first called a free kick, and then they said it was inside (the box).”
That decision was one source of postgame consternation for Young coach Ian McCarthy.
“Obviously in the first half, there were a couple of non-calls or bad calls,” McCarthy said. “(The officials) let Oak Park play a very physical game, and we weren’t allowed to. That was unfortunate. But our guys left it on the field. I just wish it could be settled on the field rather than with a whistle or a flag.
“A similar play (to the PK) happens against us, shoulder to shoulder, and no call. Unfortunately that’s the nature of the game. It’s imperfect. And they (OPRF) took advantage. But they’re a very good team. I don’t want to take anything away from Oak Park and how well they played.”
Young responded quickly to the 1-0 deficit. The Dolphins threatened in the 29th minute with a Gabriel Regalado high, end line cross caught by OPRF goalkeeper Sam Pecenka. In the 31st minute after an Aidan Chapman indirect kick, Jake Gerenraich's 19-yard shot deflected wide by a Huskies defender.
But as the Dolphins battled for the equalizer, an OPRF rush in the 36th minute doubled the Huskies lead.
Passes by Bliss and Mateja Tadic set up Collin McKitrick for a left side drive and shot that was denied on a sliding save by Young goalkeeper Leo Juarez.
But McKitrick retrieved the rebound and sent a cross to Guillen, who tucked his straight-on, low 12-yard shot just inside the right post for a 2-0 lead 4:09 before halftime.
“Collin came from the bench and changed the game,” Guillen said. “He got the MVP of the game for our team. He was making good runs the whole time, and finally on that run I took the ball and got the goal.”
While McKitrick gave the Huskies a lift on Saturday, Young’s converted sophomore forward Juarez was a late-season savior with his play at goalkeeper.
“Our no. 1 (senior goalkeeper Dan Moderhack) went down, and our backup goalie had quit,” McCarthy said. “Leo’s a forward that when we knew Dan was out, he said he would play there.
“So coach (Juventino) Cano started training him, and Leo has good reflexes. He gets the coach’s award for stepping in and being the man the last couple of games.”
Thrust into goal under postseason pressure, Juarez was the winning goalkeeper as Young defeated Argo on penalty kicks in the regional semifinals. Again Saturday, his solid effort kept the Dolphins in the match.
“Me stepping up to goalie, I didn’t mind,” Juarez said. “I actually had never played goalie competitively, and I wasn’t used to it. It was hard, but I tried my best.”
Juarez came up big during another OPRF flurry 30 seconds before halftime with a nice one-handed punch out of the crease of a shot attempt. Paul Garcia’s ensuing left-side rebound angled just wide of the right post.
That play and the two-goal outburst that preceded it were part of a strong end to the half for the Huskies.
“I think our shape was a little off for the first 15-20 minutes of the game,” OPRF coach Jason Fried said. “We struggled with possession a little bit, and obviously you have to give them (Young) credit for their pressure.
“But as we got into the game a little bit and got over the fact that it was extremely windy, I thought we kind of took over possession and did a good job. We created a lot of opportunities, and it was huge to get two goals going into the wind.”
The swirling winds did no favors for Young at times -- one Dolphins corner kick send was caught in the unpredictable jetstream and sailed 25 yards away from the net.
The Dolphins produced a quality chance in the 37th minute when a Regalado corner kick curled to the back post, where Nicholas Sosnivka’s header went just wide and hit the side of the net.
Four minutes in the second half, Young produced an early attack by Chapman and Gerenraich that was broken up by a Guillen block and Blake Soto clear.
OPRF’s response three minutes later was met by Juarez, who first deflected Tadic’s nice back post send wide and then made the save on the ensuing corner kick.
Young would produce four corner kicks in the next 20 minutes, part of the Dolphins’ 5-3 edge in corners in the second half.
Sophomore Esme McCarthy’s left side rush produced a corner with 27 minutes left. That led to Jonathan Perez's shot over the net.
A sequence of two-straight Young corner kicks started with 21:50 left and featured great hustle on a far sideline save and run to the end line by Patrick Moran, but OPRF goalkeeper Pecenka’s deflection of the corner cross and a McCarthy shot wide were the closest results from that threat.
