Gibault seeks elusive consistency
Young Hawks stuck in a rut, fall to University (St. Louis) 4-0
By Keith Schildroth
ST. LOUIS -- If Gibault coach Darryn Haudrich was a betting man, he certainly would have wagered his club would not be winless after the first six games of the season.
Yes, the Hawks are for the most part young and inexperienced, however they do have talent at key positions and have several veteran players.
But when Gibault played University (St. Louis) on Tuesday night, they were played without junior forward Gerard Cerezalez Polaino and senior midfielder Helio Neto Granca.
The host Junior Billikens blanked the Hawks 4-0. Gibault fell to 0-5-1 while University (St. Louis) broke a two-game losing streak and improved to 3-2-0.
"This is certainly not where we want to be," said Haudrich. "I keep thinking we're turning corners, but it's just a matter of not being able to put together a full 80 minutes.
“We have 40-minute pockets, or 20-minute pockets or 60-minute pockets but then there's a key piece missing. It could be a few (bad) minutes, could be a breakdown; and all of a sudden the heads go down and it kind of unravels pretty quickly for us.
“I keep thinking they're turning the corner. Tonight they looked good in the second half."
Without difference-makers Cerezalez Polaino and Neto Granca, it’s more of a struggle.
Cerezalez Polaino at forward is a consistent threat with the ability to find the open man with his passing skill. Usually, his favorite target is Neto Granca, a quick, attacking midfielder who excels from the outside.
With the pair in the Gibault lineup, everybody on the Hawks side is improved. Both were sorely missed against the Junior Billikens.
"We're already a thin squad," said Haudrich. "We've got a whole program of 28 players so if you're missing critical pieces, it's just a domino effect with everybody else."
Haudrich hopes the players can return to action soon.
"Offensively, with our attack, they're (Cerezalez Polaino, Neto Granca) more dynamic and they offer more speed," said Haudrich. “Without them here, we're a little bit slower, a little bit younger. More critical minutes go to the younger guys."
Gibault was flat in the first half, and did not register shot on goal. The first came at 29:10 of the second half.
Gibault goalie Connor Olson was a busy man most of the game. The Junior Bills were buzzing early and had several good scoring chances in the first 10 minutes.
Senior midfielder Charles Neuwirth was active early. He shot just over the crossbar and missed from the top of the box with a shot that was wide to the left. Forward Max Juric scored to the upper left corner from just inside the box for a 1-0 lead at 31 minutes, 21 seconds.
Neuwith made it 2-0 at 29:52 off a pretty pass from back John Marshall via the right wing, and the Junior Bills kept their foot on the gas pedal.
Adam Wolfe hit the crossbar on a free kick before Olson made the save of the half when he stopped forward Andy Mujezinovic from close range.
Neuwith scored his second goal with 5 minutes left in the half when he connected solidly just outside of the box. With a crowd in front of Olson, the keeper had little chance.
After the Hawks were dormant in the first half, they showed life after the break.
"The first half we came out a little bit slower," said Haudrich. "We were not in sync with one another -- kind of disconnected.
“But the second half we turned things around. We were a lot more controlled and lot more composed and together. We kind of slowed down the pace of play."
University (St. Louis) junior keeper John Mungenast denied a solid chance for Gibault when he came off his line to steal the ball from forward Gavin Kohnz midway through the second half.
Fetra Randrianasolo completed the scoring for the Junior Bills when he broke in alone on Olson and sent a toe poke to the far post.
Olson said the slow start hampered the Hawks.
"We came out the first half pretty slow," said Olson. "We couldn't connect passes out of the back, and we weren't able to build. After that, the second half we kind of got into a groove.
“Coach kind of lit a fire under our butts and told us some words we needed to hear. The second half was better."
Hawks senior defender Alex Bira and his teammates are eager for the return of Cerezalez Polainoa and Neto Granca.
"They're pretty major pieces because they control our attack," said Bira. "We couldn't form an attack tonight without them."
Junior Billikens coach Bob O'Connell said his concern was stopping a two-game losing streak. He was well aware Gibault was winless and preferred to see his woes end rather than Gibault’s.
"Last week we lost both matches and before the game we talked about that," said O'Connell. "The focus was on us regardless if they were 4-0-0 or 0-4-0.
“The message was that we have to hold ourselves accountable. I think we were ready tonight. We challenged the kids to come out and get the lead and build on the lead."
Said Neuwirth: "We kind of struggled with our passing and finishing the last two games, and we wanted to come out and play our game. We continued to improve on our passing, and we kept the ball in their end of the field most of the first half."
Starting lineups
Gibault
GK: Connor Olson
D: Alex Bira
D: Mitchell Kohnz
D: Nate Janson
M: Carlos Simoni
M: Camden Oberkfell
M: Collin Schmidt
M: Jacob Feldker
M: Alex Merlenbach
F: Gavin Kohnz
F: McKenzie Haudrich
University (St. Louis)
GK: John Barr
D: Ethan Joly
D: Tilahun Murphy
D: John Marshall
M: Jacob Hammond
M: Charles Neuwirth
M: Kevin Stein
M: Evan Yalavarthi
F: Andy Mujeinovic
F: Max Juric
F: Michael Heinlein
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Charles Neuwirth, sr., M, University (St. Louis)
Scoring summary
Gibault 0-0-0
University (St. Louis) 3-1-4
First half
U: Max Juric, 31:21
U: Charles Neuwirth (John Marshall), 29:52
U: Charles Neuwirth (Amar Mujezinovic), 5:00
Second Half
U: Fetra Randrianasolo, 6:01
Young Hawks stuck in a rut, fall to University (St. Louis) 4-0
By Keith Schildroth
ST. LOUIS -- If Gibault coach Darryn Haudrich was a betting man, he certainly would have wagered his club would not be winless after the first six games of the season.
