ESCC's new top rivals, Benet and St. Patrick, meet with league title in view
By Mike Garofola
Benet faces rival St. Patrick at 6:15 p.m. Monday at Read-Dunning Stadium on the Northwest Side of Chicago in what will go a long way in deciding which club will lift the ESCC championship trophy in two weeks.
The rivalry between these clubs is currently the best in the league. That right is fueled by the final results during the past two seasons, and the fact they are the only teams ranked in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. Benet sits at no. 4, and St. Patrick aims to rise from its no. 25 spot.
This derby has extra juice after a somewhat controversial ending in 2019.
St. Patrick claimed the first league crown in program history in 2018 with a perfect 9-0-0 record. Benet followed closely with their 8-1-0 record.
These two clubs were easily among the top sides in the state in 2019. That season the pair went to overtime at 1-1, and the Redwings faithful thought for sure victory was theirs when Sam Hepburn slotted into the back of the net in the 90th minute.
After a long discussion by the officials, Hepburn and his teammates saw the game-winner erased and the thriller ended in a 1-1 draw.
A few days later, the Redwings won the title outright with an 8-0-1 record. The Shamrocks behind at 7-0-2 for the rare spectacle of two undefeated teams in a conference race.
"That 1-1 result has stayed with all of us who were on that team, so we're all looking to make a statement at st. Patrick," said senior Preston Wray, a key figure in the Redwings Class AA state championship run that season as well as this year.
"We lost some important players from that championship team, and it's obviously not easy to replace guys like Nick (Renfro) and Nick (Augustyn) in our midfield, but the young guys we now have have adjusted well to the speed of play and with our style. So we'll be ready for this game."
Wray, who has been accepted to the University of Wisconsin where he will major in computer science, says the longtime rivalry with Saint Viator has always been a strong one for the Redwings. But for now for Benet (7-1-1, 5-0-0) it's St. Patrick.
"They have had some great teams since I came to Benet, twice state qualifiers, fourth last season (and in 2017). It's been them and us in the race for the ESCC."
St. Patrick (6-2-0, 5-1-0) is ready with a revamped roster.
"We lost nearly all of our starting lineup from last year, but I feel we still have, despite being so young, a very good team," began Shamrocks (6-2-0, 4-1-0) captain Sebastian Estrada, who recently was named Athlete of the Week by the Shamrocks athletic department after after bagging six goals during that time.
The senior, who leads St. Patrick with 12 goals in seven games played, points to the Shamrocks 3-1 away loss to upstart Notre Dame as an important milestone in the growth of his young teammates.
"That loss really showed our team how competitive high school soccer can be, and how we being such a young team need to learn to adapt to that competitive level in order to compete," continued the forward.
"It was a wake-up call and reminder there are many good teams out there, and we just need to work harder and show that we are just as good of a team despite being so young."
Aside from its hard-fought 3-0 victory over Saint Viator one week ago, Benet has been filling the scorebook with boxcar numbers against their league opponents.
Following an overwhelming 8-0 away victory at Marian, the Redwings have outscored their league foes by a staggering 31-0.
"We have a solid mix of young and older players, with the young players fitting really well to our style of play (especially) freshmen Nick Roe, who has lived up to all the hype and expectations prior to him coming here," said Zach Serafin, a four-year veteran and Benet's outstanding center back.
"There's no doubt Pat's is our biggest rival in the conference right now, so we all know this is a big game, and one, if we get the result we are after, can help lead us to a second-straight conference title."
St. Patrick is ready and rested after four games in four days last week.
"Benet is a great team, but I feel we're ready for any team out in front of us, especially Benet," said Estrada.
"As long as we stay focused, disciplined and play our style of soccer, we can compete with them beat any team we play."
There will be a limited number of spectators allowed to watch the game; two guests per player and masks and social distancing are required.
The stands will be disinfected after the junior varsity game before varsity spectators are allowed to enter.
A form offered at this link https://forms.gle/fkcYc1BbixQ19HU46 must be filled out to request entry to the varsity game. Requests must be filed by 3 p.m.