A free kick off an OPRF hand ball with 17 minutes left produced another bid, but Gerenraich’s 32-yard drive going just wide.
The Dolphins’ offensive effort into a strengthened second half wind may not have produced any goals Saturday, but epitomized the drive that earned Young three more wins than in 2017.
“It was overall a very good season for our team,” Esme McCarthy said. “We feel like this has been our best team in a long time. Maybe not where we had the most talent compared to other teams, but in terms of being able to work together to become a better team.
“Today we just kind of came up short, but a lot of our guys were very dedicated throughout the season. Five days a week we practiced. We just came up short today, but there was a lot of hard work from these guys.”
The Young defense also stood tall against OPRF’s second half threats.
A left-side rush by Zaahir Hill with 15:30 left was denied by a block and clear by Young junior Alex Espino. Then with 10 minutes to go, Espino hustled back to block a Garcia cross to the box.
Juarez made another big save with 8:50 left, sliding to deny James Maguire’s 10-yard shot to keep the score 2-0.
But the OPRF defense was just as stingy late and wrapped up its eighth shutout of 2018.
Jai Hsieh-Bailey made a nice clear down the sideline with 7:30 to play then played good 1-v.-1 defense on an end line rush by Young’s Rilwan Shittu to produce a goal kick.
Finally with 30 seconds left, Gerenraich’s run inside midfield was denied by a tackle and send by OPRF’s Dylan Whitney.
“The guys worked hard,” Fried said, “and I thought we controlled the middle of the field much better after the first 20 (minutes).
“The one thing we have to work on is, we had a couple really good opportunities to score a goal that we probably should have put away, and we didn’t. But a regional final, a win is a win, you’ll take it.”
Said Guillen: “We came here and played 80 minutes the way we can, and it (the regional title) is a big trophy for us. And now we’re ready for Morton in our next game.”
For Young, the hard-fought setback ended the excellent prep careers of 10 seniors, including captains Gerenraich, Regalado and Perez and starting defender Jake Davidson.
“A few of the guys have been on the team since their sophomore year,” Ian McCarthy said, “so this is a little heartbreaking for them because they’ve been in this regional championship a couple times. They didn’t get any hardware (regional titles), but they put up some great numbers this year.
“Jake Gerenraich is an all-stater, and Pep (Perez) was all sectional, and obviously we have guys who have a future in college ball.”
And the seniors’ impact on the Young program will continue.
“They showed me how to play the game, and they were my mentors” Juarez said. “I appreciate them, and hopefully it goes well for them in the future.”
Said Esme McCarthy: “The seniors that we had this year were great leaders. We created a sense of brotherhood among our teammates because of these seniors. We’re definitely going to miss them, but they’ve prepared us well for next season, teaching us how to be good leaders.”
With seven of Saturday’s starters back next year, the future is bright.
“We have a lot of juniors coming back, so next year is going to be really promising,” Ian McCarthy said. “But we just couldn’t put the ball in the net enough. That’s what we’ll need to work on.”
Even with its unpredictable finish for him, 2018 will hold good memories for forward turned goalkeeper Juarez.
“This season was great,” he said. “We fought for every ball; we tried our best; we gave our all, and it was a fun season.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK Leo Juarez
D Jake Davidson
D Alex Espino
D Nate Dixon
D Jonathan Perez
M Jake Gerenraich
M Gabriel Regalado
M Owen Anderson
M Elias Guzman
F Aidan Chapman
F Rodney Bejabeng
Oak Park and River Forest
GK Sam Pecenka
D Bram Lebovitz
D Dylan Whitney
D Jai Hsieh-Bailey
D Blake Soto
M Ryan Stutz
M James Maguire
M Mateja Tadic
M Paul Garcia
F Jaime Guillen
F Brody Bliss
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jaime Guillen, jr. F, Oak Park and River Forest
Scoring summary
First half
OPRF- Jaime Guillen (PK), 27th minute
OPRF- Guillen (Collin McKitrick assist), 36th minute
Second half
No scoring