GLENVIEW – Marmion’s logistics crew made a major miscue that led to an awkward realization Tuesday afternoon (Sept. 24) at Loyola’s Munz Athletic Campus – they weren’t scheduled to play until the early evening.
 

Maybe the Cadets’ coaching staff was a little too pumped for the Chicago Catholic League Blue Division battle against the Ramblers? Either way, Marmion had a little time to kill – like two-plus hours-worth.

 

Coach Gerardo Alvarez found a reasonable diversion – the team went to Jimmy John’s to dine and wait until preparing for the 7 p.m. start.

Even with their extremely early arrival, Marmion kept its focus. The Cadets scored two goals in the first 54 minutes, then held off a frantic late rally from Loyola to earn a 2-1 victory.

 

Marmion (6-4-1, 2-1-1) feasted on the Ramblers for the opening 60 minutes, dominating the run of play and showing hunger for the win.

 

Emilio Morones opened the scoring with 29:39 left in the first half.

His teammate, Patrick Fitzgerald, who is finally healthy after injuring his right knee last season hit the eventual game-winner. Wearing a knee brace, Fitzgerald played full-tilt and blasted home a shot for the 2-0 edge early in the second half.

 

Alvarez was happy to see his team gain an early advantage and watch Fitzgerald score. It was an important win, especially after losing a late lead against St. Laurence that resulted in a draw Sept. 17.

 

“I thought it was little bit of a tale of two halves,” Alvarez said. “In the first half, I don’t think Loyola really had an opportunity to score. We hit some clear ones, even one hit the post.

“The second half we had one chance to score one, but also a couple more. Of course, they are tough at home and going to battle.

“We learned in the last couple of games after giving up two late goals against St. Laurence. I was glad to see that. We closed this one out. It was an important win for us. That early goal was good and big, but sometimes you get a little lax.

 

“Defensively, we kept our shape really well in the first half. It would’ve been nice to score a second one in the first half.

“Jordan Peinado made a big play. He’s dribbles two guys and places Fitzgerald the ball. Fitzgerald was hurt last fall for us. He didn’t play any soccer over the summer. He hurt his arm and ACL. Now you could tell he’s started getting his soccer back. It’s great to see. He scored a great goal.”

 

Fitzgerald, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, scored the deciding goal in the 53rd minute.

 

Fitzgerald’s third goal of the season will be one to remember and include on Marmion’s end-of-the-season highlights. The senior forward raced down the line, took a pass from Jordan Peinado and nailed a shot inside the far post from roughly 22 yards for what became an insurmountable lead.

 

“I saw the open line and saw my teammate was ready to pass the ball. Jordan got me the ball, and I made the run,” Fitzgerald said.

“Coach told me when you see the line to just make the run, it will be open one of these days. He said ‘One in 50 times it will be open.’ That’s my one. It felt amazing. I needed that one. The team also needed that one.”

Fitzgerald said it was a tough offseason for him, but he’s happy to be healthy and contributing for the Cadets.

 

“I tore my right ACL last season and was out until this summer,” Fitzgerald said. “I got hurt in the middle of last season. This feels great to win this.

“The team needed it after being in a bit of a rough patch. We had a tough game against St. Laurence, so we needed the three points for conference.”

 

Loyola (3-7-2, 1-3-0) hoped to atone for last season’s road loss to the Cadets. The Ramblers couldn’t get much offense going before intermission.
 

The second half, however, was a different story. The home side was aggressive, motivated and vocal. A small but loud and enthusiastic group of Loyola lacrosse players supported them in the final 40 minutes. They cheered boisterously and voiced several funny chants.

 

Loyola responded with a strong showing, particularly in the final 27 minutes after falling behind 2-0.

 

“I think that last 20 minutes was the best 20 minutes we’ve played all year,” Loyola coach Justin Dunn said. “That’s what I believe they can do every single day. I think even though we lost, there was a lot of positives we can take from this.

 

“They know they are capable of doing that. I think we were a bit unlucky not to equalize. This is the soccer we wanted to play.

“At halftime, we discussed that kickball is not our identity. If we keep doing that, it won’t work. We will end up losing games, because we won’t be able to break down teams.

 

“I think we were a bit unlucky to give up both goals. Hats off to Marmion. Gerardo has built a strong program that’s super strong every year.”

 

Marmion’s Morones shocked everyone in the large crowd who bundled up for a wet night that included a slight drizzle to go with the first hint of winter. The junior midfielder hit the ball from close to the corner to inside the near post.

His offering, from 24-plus yards, turned into a thing of unexpected beauty. Morones’ first goal of the season was especially memorable, because it didn’t start out as a shot.
 

“We had a short pass, and I saw one of my teammates, Austin Conlin, was running down the line,” Morones said. “I just made the run, took a touch out and a touch toward the goal.

“It was supposed to be a cross, but it somehow went in. It was a complete accident. It went in, and that’s one we needed. It felt good to get my first goal.

 

“This win feels amazing. Loyola is a really good team. We’ve been playing good in practice. We deserve this win. We’ve been working really hard.”

