STREAMWOOD — About the time the state final tournament pairings are announced in October, many teams will begin dedicating time to penalty kicks. 

Count Young among them.

On Thursday it looked like they might not need to.

Seniors Aidan Leatourneau, Leo Antoniewicz, Sam Henle, John Stanton and Kiko Teles all converted their shootout attempts against no. 19 Stagg in the first of two semifinal games of the Streamwood Fall Classic at Millennium Field.

Young senior goalkeeper Tommy Lyons made a save on Stagg’s third attempt of the night, so Teles’ finish finished the Chargers on the first shot of the fifth round. 

The Dolphins advanced to Saturday’s championship game against no. 20 Elgin, which knocked off third-ranked Leyden 3-2 in the nightcap.

Young and Stagg went immediately to a shootout,  per tournament rules, after the teams tied 1-1 after 80 minutes of regulation.

“Honestly, we haven’t even practiced (shootouts) yet,” Young coach Nick Maksa said. “So, I was really pumped for the guys. When the playoffs come around, about two weeks before the playoffs, we will practice PKs after every single practice to get used to it. 

“They’re cold. They’re confident, I should say. It’s good. I’m happy with the group and how far we’ve come.”

Stagg seniors Hubert Turek and Jacob Leshikowski made their PKs to match the Dolphins through the first two rounds. The Chargers third shooter hesitated for a moment after initially approaching the ball. When he shot it, Young keeper Tommy Lyons was there to stop it.

“Last year I was the PK specialist so this wasn’t my first pen shootout,” Lyons said. “I love pen shootouts. They’re my favorite part of all sports. I think they’re the most exciting sports moment possible.”

Both teams were gassed from the tournament schedule.

Stagg (5-1-2) played Oak Park and River Forest to a 1-1 tie Wednesday. On Monday, they beat York 2-0.

“I know the other teams are playing the same (back-to-back), but our guys, we’re pretty beat up right now,” Stagg coach Mike Kealy said. “This might be a blessing in the long run.”

The Chargers had to rally to send the game to the shootout. Coming from behind is something the Chargers have proven adept at.

“I’m not upset. I’m happy with how we did overall in the tournament, being our first time through,” Kealy said. “I didn’t expect to be in this position to be honest with you. We went 2-1-1 (here) overall, so I’ll take it. 

“Hats off to Young for playing a solid defensive match, and they capitalized. I’m happy we fought back. That’s something you want to see out of your team, an ability to come back.”

The match marked the third time the Chargers have come-from-behind this season. They did it to tie Reavis on Sept. 9 as well as against Oak Park and River Forest.

“What we’re going to work on is not getting behind with those slow starts,” Kealy said. “We’re working on maybe getting better starting the match. But our legs were gone (tonight). We were kind of toast today.”

Kealy compared Wednesday’s tie with the Huskies to the feel of a sectional championship. Returning to the same field the next day against another strong opponent, the Chargers proved worthy of earning a draw after 80 minutes, but left with the sting of a state tournament-ending loss in the shootout.

“(Wednesday) night was a battle, so I think that zapped us,” Kealy said. “We fought back. It was like 67 to 33 percent possession (in Oak Park and River Forest’s favor). We knew we were going to be out-possessed, but our boys played really well.”

Young made a strong bid to take the lead midway through the first half when Stanton fired a 17-yard shot that required a leaping rejection from Stagg senior goalkeeper Michal Knych.

A couple minutes later, Stanton sent a cross to junior forward Evan Lee, but his header was denied by Knych.

Finally, the duo broke through with 8:57 left before halftime. Stanton received a ball from Lee in the box and moved toward the goal before sending it to the back of the net for the 1-0 advantage. 

Stanton, who also blasted home his PK in the shootout, was named the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match.

“I assisted (Lee) last game,” said Stanton, who played defender last fall. “I’ve had a few, and we’ve been working well together. Playing striker is new for me, but I’m getting it together a little better, finishing better. 

