Warren overwhelms Crystal Lake South
Richie Flores notches hat trick in 7-0 tournament opener
By Matt Misiek
GRAYSLAKE- The Warren Blue Devils and Crystal Lake South Gators came into the opening match of the Grayslake North Knights Invitational on Tuesday afternoon full of enthusiasm and eagerness.
The eagerness was there to erase unfavorable results that both teams suffered in Monday’s season openers.
Warren played an even match with Hersey for 79 minutes before gaining a breakthrough with 45 seconds left thanks to a goal from junior Carlos Murillo. The Blue Devils however, fell victim to a buzzer-beating equalizer after a Hersey corner-kick to end the match 1-1.
Crystal Lake South traveled to Mundelein to start the season and despite getting a goal from senior forward and captain Andrew Grabowski, the Gators fell to the Mustangs 3-1.
When the match kicked off Tuesday, Warren (1-0-1) put its foot on the gas pedal and was determined to break through sooner than the 80th minute. It took only four minutes this time around to get the first goal en route a 7-0 runaway.
From the outset, the Crystal Lake South defense felt the pressure but held firm behind Marcin Sliwinski. The junior defender was called upon to defuse multiple Blue Devil threats with clearances. Sliwinski felt confident early.
“Stepping in, having that central defensive support,” said Sliwinski. “I felt good knowing that I had that central support behind me.”
But the Blue Devils, ranked 22nd in Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 preseason poll, were not to be denied and struck first on a set-piece from 30 yards out. Senior defender Jack Tully struck an in-swinging line drive into the box that bounced off the turf to the head of fellow defender Thomas Macheras. Macheras’s shot found the right side of the net over starting Gators keeper Brandon Gorka.
“Jack is a very hard worker, and we love him on the flanks,” said Warren forward and captain Richie Flores of Tully. “He’s a very talented and skilled player. He knows what to do with the ball at the right moment. He knows when to hold the ball and when to release the ball, and it creates chances for us.”
Flores started his personal scoring spree in the 16th minute. The Blue Devils defense played a ball down the right to a streaking Kevin Penarrieta. Penarrieta’s cross fell to the feet of Bryan Galvin, whose low shot was saved by Gorka, but Flores stayed onside and slotted in the rebound.
Flores found the back of the net two more times in the second half. The Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match volleyed home a deflected throw-in in the 48th minute. Ten minutes later, he drew a Gator penalty inside the eighteen and calmly converted the spot kick, sending Gator goalie Spencer Traub in the opposite direction.
“Richie has put his time in during his four years,” said Warren head coach Jason Ahonen. “He’s someone who has done what we have asked him to do and rarely complained about his role on the team. It’s always nice to see someone who is a well-rounded student-athlete have success on the field.”
Coach Ahonen also pointed out his captain’s versatility.
“Richie didn’t start up top last game,” he added. “He started in the back and played up top today due to an injury to Kody Anderson. He’s still learning as a solo striker and scoring goals is hard enough, especially getting three.”
Junior Blue Devil midfielder Ruben Delgadillo scored twice, including a first half effort in which he weaved his way through three Crystal Lake South defenders and drilled a hard shot off the far post and in. Sub Hugo Flores tallied in the second half.
“Everyone was communicating well off the ball,” said Blue Devil defender Tommy Travelstead. “Everyone was letting us know where they were and when they were open quickly, making sure that we had opportunities.”
Down 3-0 at halftime, Crystal Lake South (0-2-0) had the better of its chances at the start of the second half. They managed three shots towards goal, two courtesy of Evan Carlson.
Carlson, who suffered a bloody nose from an elbow earlier in the match, forced Warren goalie Jeffery Pioquinto into a save. Forward Andrew Grabowski had a long drive go wide as the Gators attempted to climb back into the match.
The majority of the Gators were not a part of last year’s varsity roster. Even though the new unit is a work in progress, Grabowski has confidence that the Gators will jell.
“We are going to get better on communication,” he said. “We have to learn how to connect more than three passes and win the balls in the air.”
Another one of the Gator captains, Nikolas Getzinger, shared his teammate’s view on the topic.