Yes, the Hawks are for the most part young and inexperienced, however they do have talent at key positions and have several veteran players.
But when Gibault played University (St. Louis) on Tuesday night, they were played without junior forward Gerard Cerezalez Polaino and senior midfielder Helio Neto Granca.
The host Junior Billikens blanked the Hawks 4-0. Gibault fell to 0-5-1 while University (St. Louis) broke a two-game losing streak and improved to 3-2-0.
"This is certainly not where we want to be," said Haudrich. "I keep thinking we're turning corners, but it's just a matter of not being able to put together a full 80 minutes.
“We have 40-minute pockets, or 20-minute pockets or 60-minute pockets but then there's a key piece missing. It could be a few (bad) minutes, could be a breakdown; and all of a sudden the heads go down and it kind of unravels pretty quickly for us.
“I keep thinking they're turning the corner. Tonight they looked good in the second half."
Without difference-makers Cerezalez Polaino and Neto Granca, it’s more of a struggle.
Cerezalez Polaino at forward is a consistent threat with the ability to find the open man with his passing skill. Usually, his favorite target is Neto Granca, a quick, attacking midfielder who excels from the outside.
With the pair in the Gibault lineup, everybody on the Hawks side is improved. Both were sorely missed against the Junior Billikens.
"We're already a thin squad," said Haudrich. "We've got a whole program of 28 players so if you're missing critical pieces, it's just a domino effect with everybody else."
Haudrich hopes the players can return to action soon.
"Offensively, with our attack, they're (Cerezalez Polaino, Neto Granca) more dynamic and they offer more speed," said Haudrich. “Without them here, we're a little bit slower, a little bit younger. More critical minutes go to the younger guys."
Gibault was flat in the first half, and did not register shot on goal. The first came at 29:10 of the second half.
Gibault goalie Connor Olson was a busy man most of the game. The Junior Bills were buzzing early and had several good scoring chances in the first 10 minutes.
Senior midfielder Charles Neuwirth was active early. He shot just over the crossbar and missed from the top of the box with a shot that was wide to the left. Forward Max Juric scored to the upper left corner from just inside the box for a 1-0 lead at 31 minutes, 21 seconds.
Neuwith made it 2-0 at 29:52 off a pretty pass from back John Marshall via the right wing, and the Junior Bills kept their foot on the gas pedal.
Adam Wolfe hit the crossbar on a free kick before Olson made the save of the half when he stopped forward Andy Mujezinovic from close range.
Neuwith scored his second goal with 5 minutes left in the half when he connected solidly just outside of the box. With a crowd in front of Olson, the keeper had little chance.
After the Hawks were dormant in the first half, they showed life after the break.
"The first half we came out a little bit slower," said Haudrich. "We were not in sync with one another -- kind of disconnected.
“But the second half we turned things around. We were a lot more controlled and lot more composed and together. We kind of slowed down the pace of play."
University (St. Louis) junior keeper John Mungenast denied a solid chance for Gibault when he came off his line to steal the ball from forward Gavin Kohnz midway through the second half.
Fetra Randrianasolo completed the scoring for the Junior Bills when he broke in alone on Olson and sent a toe poke to the far post.
Olson said the slow start hampered the Hawks.
"We came out the first half pretty slow," said Olson. "We couldn't connect passes out of the back, and we weren't able to build. After that, the second half we kind of got into a groove.
“Coach kind of lit a fire under our butts and told us some words we needed to hear. The second half was better."
Hawks senior defender Alex Bira and his teammates are eager for the return of Cerezalez Polainoa and Neto Granca.
"They're pretty major pieces because they control our attack," said Bira. "We couldn't form an attack tonight without them."
Junior Billikens coach Bob O'Connell said his concern was stopping a two-game losing streak. He was well aware Gibault was winless and preferred to see his woes end rather than Gibault’s.
"Last week we lost both matches and before the game we talked about that," said O'Connell. "The focus was on us regardless if they were 4-0-0 or 0-4-0.
“The message was that we have to hold ourselves accountable. I think we were ready tonight. We challenged the kids to come out and get the lead and build on the lead."
Said Neuwirth: "We kind of struggled with our passing and finishing the last two games, and we wanted to come out and play our game. We continued to improve on our passing, and we kept the ball in their end of the field most of the first half."
Starting lineups
Gibault
GK: Connor Olson
D: Alex Bira
D: Mitchell Kohnz
D: Nate Janson
M: Carlos Simoni
M: Camden Oberkfell
M: Collin Schmidt
M: Jacob Feldker
M: Alex Merlenbach
F: Gavin Kohnz
F: McKenzie Haudrich
University (St. Louis)
GK: John Barr
D: Ethan Joly
D: Tilahun Murphy
D: John Marshall
M: Jacob Hammond
M: Charles Neuwirth
M: Kevin Stein
M: Evan Yalavarthi
F: Andy Mujeinovic
F: Max Juric
F: Michael Heinlein
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Charles Neuwirth, sr., M, University (St. Louis)
Scoring summary
Gibault 0-0-0
University (St. Louis) 3-1-4
First half
U: Max Juric, 31:21
U: Charles Neuwirth (John Marshall), 29:52
U: Charles Neuwirth (Amar Mujezinovic), 5:00
Second Half
U: Fetra Randrianasolo, 6:01