Taft shows depth, Pasieka
leads way at Maine East
Senior defender scores 2 goals, adds assist, in 4-1 win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
PARK RIDGE — Taft coach Jeffrey Lucco has an egalitarian approach to the game. He likes to play everybody. His 23-man roster is deep and versatile and the chance to play everybody provides the opportunity of legitimizing his own beliefs.
It is easier said than done. The reality is the best kids want to play the most minutes. Cutting up time is a complicated process.
“I was a little nervous about it at first, because kids get upset,” Lucco said. “Last year that was one of our biggest problems. I kept a big roster again, but we weren’t as good, so that made it worse. This year’s kids are different. They’re really close, the unity and the bond they have is special and that helps. They compete with each other, but it’s in a friendly way.”
The most understanding kids play along. Every team has the right type of kid who sacrifices playing time, in the best interests of the team. Sebastian Pasieka is that player, epitomizing grit and accommodation and knowing full well his time of the field will be limited.
But give somebody a chance to do what they are rarely asked to do and surprises are natural if not inevitable. It's one of the beauties of sports.
Giving his first extended minutes, the Taft senior defender responded with the greatest performance of his life by scoring two goals and adding an assist in powering the Eagles over Maine East 4-1 Monday night in a nonconference game.
Taft (11-5-2) won its third-straight game after enduring a tough 0-2-1 stretch in the final two weeks of First Division play. The Eagles turned a close contest into a rout by scoring three times during a seven-minute blitz at the start of the second half.
“I think everybody’s confidence is at the highest of the season, which is good with [city] playoffs (starting),” Lucco said. “We are clicking defensively, in the midfield and up-top. [Forward] Patryk Knap barely played tonight, but he has been a difference-maker the last three games. He was upset about his playing time, and I told him he had one more chance. Since I told him that, he has been outstanding, passing, making runs and creating space for other players.”
The Eagles (11-5-2) showcased their depth and team camaraderie by playing mostly reserves and seeing virtually no difference in the level of play. Tenth-ranked Taft has an second round city tournament game at no. 7 Mather at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Senior keeper Patrick Mieczkowski, a four-year starter, sustained a gash under his chin in the first round city game against Roosevelt. He was capably replaced by Ziemovit Kopacz, at 6-foot-5, agile and lithe. Lucco also rested his entire starting back.
The previously unsung star was Pasieka, a rarely used defender who elevated his play significantly. He registered his first assist and goals of the year.
“I guess you could say I was lucky,” said Pasieka, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match. “I am not a player who gets a lot of time, and my coach told me before the game to go in there and play with pride. That motivated me to keep pushing myself, and that’s how I got the two goals.”
He was too anxious at the start, nearly sabotaging the team’s first goal. Off a corner initiated by forward Alex Labastida, Pasieka made the first touch as he and teammate, midfielder Jonathan Meneses, nearly collided.
“It first bounced off Seba, and I thought he was going to take it away from me,” Meneses said. “I told him just to leave, and I trapped it with my chest, and I just settled the ball and hit it.”
Meneses smashed the ball inside the near post in the 14th minute. It was a big goal. Taft has proven exceptionally tough to play against when they score first.
“That goal definitely boosted our confidence,” Meneses said.
The advantage held throughout the first half. Taft enjoyed the run of play, closing down space on the rare occasion the Blue Demons (4-8-2) developed any potentially dangerous scenarios. Maine East forward Danny Gamanov pushed the ball forward and had a big target in physical midfielder Konrad Nowrat. Taft’s reconstituted back of Pasieka, Giancarlo Hochleutner, Lambros Karkazis and Jonathan Ramirez played disciplined and hard soccer.
“This is a good team, a suburban team, and typically a suburban team likes to show off against city programs,” Pasieka said. “For us to come in here and score four goals against a team that is pretty well known and well thought of is an accomplishment for us.”
Pasieka started the second half onslaught in the 49th minute after Blue Demons’ keeper Onel Yousif could not secure a corner by Agustin Gallo. He alertly jumped on the loose ball in front of the net and finished.
The ability to finish set-pieces signaled an important step in the team’s growth.
