NAPERVILLE -- Great teams find a way to win no matter what.
 
Naperville North fell behind early during Tuesday’s key DuPage Valley Conference game but rallied for two second half goals to defeat upset-minded Metea Valley, 2-1.
 
The Huskies (12-1-1, 3-0-1) remain tied in the hunt for the league title. Defending state and league champion Naperville Central (6-3-5, 3-0-1) beat DeKalb 5-0 Tuesday.
 
The Huskies, ranked second in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, finish up conference play against Waubonsie Valley on Oct. 10. The no. 24 Redhawks final conference game is scheduled for the same night against Metea Valley (5-7-0, 3-1-0).
 
“I’m proud of the boys for battling back, and this keeps us in the hunt,” Huskies coach Jim Konrad said. “We’ve got to get though Waubonsie (Valley) to hopefully at least get a share with (Naperville) Central (if they beat Metea Valley).”
 
Teams may not always win after scoring the first goal of the game, but it certainly puts them on the right path. Jumping on the Huskies early was just what Metea Valley needed to both boost their confidence and to send a message. It just didn’t end as nicely as it started for the Mustangs.
 
When Naperville North failed to clear, Cole Hatfield seized possession and found Dylan Ferriera who deposited his open look for a 1-0 advantage with 29:48 still remaining in the half.
 
“I think we knew we had to work hard to get this goal, and we wanted to get the first goal to shake off like whatever nonsense that Metea wasn’t going to do good this year,” Ferreira said. “I think we put up our fight and that goal led up to it. I think we let them know we were here to fight.”
 
It’s a series that the Mustangs have been competitive in at times over the years but struggled to find results. While it proved to be the fourth time in 13 meetings against the Huskies since 2010 that the Mustangs lost by a single goal, they remain 0-13-0 during that time frame.
 
“I think we knew we were going to have to fight and knew this game was pretty important for a DVC title,” Ferreira said. “I think that we fought our hardest, but Naperville North is a great team, and we just fell short.”
 
Naperville North, for the most part, has pulled away from teams. Recently, however, they’ve found themselves in some tough battles. While their first 10 games were all decided by at least two goals, three of their past four games have been decided by a single goal or less.
 
“Metea always plays us well, and (coach) Josh (Robinson) does a fantastic job,” Konrad said. “The energy was there from the start, and they got into it right away. They get a great goal. They combine on a bad clear, and they find each other and finish it and put us on our back foot. We messed around (with formations). We bounced between a few formations, bouncing guys around trying to find something that works. Fortunately (Jaxon) Stokes created two chances for us.”
 
Named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, Stokes created the equalizer with a pass and then gave the Huskies their game-winner by making the right decision when he had a great opportunity at his feet.
 
“I think we just kept working, because we didn’t have that good of a first half,” Stokes said. “We started slow and then when they got the goal we had to keep fighting. We had a lot of opportunities in the first half and just played hard in the second half and the opportunities we had, we just scored them.”
 
Metea Valley certainly didn’t make it easy, doing their best to blanket Stokes.
 
“They worked really hard and were pretty much all over us in the first half,” he said. “In the second half I think we won more balls in the air and wanted it more, and that helped us win. I think all of us just had a lot of grit and hard work, and it helped a lot for us to then score.”
 
Stokes slotted a ball to Josh Pedersen who tapped it in from right in front of the net to tie the game at 1-1 in the 53rd minute.
 
“Jaxon made a good run to beat the two players on the outside and cut it back to me,” Pedersen said. “I was just there to finish it.”
 
It was a crushing blow for the Mustangs who had led for nearly 45 minutes.
 
“We go up 1-0 in the first half, and we have the lead for a very long time,” Mustangs goalkeeper Ravi Shah said. “Once that first goal went in, we kind of failed to keep the work up. We’ve got to keep the work-rate up. Then that second goal comes, and that’s completely on me. The backline was doing a great job of keeping them out, but they sneak a shot by. It should’ve been a save; it’s as simple as that. 

“Then we get another chance in the end and credit to North (Same Hess) for getting that goal-line clearance. It’s a tough battle, obviously. I felt like we had it in our hands all the way up until they scored that last goal.”
 
Tied at 1-1, Metea Valley’s mindset was altered.
 
“The bummer with that is the doubt crept in and changed our mindset a bit,” Mustangs coach Josh Robinson said. “The minute that went in, it changed the trajectory of what we were doing.”
 
Without Shah’s leadership and saves in the back, there’s no way Metea Valley is a strike away from sending the game to OT in the waning seconds.
 
