St. Patrick hopes for breakthrough season
Shamrocks return bulk of 2016 regional championship squad
By Dave Owen
The talent-filled East Suburban Catholic Conference has a new force on the rise.
After just six wins over the previous two seasons, St. Patrick jumped to 11 victories last fall and seized the program’s first regional championship since 2007.
The return of a strong nucleus and coach Kyle McClure’s strong leadership and infectious optimism indicate the best is yet to come.
“It’s going to be good to be a Shamrock,” McClure said. “Last year's postseason run should provide our current squad a lot of confidence. We have 14 returning players out of our roster of 20.”
Among that vast field of returnees are senior captains Chris Modrzejewski, Nate Anderson and Finn Elsmo.
Modrzejewski scored the eventual deciding goal in the Shamrocks’ 3-0 regional final win over Prosser, adding to an impressive resume that includes ESCC all-conference honors in 2015 and 2016 and an IHSSCA all-sectional selection last fall.
“He could graduate as the most decorated player in school history,” McClure said. “We have three very strong strikers in ... Modrzejewski, sophomore Luis Saucedo (13 varsity goals last year as a freshman), and freshman Joshua Torres (former Chicago Fire Academy player).”
Elsmo will be a senior anchor in the midfield, with the versatile Anderson moving into a similar role at a defender spot.
“Nate provides solid, consistent and versatile play,” McClure said. “Finn provides positive energy and confidence. He has been perhaps our best facilitator, setting up his teammates with his superior passing ability.”
Junior midfielder Herbert Carrera scored in five of the Shamrocks’ nine conference games last fall. Sophomore defender Jonathan Rodriguez earned all-ESCC honors as a freshman last fall. Senior Chris Troyke returns at goalkeeper, a position which will also feature excellent depth.
“Our second varsity freshman is an outstanding goalkeeper named Jorge Cebrero, who was a member of the Pulaski International City Championship team last year,” McClure said.
“We also have one transfer this year, an excellent sophomore by the name of Adam Przytula, who should be immediately eligible after playing for a pre-academy team last year.”
With all the depth and talent, the Shamrocks’ exact lineup for Tuesday’s opener at Elmwood Park is in flux.
“We’re still sorting out what our formation and starting lineup will look like,” McClure said.
But offensive punch figures to be a huge factor.
“Our strength should be our ability to score goals and put our opponents on the defensive early,” McClure said. “We play with a lot of speed, pace and quickness, and with a high level of skill.”
On the flip side, a young roster provides both optimism for the future and an element of mystery for the present.
“We are still very young for a varsity squad: 15 of our 20 players are underclassmen,” McClure said. “How we respond to adversity and our ability to be mentally tough will be the big question mark.
“(But) what we lack in size, we make up for in speed and skill.”
Defenders Sebastian Modrzejewski, Richie Hernandez and Juan Leon, sophomore forward Dominic Michi and midfielders Erik Garcia, Angel Adame, Nathan Laboe, Diego Rivera, Aaron-Moreno Lopez and Malcolm McGee all figure to make an impact.
For the Shamrocks, a productive summer provided a good launch to the fall.
“We had 46 players in our program attend a three-day tournament in Burlington, Ia. (the Adidas Summer Showcase),” McClure said. “This included 18 of the 20 players currently on our varsity roster.
“We played some very competitive soccer, but were limited with a few injuries. It showed us the importance of getting into and maintaining excellent physical condition.”
The great finish to the fall of 2016 was an even better eye-opener.
McClure saw the potential for a regional title begin to take shape during the regular season.
“A great confidence booster was our 2-1 loss to Latin, a game that was very close and that we felt like we should have won,” McClure said. “When our boys watched Latin go on to win a state championship, they realized that we are not too far off from being an elite squad.”
The Shamrocks hope to continue their rise into the ranks of the elite, but know the ESCC schedule will be a test.
“Our keys for success are to avoid injuries as much as we can,” McClure said. “We have a relatively small and young team, and we play a very challenging schedule, so this is a concern.”
Conference play begins Sept. 5 with a home match against Saint Viator at Triton College.
“The East Suburban Catholic Conference is always very competitive and includes some excellent teams managed by some excellent coaches,” McClure said. “Carmel, Benet, Marist, and Saint Viator are always among the best teams in the area.”
But St. Patrick feels ready to join that list of the area’s best.
“We think for the first time ever this year we can compete for a conference championship,” McClure said. “We have never finished in the top three of our conference for soccer, and we think that this year we have a very good chance to do so.”
