Senior Night has Lake Park hyped for WWS
By Bob Narang
Lake Park senior defender Logan Pobloske is motivated to end his career on a high note.
As one of 12 seniors on the Lancers’ roster, Pobloske said the seniors are excited for Senior Night at 7 p.m. Tuesday when they host Wheaton Warrenville South (4-6-2, 3-5-2).
The Lancers (3-5-5, 3-5-4) close out the season against Geneva on Thursday, but Tuesday’s final home match is pivotal to the seniors, Pobloske said. Their season has been limited to a home-and-home DuKane Conference schedule and a single nonconference game against Timothy.
Lake Park tied the Tigers tied 0-0 on March 25 in their first meeting this season.
“I’m sure the other seniors are also feeling the emotions while getting prepared for Tuesday’s game, both mentally and physically,” Pobloske said. “All of us don’t want to lose this next game for pride and it being senior night.”
Senior defender Anthony Magner, a three-year varsity player, is the most experienced player on the Lancers. As a sophomore, Magner played in 21 games and tallied one goal and one assist in the Lancers’ run to a Class 3A fourth place finish. Magner scored his lone goal that season in a 3-2 defeat to Collinsville in the state third place match.
“Tuesday’s game is really important to the seniors on the team,” Magner said. “Most of us have known each other and played with each other since we were eight years old. This is the last time we will play on our home field all together ... We want to leave a lasting memory and legacy at Lake Park. Coach (Sean) Crosby has been a mentor to me since my freshman year. I can’t thank him enough. It makes going into this week that much more important to me.”
The Lancers’ seniors — Pobloske, Magner, Brian Urbanowski, Max Panek, Jakub Zych, Anthony Bartlett, Biagio Lerario, Anthony Doughty, Patrick Flemming, Luca Leuzzi, Xander Riter and Kyle Czeremuga — are also aiming to wipe away the memory of Saturday’s 6-0 loss to Wheaton North.
“We can’t replicate what we did wrong in Saturday’s loss,” Magner said. “We have to use the adrenaline of Senior Night to motivate us on the field. That could be the X-factor in playing a great game. We will need to protect the ball in the midfield and stretch the width of the field as well as continue stretching the length.
“We find lots of success when we use the full area of the field. The last time we played Wheaton Warrenville South, we tied 0-0, so we will be looking to attack more than we did the last game and put shots on them early. Getting balls into the box and playing hard-nosed defense will be at the top of our focus.”
Lake Park coach Sean Crosby said his team has to be more aggressive. This spring, the Lancers relied on a collective effort to win games, with 10 different players scoring goals.
“We have to defend as a team, top to bottom and stay more compact,” Crosby said. “Our team-defending has to be better. We have to be patient and play for 80 minutes and then to get that goal is huge for us.
“It’s our last home game on Tuesday, the last home game of the 12 seniors. We’ve had a lot of contributions from all of the seniors, some of them for four years. We’ve had a lot of high school players on different levels play for us. Some have been with us since sophomores, some are with us for the first year. It’s a nice mix. I’m very excited to recognize them. Our seniors are a huge core of the varsity team, been a big part of our success this year.”
Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said the Tigers have momentum entering their final two games of the season. They defeated Wheaton North 5-2 on Thursday in the Wheaton Cup, and end the season against Glenbard North.
Callipari laughed at the prospect at attempting to get a better gauge of Tuesday’s match by sorting through games against similar opponents, pointing to each team’s recent game against Wheaton North.
"Lake Park comes in highly touted having some club players jump on board at the last second (prior to the season) and that really solidified their midfield,” he said. “We played exceptional the first time. It’s been interesting to play teams twice in a season because you can compare and contrast. The first game, we did a nice job, had some good opportunities in the final third, but didn't capitalize.
“I know they’re a good team. We’re coming off a really good win and want to maintain some consistency. We’re hoping with two games remaining that’s enough motivation to play with a lot of energy. We have to bring everything we have this week.”