“Our communication was getting progressively better throughout the game,” he said. “Other than that, we did not play anywhere to our potential. Instead of building the passing game, we were just kicking the ball in the air. We didn’t play our best for sure, but we didn’t play terrible either.”
Crystal Lake South coach Brian Allen saw the first two results of the season from a different perspective.
“I think this is valuable experience for us,” he said. “To face Mundelein and Warren, two of the top north suburban teams, it will go a long way for us for what we will face in the Fox Valley Conference.”
Allen expressed that the start of their 2016 season needs to stay in his team’s memory bank.
“This is a growth moment for our team,” he said. “This team needs to be resilient and see how the rest of the results play out this week. We need to take this as a learning moment and see how these play out.”
Allen acknowledged several players who stood out in the match.
“I thought Tommy (Ciezadlo) did well at mid,” he said. “He has played in the back for Adam (Greenfield), one of our captains and did a nice job. Evan (Carlson), a freshman, was solid in the back and solid throughout.”
As for Warren, Ahonen recognized additional standout performers.
“I really like the way the team connected,” he said. “From (midfielders) Daniel Fajardo, Niko Jokic and Kevin Penarrieta in the middle, to the spine with Thomas Macheras. If you have that spine, you can build off of that for connected passes to go out wide.”
Starting lineups
Warren:
GK: Jeffery Pioquinto
D: Roman Fajardo
D: Jack Tully
D: Tommy Travelstead
D: Thomas Macheras
MF: Kevin Penarrieta
MF: Niko Jokic
MF: Ruben Delgadillo
MF: Daniel Fajardo
MF: Mike Bassier
F: Richie Flores
Crystal Lake South
GK: Brandon Gorka
D: Joey Montalbano
D: Marcin Sliwinski
D: Evan Carlson
D: Adam Greenfield
MF: Joel Bennett
MF: Ryan Coughlin
MF: Nikolas Getzinger
MF: Tommy Ciezadlo
MF: Jack Wruck
F: Andrew Grabowski
Man of the Match: Richie Flores, F, Warren
Officials: Rick Naatz (Center); Mark Clark; Jay Weis
Richie Flores notches hat trick in 7-0 tournament opener
By Matt Misiek
GRAYSLAKE- The Warren Blue Devils and Crystal Lake South Gators came into the opening match of the Grayslake North Knights Invitational on Tuesday afternoon full of enthusiasm and eagerness.
The eagerness was there to erase unfavorable results that both teams suffered in Monday’s season openers.
Warren played an even match with Hersey for 79 minutes before gaining a breakthrough with 45 seconds left thanks to a goal from junior Carlos Murillo. The Blue Devils however, fell victim to a buzzer-beating equalizer after a Hersey corner-kick to end the match 1-1.
Crystal Lake South traveled to Mundelein to start the season and despite getting a goal from senior forward and captain Andrew Grabowski, the Gators fell to the Mustangs 3-1.
When the match kicked off Tuesday, Warren (1-0-1) put its foot on the gas pedal and was determined to break through sooner than the 80th minute. It took only four minutes this time around to get the first goal en route a 7-0 runaway.
From the outset, the Crystal Lake South defense felt the pressure but held firm behind Marcin Sliwinski. The junior defender was called upon to defuse multiple Blue Devil threats with clearances. Sliwinski felt confident early.
“Stepping in, having that central defensive support,” said Sliwinski. “I felt good knowing that I had that central support behind me.”
But the Blue Devils, ranked 22nd in Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 preseason poll, were not to be denied and struck first on a set-piece from 30 yards out. Senior defender Jack Tully struck an in-swinging line drive into the box that bounced off the turf to the head of fellow defender Thomas Macheras. Macheras’s shot found the right side of the net over starting Gators keeper Brandon Gorka.
“Jack is a very hard worker, and we love him on the flanks,” said Warren forward and captain Richie Flores of Tully. “He’s a very talented and skilled player. He knows what to do with the ball at the right moment. He knows when to hold the ball and when to release the ball, and it creates chances for us.”