Shamrocks return bulk of 2016 regional championship squad
By Dave Owen
The talent-filled East Suburban Catholic Conference has a new force on the rise.
After just six wins over the previous two seasons, St. Patrick jumped to 11 victories last fall and seized the program’s first regional championship since 2007.
The return of a strong nucleus and coach Kyle McClure’s strong leadership and infectious optimism indicate the best is yet to come.
“It’s going to be good to be a Shamrock,” McClure said. “Last year's postseason run should provide our current squad a lot of confidence. We have 14 returning players out of our roster of 20.”
Among that vast field of returnees are senior captains Chris Modrzejewski, Nate Anderson and Finn Elsmo.
Modrzejewski scored the eventual deciding goal in the Shamrocks’ 3-0 regional final win over Prosser, adding to an impressive resume that includes ESCC all-conference honors in 2015 and 2016 and an IHSSCA all-sectional selection last fall.
“He could graduate as the most decorated player in school history,” McClure said. “We have three very strong strikers in ... Modrzejewski, sophomore Luis Saucedo (13 varsity goals last year as a freshman), and freshman Joshua Torres (former Chicago Fire Academy player).”
Elsmo will be a senior anchor in the midfield, with the versatile Anderson moving into a similar role at a defender spot.
“Nate provides solid, consistent and versatile play,” McClure said. “Finn provides positive energy and confidence. He has been perhaps our best facilitator, setting up his teammates with his superior passing ability.”
Junior midfielder Herbert Carrera scored in five of the Shamrocks’ nine conference games last fall. Sophomore defender Jonathan Rodriguez earned all-ESCC honors as a freshman last fall. Senior Chris Troyke returns at goalkeeper, a position which will also feature excellent depth.
“Our second varsity freshman is an outstanding goalkeeper named Jorge Cebrero, who was a member of the Pulaski International City Championship team last year,” McClure said.
“We also have one transfer this year, an excellent sophomore by the name of Adam Przytula, who should be immediately eligible after playing for a pre-academy team last year.”
With all the depth and talent, the Shamrocks’ exact lineup for Tuesday’s opener at Elmwood Park is in flux.
“We’re still sorting out what our formation and starting lineup will look like,” McClure said.
But offensive punch figures to be a huge factor.
“Our strength should be our ability to score goals and put our opponents on the defensive early,” McClure said. “We play with a lot of speed, pace and quickness, and with a high level of skill.”
On the flip side, a young roster provides both optimism for the future and an element of mystery for the present.
“We are still very young for a varsity squad: 15 of our 20 players are underclassmen,” McClure said. “How we respond to adversity and our ability to be mentally tough will be the big question mark.
“(But) what we lack in size, we make up for in speed and skill.”
Defenders Sebastian Modrzejewski, Richie Hernandez and Juan Leon, sophomore forward Dominic Michi and midfielders Erik Garcia, Angel Adame, Nathan Laboe, Diego Rivera, Aaron-Moreno Lopez and Malcolm McGee all figure to make an impact.
For the Shamrocks, a productive summer provided a good launch to the fall.
“We had 46 players in our program attend a three-day tournament in Burlington, Ia. (the Adidas Summer Showcase),” McClure said. “This included 18 of the 20 players currently on our varsity roster.
“We played some very competitive soccer, but were limited with a few injuries. It showed us the importance of getting into and maintaining excellent physical condition.”
The great finish to the fall of 2016 was an even better eye-opener.
McClure saw the potential for a regional title begin to take shape during the regular season.
“A great confidence booster was our 2-1 loss to Latin, a game that was very close and that we felt like we should have won,” McClure said. “When our boys watched Latin go on to win a state championship, they realized that we are not too far off from being an elite squad.”
The Shamrocks hope to continue their rise into the ranks of the elite, but know the ESCC schedule will be a test.
“Our keys for success are to avoid injuries as much as we can,” McClure said. “We have a relatively small and young team, and we play a very challenging schedule, so this is a concern.”
Conference play begins Sept. 5 with a home match against Saint Viator at Triton College.
“The East Suburban Catholic Conference is always very competitive and includes some excellent teams managed by some excellent coaches,” McClure said. “Carmel, Benet, Marist, and Saint Viator are always among the best teams in the area.”
But St. Patrick feels ready to join that list of the area’s best.
“We think for the first time ever this year we can compete for a conference championship,” McClure said. “We have never finished in the top three of our conference for soccer, and we think that this year we have a very good chance to do so.”