By Bob Narang
Lake Park senior defender Logan Pobloske is motivated to end his career on a high note.
As one of 12 seniors on the Lancers’ roster, Pobloske said the seniors are excited for Senior Night at 7 p.m. Tuesday when they host Wheaton Warrenville South (4-6-2, 3-5-2).
The Lancers (3-5-5, 3-5-4) close out the season against Geneva on Thursday, but Tuesday’s final home match is pivotal to the seniors, Pobloske said. Their season has been limited to a home-and-home DuKane Conference schedule and a single nonconference game against Timothy.
Lake Park tied the Tigers tied 0-0 on March 25 in their first meeting this season.
“I’m sure the other seniors are also feeling the emotions while getting prepared for Tuesday’s game, both mentally and physically,” Pobloske said. “All of us don’t want to lose this next game for pride and it being senior night.”
Senior defender Anthony Magner, a three-year varsity player, is the most experienced player on the Lancers. As a sophomore, Magner played in 21 games and tallied one goal and one assist in the Lancers’ run to a Class 3A fourth place finish. Magner scored his lone goal that season in a 3-2 defeat to Collinsville in the state third place match.
“Tuesday’s game is really important to the seniors on the team,” Magner said. “Most of us have known each other and played with each other since we were eight years old. This is the last time we will play on our home field all together ... We want to leave a lasting memory and legacy at Lake Park. Coach (Sean) Crosby has been a mentor to me since my freshman year. I can’t thank him enough. It makes going into this week that much more important to me.”
The Lancers’ seniors — Pobloske, Magner, Brian Urbanowski, Max Panek, Jakub Zych, Anthony Bartlett, Biagio Lerario, Anthony Doughty, Patrick Flemming, Luca Leuzzi, Xander Riter and Kyle Czeremuga — are also aiming to wipe away the memory of Saturday’s 6-0 loss to Wheaton North.
“We can’t replicate what we did wrong in Saturday’s loss,” Magner said. “We have to use the adrenaline of Senior Night to motivate us on the field. That could be the X-factor in playing a great game. We will need to protect the ball in the midfield and stretch the width of the field as well as continue stretching the length.
“We find lots of success when we use the full area of the field. The last time we played Wheaton Warrenville South, we tied 0-0, so we will be looking to attack more than we did the last game and put shots on them early. Getting balls into the box and playing hard-nosed defense will be at the top of our focus.”
Lake Park coach Sean Crosby said his team has to be more aggressive. This spring, the Lancers relied on a collective effort to win games, with 10 different players scoring goals.
“We have to defend as a team, top to bottom and stay more compact,” Crosby said. “Our team-defending has to be better. We have to be patient and play for 80 minutes and then to get that goal is huge for us.
“It’s our last home game on Tuesday, the last home game of the 12 seniors. We’ve had a lot of contributions from all of the seniors, some of them for four years. We’ve had a lot of high school players on different levels play for us. Some have been with us since sophomores, some are with us for the first year. It’s a nice mix. I’m very excited to recognize them. Our seniors are a huge core of the varsity team, been a big part of our success this year.”
Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said the Tigers have momentum entering their final two games of the season. They defeated Wheaton North 5-2 on Thursday in the Wheaton Cup, and end the season against Glenbard North.
Callipari laughed at the prospect at attempting to get a better gauge of Tuesday’s match by sorting through games against similar opponents, pointing to each team’s recent game against Wheaton North.
"Lake Park comes in highly touted having some club players jump on board at the last second (prior to the season) and that really solidified their midfield,” he said. “We played exceptional the first time. It’s been interesting to play teams twice in a season because you can compare and contrast. The first game, we did a nice job, had some good opportunities in the final third, but didn't capitalize.
“I know they’re a good team. We’re coming off a really good win and want to maintain some consistency. We’re hoping with two games remaining that’s enough motivation to play with a lot of energy. We have to bring everything we have this week.”