“He’s just continued to grow and mature and is the ultimate teammate,” Robinson said. “Everyone roots for him. I never thought he would be a captain, but he does the right thing and leads by example. He was outstanding all day.”
 
Stokes found himself wide open after receiving the ball from junior Juan Carlos Hernandez but at a peculiar angle at the right side of the goal in the 53rd minute.
 
“To be honest, I got the ball, and I was wide open. But it was not an easy angle,” Stokes said. “There were a couple of opportunities that I have had where I cut it instead of shooting it right away, like the one with my left that got blocked. So, I just decided I was going to shoot it instead of cutting it.”
 
Metea Valley nearly stunned the Huskies in the final minute and forced overtime, but Hess made sure that didn’t happen. Sahil Khare had fired a shot that appeared to be Metea Valley’s last valiant attempt to tie the game, but the rebound came out to Michael Senese. He got enough on it to send it toward the net, but Hess was there to clear it out of harm’s way.
 
“I was on the line, and they tried to shimmy it in the goal. It was a slow roller so I knew I could get there, and I did,” Hess said. “We played better as the game went on. Going down 1-0 didn’t help at all, obviously, but in the second half we bounced back pretty well. We got our act together and we definitely turned it around offensively.”
 
While on the subject of turning it around, the Mustangs may be under .500 but they’ve proven that they’re a much-different team than they were in August.
 
“We started 2-5-0 and worked it back to 5-5-0, so that’s a great spot to be,” Shah said. “We played (no. 11) Marmion on Saturday (a 2-1 loss in the Aurora Cup) and North today, They are probably the top seeds in our sectional and are the games we kind of had to make a name for ourselves by winning in the regular-season. It’s also good to know we’re competing and battling with these teams. When we do see them in a regional or sectional final we’re still going to put up a good fight and keep it close. It’s not going to be a blowout or anything like that.”
 
Hindo Allie, the lone senior in Naperville North’s starting lineup, finished strong to help seal the win.
 
“I thought Hindo was great, and we’ve been on him all year as the only senior starting. He’s got to be the guy managing the game,” Konrad said. “He was so vocal the last 15 minutes. He kept reminding us we’re up a goal, and it’s a conference game and to be careful where you’re running and defense first. Be smart with the ball and tackle well. He won a lot of balls and stopped their counterattack, and Sam Hess did a fantastic job at the end kind of saving the game.”
 
The Huskies found a way to overcome their slow start.
 
“I just think it was a really hard-fought game that we didn’t get our goals early like we normally do,” Pedersen said. “We took it to the end and we played hard, which was great, especially because we needed that win. We were slow against Joliet West and again today, but it really shows who we are. We really proved ourselves today.”
 
Hess acknowledged that the Huskies could’ve been stronger defensively.
 
“I think we could’ve done better defensively today in the air and with clearances,” he said. “I think if we would’ve done that the game would’ve been different. I think if we didn’t go down 1-0 at the start we would’ve come out on top by a little more.”
 
Metea Valley returns to action on Saturday as the Mustangs travel to Oswego East for a nonconference match. The Wolves picked up a big 2-0 Southwest Prairie Conference win over no. 25 Oswego, 2-0 on Tuesday afternoon. 

Naperville North joins no. 1 Oak Park and River Forest, no. 6 Evanston, no. 7 Elgin, no. 9 Morton, no. 24 Naperville Central and St. Charles East, Wheaton Academy (ranked seventh in the Class AA Super 7), Reavis and Timothy this weekend in the 19th annual Great River Classic in Bettendorf, Ia. The Huskies have individual games scheduled against Normal West on Thursday, Morton (Ill.) on Friday and St. Ignatius (Cleveland) on Saturday.
 

Starting lineups
 
Metea Valley
GK: Ravi Shah
D: Eric Jernigan
D: Cameron Leys
D: Tony Cuautle
D: Jack Kusumpa
MF: Anthony Hildreth
MF: Sahil Khare
MF: Graham Leman
F: Abel Lopez
F: Cole Hatfield
F: Dylan Ferreira
 
Naperville North
GK: Jack Bouska
D: Connor Hanrahan
D: Andrew Hebron
D: Colin McMahon
D: Niko Ladas
MF: Hindo Allie
MF: Sam Hess
F: Noah Radeke
F: Josh Pedersen
F: Jaxon Stokes
F: Anthony Flores
 
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Jaxon Stokes, Naperville North, jr., F
 

Scoring summary

First half
MV: Dylan Ferreira (Cole Hatfield), 11’
 
Second half
NN: Josh Pedersen (Jaxon Stokes), 53’
NN: Stokes (Juan Carlos Hernandez), 63’