“We get a lot of chances,” Lucco said. “We have a lot of shifty guys who get fouled. We also have some big guys, and they have not scored. We scored one against Solorio. Our first goal against Roosevelt was a set-piece. Other than that we have had chances but we haven’t put them in.”
In the 52nd minute, reserve midfielder Aaron Mansilla recorded his first goal of the year by placing ideal English and drilling a ball just outside the top of the box that Yousif managed to get a glancing touch on, but not enough to prevent Taft's third goal.
“I was actually looking to pass the ball in that situation, but it was not there, and I just took a shot,” Mansilla said. “It felt great.”
Pasieka and Mansilla collaborated on the Eagles’ final goal in the 56th minute. Mansilla played the initial ball to Pasieka, who waited for a crease in the Blue Demons’ back and let loose a strong left-footed ball.
“I passed the ball to the left wing, and I just kept running from there and got it back,” he said. “I knew the ball was coming to me, so I took my time and shot it.”
The rest of the Taft players erupted after both goals. It was good natured and fun, the team able to play its entire eligible roster of players.
Maine East forward Enrique Hernandez averted the shutout by scoring in the 77th minute, but the night belonged to the Eagles.
“I have faith in everybody, so it was good to get everybody in,” Lucco said. “This team beat us pretty handily last year, so we wanted to get Maine East in. This year has been a complete turnaround. It’s good to score a lot of goals all of a sudden.”
Starting lineups
Taft
GK: Ziemovit Kopacz
D: Lambros Karkazis
D: Sebastian Pasieka
D: Giancarlo Hochleutner
D: Jonathan Ramirez
MF: Thomas Wojtyga
MF: Jonathan Meneses
MF: Darek Szara
MF: Julio Zamora
F: Patryk Knap
F: Alex Labastida
Maine East
GK: Onel Yousif
D: John Maratos
D: Marcos Herrera
D: Raven Khaya
D: Aleks Gligorevic
MF: Konrad Nowrat
MF: Jakub Sobieraj
MF: Moe Arifi
MF: Marek Dziergas
F: Danny Gamanov
F: Enrique Hernandez
Man of the Match: Sebastian Pasieka, D, Taft
leads way at Maine East
Senior defender scores 2 goals, adds assist, in 4-1 win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
PARK RIDGE — Taft coach Jeffrey Lucco has an egalitarian approach to the game. He likes to play everybody. His 23-man roster is deep and versatile and the chance to play everybody provides the opportunity of legitimizing his own beliefs.
It is easier said than done. The reality is the best kids want to play the most minutes. Cutting up time is a complicated process.
“I was a little nervous about it at first, because kids get upset,” Lucco said. “Last year that was one of our biggest problems. I kept a big roster again, but we weren’t as good, so that made it worse. This year’s kids are different. They’re really close, the unity and the bond they have is special and that helps. They compete with each other, but it’s in a friendly way.”
The most understanding kids play along. Every team has the right type of kid who sacrifices playing time, in the best interests of the team. Sebastian Pasieka is that player, epitomizing grit and accommodation and knowing full well his time of the field will be limited.
But give somebody a chance to do what they are rarely asked to do and surprises are natural if not inevitable. It's one of the beauties of sports.
Giving his first extended minutes, the Taft senior defender responded with the greatest performance of his life by scoring two goals and adding an assist in powering the Eagles over Maine East 4-1 Monday night in a nonconference game.
Taft (11-5-2) won its third-straight game after enduring a tough 0-2-1 stretch in the final two weeks of First Division play. The Eagles turned a close contest into a rout by scoring three times during a seven-minute blitz at the start of the second half.
“I think everybody’s confidence is at the highest of the season, which is good with [city] playoffs (starting),” Lucco said. “We are clicking defensively, in the midfield and up-top. [Forward] Patryk Knap barely played tonight, but he has been a difference-maker the last three games. He was upset about his playing time, and I told him he had one more chance. Since I told him that, he has been outstanding, passing, making runs and creating space for other players.”
The Eagles (11-5-2) showcased their depth and team camaraderie by playing mostly reserves and seeing virtually no difference in the level of play. Tenth-ranked Taft has an second round city tournament game at no. 7 Mather at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Senior keeper Patrick Mieczkowski, a four-year starter, sustained a gash under his chin in the first round city game against Roosevelt. He was capably replaced by Ziemovit Kopacz, at 6-foot-5, agile and lithe. Lucco also rested his entire starting back.