Flores started his personal scoring spree in the 16th minute. The Blue Devils defense played a ball down the right to a streaking Kevin Penarrieta. Penarrieta’s cross fell to the feet of Bryan Galvin, whose low shot was saved by Gorka, but Flores stayed onside and slotted in the rebound.
Flores found the back of the net two more times in the second half. The Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match volleyed home a deflected throw-in in the 48th minute. Ten minutes later, he drew a Gator penalty inside the eighteen and calmly converted the spot kick, sending Gator goalie Spencer Traub in the opposite direction.
“Richie has put his time in during his four years,” said Warren head coach Jason Ahonen. “He’s someone who has done what we have asked him to do and rarely complained about his role on the team. It’s always nice to see someone who is a well-rounded student-athlete have success on the field.”
Coach Ahonen also pointed out his captain’s versatility.
“Richie didn’t start up top last game,” he added. “He started in the back and played up top today due to an injury to Kody Anderson. He’s still learning as a solo striker and scoring goals is hard enough, especially getting three.”
Junior Blue Devil midfielder Ruben Delgadillo scored twice, including a first half effort in which he weaved his way through three Crystal Lake South defenders and drilled a hard shot off the far post and in. Sub Hugo Flores tallied in the second half.
“Everyone was communicating well off the ball,” said Blue Devil defender Tommy Travelstead. “Everyone was letting us know where they were and when they were open quickly, making sure that we had opportunities.”
Down 3-0 at halftime, Crystal Lake South (0-2-0) had the better of its chances at the start of the second half. They managed three shots towards goal, two courtesy of Evan Carlson.
Carlson, who suffered a bloody nose from an elbow earlier in the match, forced Warren goalie Jeffery Pioquinto into a save. Forward Andrew Grabowski had a long drive go wide as the Gators attempted to climb back into the match.
The majority of the Gators were not a part of last year’s varsity roster. Even though the new unit is a work in progress, Grabowski has confidence that the Gators will jell.
“We are going to get better on communication,” he said. “We have to learn how to connect more than three passes and win the balls in the air.”
Another one of the Gator captains, Nikolas Getzinger, shared his teammate’s view on the topic.
“Our communication was getting progressively better throughout the game,” he said. “Other than that, we did not play anywhere to our potential. Instead of building the passing game, we were just kicking the ball in the air. We didn’t play our best for sure, but we didn’t play terrible either.”
Crystal Lake South coach Brian Allen saw the first two results of the season from a different perspective.
“I think this is valuable experience for us,” he said. “To face Mundelein and Warren, two of the top north suburban teams, it will go a long way for us for what we will face in the Fox Valley Conference.”
Allen expressed that the start of their 2016 season needs to stay in his team’s memory bank.
“This is a growth moment for our team,” he said. “This team needs to be resilient and see how the rest of the results play out this week. We need to take this as a learning moment and see how these play out.”
Allen acknowledged several players who stood out in the match.
“I thought Tommy (Ciezadlo) did well at mid,” he said. “He has played in the back for Adam (Greenfield), one of our captains and did a nice job. Evan (Carlson), a freshman, was solid in the back and solid throughout.”
As for Warren, Ahonen recognized additional standout performers.
“I really like the way the team connected,” he said. “From (midfielders) Daniel Fajardo, Niko Jokic and Kevin Penarrieta in the middle, to the spine with Thomas Macheras. If you have that spine, you can build off of that for connected passes to go out wide.”
Starting lineups
Warren:
GK: Jeffery Pioquinto
D: Roman Fajardo
D: Jack Tully
D: Tommy Travelstead
D: Thomas Macheras
MF: Kevin Penarrieta
MF: Niko Jokic
MF: Ruben Delgadillo
MF: Daniel Fajardo
MF: Mike Bassier
F: Richie Flores
Crystal Lake South
GK: Brandon Gorka
D: Joey Montalbano
D: Marcin Sliwinski
D: Evan Carlson
D: Adam Greenfield
MF: Joel Bennett
MF: Ryan Coughlin
MF: Nikolas Getzinger
MF: Tommy Ciezadlo
MF: Jack Wruck
F: Andrew Grabowski
Man of the Match: Richie Flores, F, Warren
Officials: Rick Naatz (Center); Mark Clark; Jay Weis
