PARK RIDGE – Deerfield and Maine East were ready for some Monday night futbol.

Forget the NFL, there was a Central Suburban League cross-over game going on.

The match was a spot were Deerfield and Maine East had a shot to break out of the doldrums and find a spark that could carry through from the late regular-season into the playoffs.

The hosts took advantage of a home-pitch advantage, the extremely thick grass, and three first half goals en route to a 5-1 victory.

Maine East (3-13-0, 2-2-0) has now recorded two-straight victories following a 2-1 triumph over Niles West last week. Before the streak, the Blue Demons had lost three in a row. 

Maine East’s Yousif Atia, the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match, was the driving engine in the victory. The senior forward tallied a hat-trick to increase his season total to five goals, with four assists. 

Before the game, the Blue Demons had scored just 12 goals and not hit the back of the net more than three times in a game since a 6-3 North Division loss to Maine West on Sept. 24.

The hosts celebrated the victory in their locker room underneath the main grandstand, right near the main gates.

Atia said the Blue Demons are slowly showing signs of breaking free from their early season struggles.

“I think what really got us going today was our dedication,” Atia said. “We were very motivated to keep on going strong today. We’ve had a few losses in our previous games and that woke us up today. 

“It’s a great victory tonight, a 5-1 win and getting a hat trick. It’s a great feeling. I had some good runs. My teammates found me to give me some good chances.

“Our previous games we weren’t at our best. Our new formation is really helping us keeping us going.”

Deerfield coach Ryan Crane said injuries and a tough schedule have taken their toll on his program. The Warriors have taken a few tough losses after losing starting goalie Xander Yang for the season due to an injury and await backup Nolan Zinman’s return from concussion protocol. 

The backline is hurting after starting centerback Jack Berger suffered broken bones in a forearm.

Without the key players, the Warriors (3-8-3, 0-3-0) appeared overwhelmed. Crane said he was encouraged by Friday’s 1-1 draw against Ridgewood, but the result and a day’s extra rest didn’t carry over Monday. Deerfield's winless streat now stands at six matches (0-5-1).

“It’s tough,” Crane said. “Friday was a step forward, but today was five steps back. The injuries are not helpful for us, but we weren’t ready to compete today. 

“I want to really give a shoutout to Maine East. They’ve not gotten the results they wanted this year, so for them to come out today the way they did was really impressive. We talked about having a strong start, but they beat us to it.”

After an Ari Schulman free kick, Deerfield senior Chase Goldsmith connected on a sharp finish from 27 yards low inside the post in the 44th minute to cut the deficit to 3-1. The goal uplifted the small but vocal group of Deerfield supporters in the stands on the warm night.

The Warriors could draw no closer, and Maine East answered with two goals in the next nine minutes to pull away.

“It was an incredibly disappointing night, from front to back,” Crane said. “As soon as Chase got that goal to start the second half, we feel like we’ve got momentum and are playing well. Five minutes later, the ball is in the back of our net again, and it just crushed us. 

“We have to be better about bringing good intensity into games. We’re giving up early goals in way too many goals this season. 

“Playing without two keepers, including a three-year starter at goalie in Xander, absolutely impacts us. You see guys, because of the way those injuries happened, who are pulling back. We tell them not to, but it’s human nature. We have to work through that.”

Maine East senior forward Paul Planica contributed a goal and an assist to raise his season totals to seven and two respectively. Planica said the Blue Demons came out aggressive and seized control of the game in the first half.

“We all played well,” he said. “I was happy to score a goal and have an assist. Yousif gave me a great assist, and I was able to slot it into the corner. Our team played very well and had a lot of energy on the field. We deserved this win.

“We didn’t start the season well, but we’ve built a lot more chemistry, are playing harder and together and playing more as a family. The early goals set the tone for our team. We pushed forward and knew we could win this game.”

Maine East coach Jeff Bishop credited Deerfield for battling despite its injuries. Bishop added his team is starting to get into a groove heading into Tuesday’s game at Highland Park.

“It’s nice to get a win, because it’s been a rough season,” Bishop said. “We changed our formation to a 3-4-3 and got everyone back healthy. We’ve been able to find the back of the net the last couple of games. 

“Defensively, we’ve been relatively strong. We did have some lapses in the back today. Deerfield is always a tough match. 

“Yousif is one of our players being recruited Division I. He’s finally playing with that confidence we knew we had. He has toughness, finesse, speed and strength. He’s fun to watch when he puts it all together.”

Deerfield faced a tough assignment at Maine South in South Division play Tuesday and fell 6-0. The Warriors will rest, recuperate and train up for when they host Zion-Benton at 11 a.m. Saturday on Senior Day. 

 

Starting lineup

Deerfield
GK: Liam Connolly
D: Adnan Zubovic
D: Carter Tremain
D: Chase Goldsmith
MF: Callen Jakymiv
MF: Matthew Seed
MF: Cristian Carani
MF: Joey Awad
MF: Ari Schulman
MF: Jacob Gassman
F: Shai Yeger
 
Maine East
GK: Zakhar Bets
D: Alen Zolja
D: Reasmey Be
D: Oscar Kazanecki
MF: Anar Munkhtur
MF: Tariq Hamad
MF: Sebastian Osorio
MF: Diego Escobar
F: Yousif Atia
F: Paul Planica
F: Victor Cebula
 
Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match: Yousif Atia, sr., F, Maine East

 
Scoring summary

First half
Maine East: Planica (Atia), 4’
Maine East: Cebula (unassisted), 27’
Maine East: Atia (unassisted), 35’
 
Second half
Deerfield: Goldsmith (Schulman), 44’
Maine East: Atia (Planica), 48’
Maine East: Atia (Krone), 53’