Oswego East seeks
overdue win against Oswego
Wolves aim for 1st victory over cross-town rival since 2016
By Chris R. Walker
Last year was a year of many firsts and bests for Oswego East. It earned its first regional title and posted a program-high 17-5-1 record.
Despite that great success, a couple things didn’t go the Wolves way. They didn’t win conference (finishing third behind Plainfield East and Romeoville with an 8-3-0 record), and they lost a tough 2-1 match to nemesis Oswego.
A year and a day later, the teams meet each other again for the annual derby at 4:30 p.m. this afternoon (Monday) at Oswego East. Both teams will take to the pitch with some momentum in what should be another barnburner.
Click here to see the Southwest Prairie Conference standings
“I keep telling our guys that Oswego is the reason we didn’t win conference,” Wolves coach Steve Szymanski said. “They’ve had our number, and I’m telling the guys that.”
Oswego (5-6-5, 3-1-1) dropped a heartbreaking 1-0 game to Plainfield North, ranked ninth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, on Sept. 20, but used the tight battle to spur victories over Minooka on Sept. 22 and Plainfield Central on Sept. 24.
“I feel like we’re playing really good soccer right now, and we’re starting to heat up,” Panthers senior Ryan Walsh said. “Our last two games have been strong wins against Minooka and Plainfield Central. Hopefully we can continue the streak this week. We’re playing better as a team, and the chemistry we’ve developed will help us in the game.”
Oswego East (6-4-2, 3-2-0) dropped a tough 2-1 game to Plainfield South on Tuesday but responded with a huge win over Plainfield North by the same score Sept. 22.
Senior Israel Torres scored first for the Wolves, but Plainfield North tied the match and it appeared the game would remain deadlocked. But matches are 80 minutes and the Wolves fought every second.
The hosts posted an unforgettable finish when Caleb Pankiewicz assisted fellow sophomore Josh Lopez for the game-winner with just 38 seconds left.
Click here to see the Oswego East team page
The Wolves were off the pitch this weekend due to Homecoming but will no doubt be fired up to welcome their rivals to the same home field where they stunned Plainfield North.
“We play good against the good teams and seem to struggle against others,” Szymanski said. “Hopefully we’ll be ready to play. We’re playing well for a young group that we didn’t know what to expect from.
“Our seedings are due out this week, so we’re emphasizing wins over names on jerseys. Beating Plainfield North helped us, but losing to Plainfield South hurt us. We feel like we can play with any team.”
Such was the case against Plainfield North. They had just lost to the Tigers (2-1 in the semifinals of the Plainfield Classic on Sept. 17) but got revenge in the conference game only five days later.
“We thought it was going to be a tie,” Szymanski said. “They were down a man in the last four minutes or so. It was a pretty exciting way to finish.”
Oswego leads the all-time series against Oswego East 13-8. They’ve built that edge with wins in the last five games, played in four of the past five school years: 2-1 in fall, 2021; 2-0 in spring, 2021 (COVID makeup season); no game due to pandemic in 2020; 4-1 in 2019; 4-3 in 2018; 5-0 in 2017.
“Obviously having a historic rivalry with Oswego East makes this game so much more meaningful,” Oswego senior Will Kalsto said. “Games like these feel like playoff games, because there’s so much on the line, and everyone wants to do whatever they can to win.
“We have beaten East both years I have been on varsity so I would love to continue that this year. Our team has really come together over the past week and I feel that we are playing some of our best soccer all season right now. I think we should be in good shape for (Monday), but obviously we have to give it all we got, because that’s what it always comes down to.”
There’s no doubt that both teams are hungry for this one.
“Oswego East has a really strong side this year, but I think we have what it takes to beat them,” Walsh said. “The rivalry is big, and it’s growing in soccer. It means a lot every year to whichever team wins it, so we’ll do whatever it takes to win this game.”
overdue win against Oswego
Wolves aim for 1st victory over cross-town rival since 2016
By Chris R. Walker
Last year was a year of many firsts and bests for Oswego East. It earned its first regional title and posted a program-high 17-5-1 record.
Despite that great success, a couple things didn’t go the Wolves way. They didn’t win conference (finishing third behind Plainfield East and Romeoville with an 8-3-0 record), and they lost a tough 2-1 match to nemesis Oswego.
A year and a day later, the teams meet each other again for the annual derby at 4:30 p.m. this afternoon (Monday) at Oswego East. Both teams will take to the pitch with some momentum in what should be another barnburner.
Click here to see the Southwest Prairie Conference standings
“I keep telling our guys that Oswego is the reason we didn’t win conference,” Wolves coach Steve Szymanski said. “They’ve had our number, and I’m telling the guys that.”
Oswego (5-6-5, 3-1-1) dropped a heartbreaking 1-0 game to Plainfield North, ranked ninth in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, on Sept. 20, but used the tight battle to spur victories over Minooka on Sept. 22 and Plainfield Central on Sept. 24.
“I feel like we’re playing really good soccer right now, and we’re starting to heat up,” Panthers senior Ryan Walsh said. “Our last two games have been strong wins against Minooka and Plainfield Central. Hopefully we can continue the streak this week. We’re playing better as a team, and the chemistry we’ve developed will help us in the game.”
Oswego East (6-4-2, 3-2-0) dropped a tough 2-1 game to Plainfield South on Tuesday but responded with a huge win over Plainfield North by the same score Sept. 22.
Senior Israel Torres scored first for the Wolves, but Plainfield North tied the match and it appeared the game would remain deadlocked. But matches are 80 minutes and the Wolves fought every second.
The hosts posted an unforgettable finish when Caleb Pankiewicz assisted fellow sophomore Josh Lopez for the game-winner with just 38 seconds left.
Click here to see the Oswego East team page
The Wolves were off the pitch this weekend due to Homecoming but will no doubt be fired up to welcome their rivals to the same home field where they stunned Plainfield North.
“We play good against the good teams and seem to struggle against others,” Szymanski said. “Hopefully we’ll be ready to play. We’re playing well for a young group that we didn’t know what to expect from.
“Our seedings are due out this week, so we’re emphasizing wins over names on jerseys. Beating Plainfield North helped us, but losing to Plainfield South hurt us. We feel like we can play with any team.”
Such was the case against Plainfield North. They had just lost to the Tigers (2-1 in the semifinals of the Plainfield Classic on Sept. 17) but got revenge in the conference game only five days later.
“We thought it was going to be a tie,” Szymanski said. “They were down a man in the last four minutes or so. It was a pretty exciting way to finish.”
Oswego leads the all-time series against Oswego East 13-8. They’ve built that edge with wins in the last five games, played in four of the past five school years: 2-1 in fall, 2021; 2-0 in spring, 2021 (COVID makeup season); no game due to pandemic in 2020; 4-1 in 2019; 4-3 in 2018; 5-0 in 2017.
“Obviously having a historic rivalry with Oswego East makes this game so much more meaningful,” Oswego senior Will Kalsto said. “Games like these feel like playoff games, because there’s so much on the line, and everyone wants to do whatever they can to win.
“We have beaten East both years I have been on varsity so I would love to continue that this year. Our team has really come together over the past week and I feel that we are playing some of our best soccer all season right now. I think we should be in good shape for (Monday), but obviously we have to give it all we got, because that’s what it always comes down to.”
There’s no doubt that both teams are hungry for this one.
“Oswego East has a really strong side this year, but I think we have what it takes to beat them,” Walsh said. “The rivalry is big, and it’s growing in soccer. It means a lot every year to whichever team wins it, so we’ll do whatever it takes to win this game.”