Lyons braces for homecoming
invasion by Hinsdale Central
Silver Brick matchup has multiple layers of luster
By Matt Le Cren
The brightness of the Friday night lights.
The hint of an autumnal chill in the air.
The roar of a large crowd amid the pageantry of homecoming week.
And the presence of your fiercest rival.
Sounds like the typical makings of a high school football game, right?
Wrong.
While the above ingredients all will be present Friday night at Bennett Field in Western Springs, the sport being played will be soccer.
No. 2 Hinsdale Central and no. 9 Lyons Township square off again in their annual battle for the Silver Brick. And for the many soccer enthusiasts expected to be on hand, it will undoubtedly be great theater.
The two West Suburban Conference Silver Division powers, who have each won a state championship in the past six years, are once again off to strong starts.
Host Lyons, which is 9-2-1 overall and 2-0-0 in the WSC Silver after beating Proviso West 6-0 Wednesday, is riding a six-game winning streak and has advanced to the title game of the PepsiCo Showdown for the fourth time in five years.
The Pepsi final, in which the fourth-seeded Lions will face sixth seed Libertyville, will take place Sunday afternoon at DePaul University.
But Lyons will not look past reigning state champion Hinsdale Central (9-1-1, 2-0-0), which has not lost to an in-state opponent this season.
The Red Devils have won the Silver Brick in each of the past three seasons. Last year they edged the Lions 1-0 at home to retain the traveling trophy, thus denying the Lions the conference crown, and then eliminated the Lions from the playoffs with a 1-0 win on penalty kicks in the sectional semifinal en route to the Class 3A state title.
So you can imagine the hype that is building for Friday’s game.
“We always have a homecoming game on Friday night,” Lyons coach Paul Labbato said. “This year we couldn’t find a date for Hinsdale Central and we didn’t know if that was going to be a good fit because we already have a big crowd for the homecoming game and then we have a big crowd game for the Hinsdale game. But we felt like the combination was pretty special.
“So judging from the previous years of crowds that we get and this being Homecoming week, we’re feeling that it’s going to be a pretty insane amount of people there for a soccer game. I would say (at least) over 1,000.”
Though it is still early, this game will most likely decide the league title. That is no surprise: Hinsdale Central and Lyons have combined to win at least a share of the last seven WSC Silver titles.
But what makes this game more special, at least to the coaches, is the Silver Brick, the trophy dreamed up by Labbato and Hinsdale Central coach Mike Wiggins to symbolize the relationship between the two programs.
“Coach Labbato and I came up with the Silver Brick back in 2008, and the idea was to highlight the rivalry in a positive way,” Wiggins said. “It was designed to bring a heightened awareness to the rivalry but to do it in a way that really gave the brick an opportunity to be the symbol of what the rivalry should be about.
“The idea (is) that a brick would serve as something that is attached to a foundation, (with) the foundation being sportsmanship, playing with class, keeping in mind that it’s a game, keeping in mind that there is a school spirit behind it. That is the symbolism behind the brick.
“The silver is obviously for the Silver Division, and I think what it’s been able to do is it has brought out a very spirited group of students from our school and it’s brought a very spirited group of students out from LT.”
Both teams play hard and physical and both schools have arguably the most passionate student cheering sections in the area. While the fans have been known to say some borderline inappropriate things, the teams relish playing before large crowds.
“We love it,” Wiggins said. “We feed off the energy that the students bring.
“There’s nothing personal. It’s all about two schools that are really spirited and really passionate about their teams, so for us it’s always a special game.
“It’s a conference game and it made a lot of sense for us because of the homecoming weekend to take it off that traditional Saturday and move it to a Friday night where both our alumni and students can come out and not have anything conflicting on their schedules.”
The Lions, who are rarely in the role of underdog, do not lack for motivation because the Red Devils have three things they want in the Brick, the league title and the state championship.
They would like nothing more than to snap Hinsdale Central’s 20-game league winning streak, and they have the talent to do it. Most pundits figure the game will be decided by a single goal, probably on a set piece.
The Red Devils have a huge target in 6-foot-5 senior forward Rigoberto Rojas, who is on the High School All-American Game watch list. The former Fire Academy striker is a big reason why Hinsdale Central has outscored opponents 40-10.
Four other seniors –- midfielders Louis St. John, Jimmy Walker and Stephen Coan and forward Bryan Loebig –- have been offensive stalwarts this fall. Loebig, who scored his sixth goal in last weekend’s 1-0 win over Naperville Central, is a particularly dangerous playmaker.