 

The Cadets, as Alvarez pointed out, probably should’ve added a few more goals in the first half. Jamin Berman missed a shot by two feet in the 11th minute, Fitzgerald smacked a long shot wide right in the 16th minute and Emilio Arizaga’s header off a free kick came so close in the 23rd minute.

 

Loyola goalie David Sanchez made two of his three saves in a 12-second span in the 25th minute to keep the game at 1-0.

 

Despite the tough defeat, Dunn was positive in his praise for his team and gave a shoutout to the large turnout of fans, including the lacrosse players. The Ramblers were a different team in the second half.

 

After falling behind 2-0, Loyola did a 180-degree turn and started dominating the game. Right before Fitzgerald’s goal, the Ramblers missed on back-to-back shots.

Two-straight free kicks followed soon after the goal, and Marmion keeper Adam Ozsvath notched a save seconds later in the 65th minute. Ozsvath recorded two of his three saves in the final 15 minutes.

The Ramblers finally found the net in the 71st minute on Cam Hikade’s shot off a perfect cross from Luke Ojala to slice the deficit to 2-1.

 

Hikade said he was happy to provide a spark for his team with his first goal of the season.

 

“I saw Luke, he always has a great service in, and I knew I had to get in there and put it in,” Hikade said. “That (goal) definitely changed the momentum a lot. We had the ball the whole time after that and made a huge charge. It felt great to score, and that changed the momentum for us. They’re a great team”

 

In the 75th minute, Hikade scored an apparent tying goal on a header but the play was called offsides. The Ramblers’ last opportunity was a missed cross in the 77th minute.

 

“We fought hard and played great soccer near the end and kept putting in chances,” Hikade said. “But it didn’t turn out our way in the end. We have to learn from our mistakes and have to play better soccer in the first half. Hopefully we’ll have games in our hands in the second half.”
 

Loyola senior forward Brett LoPresti came off the bench to propel his team with spirited play.

 

“We are a second half team and came out strong. After losing the first half, we played with double the energy,” LoPresti said. “It’s just so frustrating losing by just a little every game and not being able to pull through in the end tonight.”

 

Loyola’s Dominguez felt his club improved on last year’s 4-2 loss to Marmion.

 

“We took a big step forward, but a lot of our newcomers have learned that the CCL is not a joke,” Dominguez said. “Our tough schedule hopefully will pay off in the playoffs. We want to make it far in the playoffs.”

 

Well after his players had exited the field, Dunn stayed late to discuss the positives he saw during the crisp and well-played conference match.

 

“I think Brett LoPresti did a nice job tonight,” Dunn said. “He was able to do things today that led to openings down the line for other players. Rayden Dominguez had a nice game on the field.

 

“One of our key pillars is passion. When we play connected as a team, you can see the fans are part of us. The bench is part of us. That’s the great thing about soccer.

 

“Everyone can feel passionate about their team. That’s soccer. Hats off to those (students).

“I think there’s something special about our group. It’s trying to make sure our guys believe it themselves. At the end of the day, we still have seven games left.

“We have tough games coming up against Brother Rice and Taft. Our focus is always building a program to win a state championship and building that mentality.”

 

After its unexpectedly long day in Glenview, Marmion quickly left the facilities for the approximately 45-mile drive home.

Marmion’s Conlin, a senior defender, said the backline did a solid job holding Loyola to a single goal in the second half.

“We talked about our space, so we don’t have to defend a lot of space,” Conlin said. “That was key. They couldn’t play through us a lot.

“It was very hard late in the game. We were all digging deep. We needed three points.”

 

Marmion’s Peinado, a junior midfielder, stated the Cadets needed a quality win. His second half assist was a key play in the game after the home team nearly tied things up several times.
 

“This win means a lot to us, especially not going back and not being able to close out games recently,” Peinado said. “On that second goal, I just saw a lot of space. I knew I had to attack the space.

“I had a lot of time. I just kept driving to the player, passed to Patrick, and he was lucky to get the finish in the bottom right.”

 

Marmion is now more than halfway through its unusual run of all-seven league matches in a row. The Cadets will likely need wins against DePaul, Brother Rice and St. Ignatius to challenge Mt. Carmel for the top spot.

 

 

Starting lineups

 

Marmion
GK: Adam Ozsvath

D: Diego Tellez

D: Emilio Arizaga

D: Patrick Bergeron

D: Austin Conlin

MF: Mauro Alanis

MF: Emilio Morones

MF: Nathan Voelkner

F: Jordan Peinado

F: Jamin Berman

F: Patrick Fitzgerald

Loyola

GK: David Sanchez

D: Jordy Jacome

D: Patrick Kozak

D: Nicolas Szorc

MF: Daniel Vehovsky

MF: Daniel Sullivan

MF: Rayden Dominguez

MF: Kevin Sicena

F: Luke Ojala

F: Daniel Loder

F: Diego Fernandez

 

Chicagoland Man of the Match: Patrick Fitzgerald, sr., F, Marmion

 

 

Scoring summary

 

First half

Marmion: Morones (Conlin), 11’

 

Second half

Marmion: Fitzgerald (Peinado), 53’

Loyola: Hikade (Ojala), 71’