The previously unsung star was Pasieka, a rarely used defender who elevated his play significantly. He registered his first assist and goals of the year.
“I guess you could say I was lucky,” said Pasieka, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match. “I am not a player who gets a lot of time, and my coach told me before the game to go in there and play with pride. That motivated me to keep pushing myself, and that’s how I got the two goals.”
He was too anxious at the start, nearly sabotaging the team’s first goal. Off a corner initiated by forward Alex Labastida, Pasieka made the first touch as he and teammate, midfielder Jonathan Meneses, nearly collided.
“It first bounced off Seba, and I thought he was going to take it away from me,” Meneses said. “I told him just to leave, and I trapped it with my chest, and I just settled the ball and hit it.”
Meneses smashed the ball inside the near post in the 14th minute. It was a big goal. Taft has proven exceptionally tough to play against when they score first.
“That goal definitely boosted our confidence,” Meneses said.
The advantage held throughout the first half. Taft enjoyed the run of play, closing down space on the rare occasion the Blue Demons (4-8-2) developed any potentially dangerous scenarios. Maine East forward Danny Gamanov pushed the ball forward and had a big target in physical midfielder Konrad Nowrat. Taft’s reconstituted back of Pasieka, Giancarlo Hochleutner, Lambros Karkazis and Jonathan Ramirez played disciplined and hard soccer.
“This is a good team, a suburban team, and typically a suburban team likes to show off against city programs,” Pasieka said. “For us to come in here and score four goals against a team that is pretty well known and well thought of is an accomplishment for us.”
Pasieka started the second half onslaught in the 49th minute after Blue Demons’ keeper Onel Yousif could not secure a corner by Agustin Gallo. He alertly jumped on the loose ball in front of the net and finished.
The ability to finish set-pieces signaled an important step in the team’s growth.
“We get a lot of chances,” Lucco said. “We have a lot of shifty guys who get fouled. We also have some big guys, and they have not scored. We scored one against Solorio. Our first goal against Roosevelt was a set-piece. Other than that we have had chances but we haven’t put them in.”
In the 52nd minute, reserve midfielder Aaron Mansilla recorded his first goal of the year by placing ideal English and drilling a ball just outside the top of the box that Yousif managed to get a glancing touch on, but not enough to prevent Taft's third goal.
“I was actually looking to pass the ball in that situation, but it was not there, and I just took a shot,” Mansilla said. “It felt great.”
Pasieka and Mansilla collaborated on the Eagles’ final goal in the 56th minute. Mansilla played the initial ball to Pasieka, who waited for a crease in the Blue Demons’ back and let loose a strong left-footed ball.
“I passed the ball to the left wing, and I just kept running from there and got it back,” he said. “I knew the ball was coming to me, so I took my time and shot it.”
The rest of the Taft players erupted after both goals. It was good natured and fun, the team able to play its entire eligible roster of players.
Maine East forward Enrique Hernandez averted the shutout by scoring in the 77th minute, but the night belonged to the Eagles.
“I have faith in everybody, so it was good to get everybody in,” Lucco said. “This team beat us pretty handily last year, so we wanted to get Maine East in. This year has been a complete turnaround. It’s good to score a lot of goals all of a sudden.”
Starting lineups
Taft
GK: Ziemovit Kopacz
D: Lambros Karkazis
D: Sebastian Pasieka
D: Giancarlo Hochleutner
D: Jonathan Ramirez
MF: Thomas Wojtyga
MF: Jonathan Meneses
MF: Darek Szara
MF: Julio Zamora
F: Patryk Knap
F: Alex Labastida
Maine East
GK: Onel Yousif
D: John Maratos
D: Marcos Herrera
D: Raven Khaya
D: Aleks Gligorevic
MF: Konrad Nowrat
MF: Jakub Sobieraj
MF: Moe Arifi
MF: Marek Dziergas
F: Danny Gamanov
F: Enrique Hernandez
Man of the Match: Sebastian Pasieka, D, Taft