“They have some of the top players in the state,” Labbato noted. “We have very good players too, and our players can maybe make a name for themselves in the next week and push themselves as some of the players to know. But right now Hinsdale has a lot of the publicity, and rightly so.
“They won state, they come back, they grab a couple of new kids back on the team and start out by beating Morton and have a really good run. They have a special team.”
The Red Devils traditionally have been stingy defensively under Wiggins, and this year is no exception. They don’t have a standout defender such as 2015 graduate Evan Floersch, as they have in recent years, but senior goalkeeper Ethan Gama is a menacing presence between the pipes and has posted five shutouts.
“The breakdown is how you deal with the creativity that they have with their top players along with the system that Hinsdale Central defensively runs,” Labbato said. “It’s just tough to break down. Along with the free kicks they clearly train, everything’s on.”
Lyon’s top scoring threat is 5-foot-5 junior Isaiah Nieves. He leads the team is scoring with five goals, two of which came in the Lions’ 3-1 win over St. Charles North in the Pepsi quarterfinals.
“Isaiah Nieves is a goal scorer,” Labbato said. “When we’ve scored he’s been around the assists and goals.”
Three other players to watch are workhorse senior midfielder Aaron Onion, versatile senior John Mazur and stalwart senior defender Nick Economou, who anchors a back line that has surrendered seven goals, no more than one in any game.
“Nick Economou at center back has had probably one of the better years at defender that we’ve had,” Labbato said. “John Mazur has played on defense, midfield and forward. He’s played in every spot for us. It will be interesting to see where he plays this upcoming week; wherever we need him, basically.
“The combination of these guys who have already put it together this year along with emerging guys, we’ve just got to win moments in the game that are important and not fall apart in certain moments and try to stick around to the end.”
In the end, the game will come down to execution. Most of the players know each other well and have played with or against each other for years.
“We love to play LT every year, and it’s one of our biggest games,” Loebig said. “It’s obviously very important."
What makes this rivalry so special?
“I think it’s just every year we both have really strong teams, and this rivalry has been there since forever,” Loebig said. “So that kind of fuels it every year, to (see) who has the brick and who doesn’t.
“We all play with (the Lions). We’re friends off the field, but maybe not on that day.”
invasion by Hinsdale Central
Silver Brick matchup has multiple layers of luster
By Matt Le Cren
The brightness of the Friday night lights.
The hint of an autumnal chill in the air.
The roar of a large crowd amid the pageantry of homecoming week.
And the presence of your fiercest rival.
Sounds like the typical makings of a high school football game, right?
Wrong.
While the above ingredients all will be present Friday night at Bennett Field in Western Springs, the sport being played will be soccer.
No. 2 Hinsdale Central and no. 9 Lyons Township square off again in their annual battle for the Silver Brick. And for the many soccer enthusiasts expected to be on hand, it will undoubtedly be great theater.
The two West Suburban Conference Silver Division powers, who have each won a state championship in the past six years, are once again off to strong starts.
Host Lyons, which is 9-2-1 overall and 2-0-0 in the WSC Silver after beating Proviso West 6-0 Wednesday, is riding a six-game winning streak and has advanced to the title game of the PepsiCo Showdown for the fourth time in five years.
The Pepsi final, in which the fourth-seeded Lions will face sixth seed Libertyville, will take place Sunday afternoon at DePaul University.
But Lyons will not look past reigning state champion Hinsdale Central (9-1-1, 2-0-0), which has not lost to an in-state opponent this season.
The Red Devils have won the Silver Brick in each of the past three seasons. Last year they edged the Lions 1-0 at home to retain the traveling trophy, thus denying the Lions the conference crown, and then eliminated the Lions from the playoffs with a 1-0 win on penalty kicks in the sectional semifinal en route to the Class 3A state title.
So you can imagine the hype that is building for Friday’s game.
“We always have a homecoming game on Friday night,” Lyons coach Paul Labbato said. “This year we couldn’t find a date for Hinsdale Central and we didn’t know if that was going to be a good fit because we already have a big crowd for the homecoming game and then we have a big crowd game for the Hinsdale game. But we felt like the combination was pretty special.
“So judging from the previous years of crowds that we get and this being Homecoming week, we’re feeling that it’s going to be a pretty insane amount of people there for a soccer game. I would say (at least) over 1,000.”
Though it is still early, this game will most likely decide the league title. That is no surprise: Hinsdale Central and Lyons have combined to win at least a share of the last seven WSC Silver titles.