Both the jv and varsity games will be livestreamed on the St. Patrick High School Athletics YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HYFRnfRI-rlqxalTfqUmA
By Mike Garofola
Benet faces rival St. Patrick at 6:15 p.m. Monday at Read-Dunning Stadium on the Northwest Side of Chicago in what will go a long way in deciding which club will lift the ESCC championship trophy in two weeks.
The rivalry between these clubs is currently the best in the league. That right is fueled by the final results during the past two seasons, and the fact they are the only teams ranked in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. Benet sits at no. 4, and St. Patrick aims to rise from its no. 25 spot.
This derby has extra juice after a somewhat controversial ending in 2019.
St. Patrick claimed the first league crown in program history in 2018 with a perfect 9-0-0 record. Benet followed closely with their 8-1-0 record.
These two clubs were easily among the top sides in the state in 2019. That season the pair went to overtime at 1-1, and the Redwings faithful thought for sure victory was theirs when Sam Hepburn slotted into the back of the net in the 90th minute.
After a long discussion by the officials, Hepburn and his teammates saw the game-winner erased and the thriller ended in a 1-1 draw.
A few days later, the Redwings won the title outright with an 8-0-1 record. The Shamrocks behind at 7-0-2 for the rare spectacle of two undefeated teams in a conference race.
"That 1-1 result has stayed with all of us who were on that team, so we're all looking to make a statement at st. Patrick," said senior Preston Wray, a key figure in the Redwings Class AA state championship run that season as well as this year.
"We lost some important players from that championship team, and it's obviously not easy to replace guys like Nick (Renfro) and Nick (Augustyn) in our midfield, but the young guys we now have have adjusted well to the speed of play and with our style. So we'll be ready for this game."
Wray, who has been accepted to the University of Wisconsin where he will major in computer science, says the longtime rivalry with Saint Viator has always been a strong one for the Redwings. But for now for Benet (7-1-1, 5-0-0) it's St. Patrick.
"They have had some great teams since I came to Benet, twice state qualifiers, fourth last season (and in 2017). It's been them and us in the race for the ESCC."
St. Patrick (6-2-0, 5-1-0) is ready with a revamped roster.
"We lost nearly all of our starting lineup from last year, but I feel we still have, despite being so young, a very good team," began Shamrocks (6-2-0, 4-1-0) captain Sebastian Estrada, who recently was named Athlete of the Week by the Shamrocks athletic department after after bagging six goals during that time.
The senior, who leads St. Patrick with 12 goals in seven games played, points to the Shamrocks 3-1 away loss to upstart Notre Dame as an important milestone in the growth of his young teammates.
"That loss really showed our team how competitive high school soccer can be, and how we being such a young team need to learn to adapt to that competitive level in order to compete," continued the forward.
"It was a wake-up call and reminder there are many good teams out there, and we just need to work harder and show that we are just as good of a team despite being so young."
Aside from its hard-fought 3-0 victory over Saint Viator one week ago, Benet has been filling the scorebook with boxcar numbers against their league opponents.
Following an overwhelming 8-0 away victory at Marian, the Redwings have outscored their league foes by a staggering 31-0.
"We have a solid mix of young and older players, with the young players fitting really well to our style of play (especially) freshmen Nick Roe, who has lived up to all the hype and expectations prior to him coming here," said Zach Serafin, a four-year veteran and Benet's outstanding center back.
"There's no doubt Pat's is our biggest rival in the conference right now, so we all know this is a big game, and one, if we get the result we are after, can help lead us to a second-straight conference title."
St. Patrick is ready and rested after four games in four days last week.
"Benet is a great team, but I feel we're ready for any team out in front of us, especially Benet," said Estrada.
"As long as we stay focused, disciplined and play our style of soccer, we can compete with them beat any team we play."
There will be a limited number of spectators allowed to watch the game; two guests per player and masks and social distancing are required.
The stands will be disinfected after the junior varsity game before varsity spectators are allowed to enter.
A form offered at this link https://forms.gle/fkcYc1BbixQ19HU46 must be filled out to request entry to the varsity game. Requests must be filed by 3 p.m.
Both the jv and varsity games will be livestreamed on the St. Patrick High School Athletics YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HYFRnfRI-rlqxalTfqUmA