It’s always been true that early season adversity can either make or break a team. How well high school-aged players react to rough times can either be a testament to their character, or a sign that more maturity is needed.

After his boys began the season with a record of 1-6-1, Hinsdale Central coach Mike Wiggins was in a position to find out if he had a group of boys or a group of young men on his roster.

They were young men.

The Red Devils produced a bounce-back for the ages, going 14-2-0 after their rough start and playing all the way into the Class 3A state finals. They won the West Suburban Conference Silver Division title along the way and capped their recent run with a 2-1 win over Lockport in Tuesday’s Morton Supersectional.

“Coaching is teaching, and teaching is coaching,” Wiggins said. “You assemble a group of student-athletes to be a part of a team who have not played together before. So, it was about assessing the strengths of individuals, how they fit into a system, and which system was going to work the best for that collection of players. 

“Hopefully you eventually get to where you’re trying to go. We always want to be at our best at the end of the year, and I can’t give our players enough credit for getting us from Week 1 to where we are now. I can’t say I scripted it this way, but honestly, I’m not surprised.”

Hinsdale Central (15-8-1) plays Hersey (17-3-5) on Friday at 6 p.m. in a 3A state semifinal. The winner moves on to play the Edwardsville (15-8-1)/Lane (16-2-4) winner with a state title on the line.

The Red Devils’ season likely truly turned during a three-game stretch against Oak Park and River Forest, Naperville Central, and Lyons at the end of September. All three teams were ranked by Chicagoland Soccer at the time, and the 3-6-1 Red Devils obviously were not.

Hinsdale Central went 3-0-0 against the trio, and the Red Devils were on their way.

“What we saw was boys realizing that they could be whatever they wanted to be in terms of coming out and competing and working hard,” Wiggins said.

The leadership of team captains Michael DiTomasso, Enzo Cinque and Austen Szurgot was instrumental in helping the team ride out early season adversity, and Wiggins applauded the game energy his bench players have provided all year.

Cinque’s move from the final third to the backline was another pivotal move for this year’s team. 

Hinsdale Central’s backline also features Denis Altman, Milan Puri, and Braden Tingler.  Goalkeeper Martin Contreras is in his third varsity season and “he just gives us a lot of confidence in back,” Wiggins said.

The Red Devils’ offense has seen midfielder Austen Szurgot lead the way with 13 goals and 10 assists, and the senior mid has played big in big moments. Forward Kostas Zamalitis has nine goals and three assists, while Cinque and Matt Gantar have five goals and six assists apiece. Alex Barbu and DiTomasso have chipped in three goals apiece this year.

“All these guys have been really big contributors for us and done a really nice job,” Wiggins said.

Wiggins and assistant coach Tim McEvilly will learn what they can about Hersey prior to Friday’s semifinal, but they know plenty already.

“We know they’re in the Final Four, so they must be doing something right, and that’s really all we need to know,” Wiggins said. “They’re in a good league, playing a strong schedule on a regular basis. We know we’re in for a game, and we’ll have to be at our best to take them on.”