“Evan’s (Lee) new to the team this year, and he’s stepped up a ton. He’s been one of our best players. He’s assisted a lot.”

While owning the 1-0 lead at halftime, the Dolphins knew they left some goals on the field and allowed the Chargers to stand one play away from tying the game. That’s what happened in the second half.

“The first half we were all over them,” Stanton said. “The midfield was marking their (butts) off. They really could not get through us and out wide. 

“We were beating their outside backs one-on-one and getting service in. On top of that we were beating them on the dribble, so they had to foul us a lot.

“We got a lot of set pieces which created some good chances. And then counterattacks, we work fast and get the ball up. We play off of each other well. We combined well.”

Without a doubt, Young was looking to throw the first punch, so to speak. The Dolphins just couldn’t find the knockout blow.

“We came out of the gate ready to go, and maybe we hit them in the mouth in the first 10 (minutes). Maybe it took them a minute to get their legs and stuff,” Maksa said. “That’s kind of what we’re always trying to do. Can we hit somebody in the mouth for the first 10 minutes and put them under pressure?”

It was Stagg that came out slugging back in the second half.

“In the first half we dominated. We knew in the second half they were going to get it together and get fired up. They put it on us a little bit in the second half,” Maksa said. 

“Tommy (Lyons) made some great saves, and the boys battled back. It’s kind of been the theme of the season. It doesn’t matter what’s going on until the end. I’m always proud of our guys’ effort. The way we played today, I couldn't be happier with them.”

Turek, who remained on the bench the entire first half nursing an injury, tied the game at 1-1 with 22:42 remaining when he received a pass from Jacob Leshikowski on the right side of the box and lined it in.

“I didn’t play in the first half with the hamstring injury, but the team needed me. So, I did my thing and scored the equalizer,” he said. “It’s not easy (playing back-to-back matches) and the hamstring hurts. We got lucky with coming back, but the result wasn’t what we wanted.”

Stagg suffered its first loss of the season, but they’ve had plenty of good days and expect more as they continue to progress.

“It was not our day today,” Turek said. “We didn’t play to the best of our abilities. We didn’t perform as well as we needed to. It was a good tournament. 

“Last year we were at BodyArmor, but the teams here are a lot better. It prepares us better for upcoming games. We have some good games ahead of us. I think we were ready for this. This tournament has prepared us. This has been a good experience.”

Young senior midfielder Oren Epstein likes the roll his team is on.

“I think we started off the season a little slower than how we’re moving now, or at least how we started last year,” he said. “I think to do really well in this tournament has been huge for us, and all the boys have been working really hard to win. Pulling it out today was our goal, and now we’re just looking forward to the next one.”

And that “next one” is for something pretty cool: an in-season tournament title trophy.

“We start with a tough schedule. It kind of softens for us in the middle, and it stiffens up again here,” Maksa said. “I’m really happy with the way we’re improving. I don’t think we’ve hit our peak yet, which is nice. We have a couple guys out. If we can get them healthy, we’ll really be rolling. 

“I’m so happy with the effort. The effort is always there.”

Starting lineups

Stagg
GK: Michal Knych
D: Trent Banik
D: Josue Gutierrez
D: Jakub Kasiak
D: Sebastian Kornak
D: Alfredo Nava
MF: Adrian Tavera
MF: Jacob Skupien
MF: Maciej Ostrega
F: Jacob Leshikowski
F: John Jurbran

Young
GK: Tommy Lyons
D: Toby Anthony
D: Aidan Leatourneau
D: Haiden Negrillo
MF: Leo Antoniewicz
MF: Oren Epstein
MF: Sam Henle
MF: John Stanton
F: Curtis Jackson
F: Evan Lee
F: Kiko Teles

Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: John Stanton, sr., MF, Young

Scoring summary

First half
Y: Stanton (Lee), 32’

Second half
S: Turek (Leshikowski), 58’