But what makes this game more special, at least to the coaches, is the Silver Brick, the trophy dreamed up by Labbato and Hinsdale Central coach Mike Wiggins to symbolize the relationship between the two programs.
“Coach Labbato and I came up with the Silver Brick back in 2008, and the idea was to highlight the rivalry in a positive way,” Wiggins said. “It was designed to bring a heightened awareness to the rivalry but to do it in a way that really gave the brick an opportunity to be the symbol of what the rivalry should be about.
“The idea (is) that a brick would serve as something that is attached to a foundation, (with) the foundation being sportsmanship, playing with class, keeping in mind that it’s a game, keeping in mind that there is a school spirit behind it. That is the symbolism behind the brick.
“The silver is obviously for the Silver Division, and I think what it’s been able to do is it has brought out a very spirited group of students from our school and it’s brought a very spirited group of students out from LT.”
Both teams play hard and physical and both schools have arguably the most passionate student cheering sections in the area. While the fans have been known to say some borderline inappropriate things, the teams relish playing before large crowds.
“We love it,” Wiggins said. “We feed off the energy that the students bring.
“There’s nothing personal. It’s all about two schools that are really spirited and really passionate about their teams, so for us it’s always a special game.
“It’s a conference game and it made a lot of sense for us because of the homecoming weekend to take it off that traditional Saturday and move it to a Friday night where both our alumni and students can come out and not have anything conflicting on their schedules.”
The Lions, who are rarely in the role of underdog, do not lack for motivation because the Red Devils have three things they want in the Brick, the league title and the state championship.
They would like nothing more than to snap Hinsdale Central’s 20-game league winning streak, and they have the talent to do it. Most pundits figure the game will be decided by a single goal, probably on a set piece.
The Red Devils have a huge target in 6-foot-5 senior forward Rigoberto Rojas, who is on the High School All-American Game watch list. The former Fire Academy striker is a big reason why Hinsdale Central has outscored opponents 40-10.
Four other seniors –- midfielders Louis St. John, Jimmy Walker and Stephen Coan and forward Bryan Loebig –- have been offensive stalwarts this fall. Loebig, who scored his sixth goal in last weekend’s 1-0 win over Naperville Central, is a particularly dangerous playmaker.
“They have some of the top players in the state,” Labbato noted. “We have very good players too, and our players can maybe make a name for themselves in the next week and push themselves as some of the players to know. But right now Hinsdale has a lot of the publicity, and rightly so.
“They won state, they come back, they grab a couple of new kids back on the team and start out by beating Morton and have a really good run. They have a special team.”
The Red Devils traditionally have been stingy defensively under Wiggins, and this year is no exception. They don’t have a standout defender such as 2015 graduate Evan Floersch, as they have in recent years, but senior goalkeeper Ethan Gama is a menacing presence between the pipes and has posted five shutouts.
“The breakdown is how you deal with the creativity that they have with their top players along with the system that Hinsdale Central defensively runs,” Labbato said. “It’s just tough to break down. Along with the free kicks they clearly train, everything’s on.”
Lyon’s top scoring threat is 5-foot-5 junior Isaiah Nieves. He leads the team is scoring with five goals, two of which came in the Lions’ 3-1 win over St. Charles North in the Pepsi quarterfinals.
“Isaiah Nieves is a goal scorer,” Labbato said. “When we’ve scored he’s been around the assists and goals.”
Three other players to watch are workhorse senior midfielder Aaron Onion, versatile senior John Mazur and stalwart senior defender Nick Economou, who anchors a back line that has surrendered seven goals, no more than one in any game.
“Nick Economou at center back has had probably one of the better years at defender that we’ve had,” Labbato said. “John Mazur has played on defense, midfield and forward. He’s played in every spot for us. It will be interesting to see where he plays this upcoming week; wherever we need him, basically.
“The combination of these guys who have already put it together this year along with emerging guys, we’ve just got to win moments in the game that are important and not fall apart in certain moments and try to stick around to the end.”
In the end, the game will come down to execution. Most of the players know each other well and have played with or against each other for years.
“We love to play LT every year, and it’s one of our biggest games,” Loebig said. “It’s obviously very important."
What makes this rivalry so special?
“I think it’s just every year we both have really strong teams, and this rivalry has been there since forever,” Loebig said. “So that kind of fuels it every year, to (see) who has the brick and who doesn’t.
“We all play with (the Lions). We’re friends off the field, but maybe not on that day.”