Chicagoland Soccer Top 25
By Patrick Z. McGavin
Everywhere you turned Saturday was momentous.
From Naperville to Glenview and major points in between, a lot of significant soccer was going down. Tournaments and invitationals ruled the day.
The symmetry was unmistakable: old friends Libertyville and Naperville North each won prestigious events by 2-1 margins over high-quality competition, the winning margin a late goal determined by penalty kick.
Clarity has been scrambled somewhat the first two weeks of the year. Sunday was a moment to honor and celebrate the perennials—those programs like three-time defending champion Naperville North, state finals veteran Libertyville, emerging power St. Patrick and programs like Metea Valley, York and West Chicago that delivered the goods.
Naperville North was just 1-2-2 after a stunning home loss in group play against Geneva, a team that lost 5-0 in a rain-shortened game against Benet the night before. The Huskies recovered to beat two high-leve, nad previously unbeaten programs in Benet and rival Naperville Central to again capture the Best of the West.
St. Patrick vanquished its ghosts by defeating Glenbrook South 1-0 in the championship of the Jim Wolter Titan Invitational. “Every year we lost this tournament, basically in the final,” midfielder Aaron Moreno-Lopez said. “We knew this was an important game for us to win, in order to boost us for the rest of the year.”
That brings up an interesting point. Games in September can have a significant bearing on games in late October and November. The games and moments, in the present, are volatile and constantly changing.
Saturday was a thrill ride. What will Week 3 bring?
By Patrick Z. McGavin
Everywhere you turned Saturday was momentous.
From Naperville to Glenview and major points in between, a lot of significant soccer was going down. Tournaments and invitationals ruled the day.
The symmetry was unmistakable: old friends Libertyville and Naperville North each won prestigious events by 2-1 margins over high-quality competition, the winning margin a late goal determined by penalty kick.
Clarity has been scrambled somewhat the first two weeks of the year. Sunday was a moment to honor and celebrate the perennials—those programs like three-time defending champion Naperville North, state finals veteran Libertyville, emerging power St. Patrick and programs like Metea Valley, York and West Chicago that delivered the goods.
Naperville North was just 1-2-2 after a stunning home loss in group play against Geneva, a team that lost 5-0 in a rain-shortened game against Benet the night before. The Huskies recovered to beat two high-leve, nad previously unbeaten programs in Benet and rival Naperville Central to again capture the Best of the West.
St. Patrick vanquished its ghosts by defeating Glenbrook South 1-0 in the championship of the Jim Wolter Titan Invitational. “Every year we lost this tournament, basically in the final,” midfielder Aaron Moreno-Lopez said. “We knew this was an important game for us to win, in order to boost us for the rest of the year.”
That brings up an interesting point. Games in September can have a significant bearing on games in late October and November. The games and moments, in the present, are volatile and constantly changing.
Saturday was a thrill ride. What will Week 3 bring?
| Rk | Last wk | Team | W | L | T | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Morton | 3 | 0 | 2 | Cristian Perez scores 4 against Panthers |
| 2 | 2 | Libertyville | 5 | 0 | 0 | Wins Northside title for 3d-straight year |
| 3 | 3 | Naperville North | 3 | 2 | 2 | Ali Khorfan sparks Best of West title |
| 4 | 5 | Solorio | 6 | 0 | 0 | Kevin Patino is a skilled defender |
| 5 | 6 | St. Patrick | 6 | 0 | 1 | Jaden Buelvas hero against Glenbrook S |
| 6 | 7 | Lyons | 3 | 1 | 2 | Julio Torres is highly accomplished |
| 7 | 16 | Naperville Central | 5 | 1 | 1 | Ben Tietjen is a gifted midfielder |
| 8 | 4 | New Trier | 4 | 1 | 1 | Alex Powell is offensively formidable |
| 9 | 17 | Warren | 5 | 0 | 0 | Josh Segura is lighting it up |
| 10 | NR | York | 4 | 2 | 0 | Joe Meade dominates Wheaton N |
| 11 | 9 | Fremd | 0 | 1 | 2 | Paul Kwiatkowski is stellar |
| 12 | 10 | OPRF | 4 | 0 | 1 | Paul Garcia is dynamite offensively |
| 13 | 11 | Benet | 4 | 1 | 0 | Nick Renfro is player to watch |
| 14 | 25 | West Chicago | 6 | 0 | 1 | Jahir Martinez ignites Wildcats’ attack |
| 15 | 21 | Lockport | 5 | 0 | 1 | Porters capture Windy City Ram Classic |
| 16 | NR | Metea Valley | 3 | 1 | 2 | Davis Quarles stars against St. Charles N |
| 17 | NR | St. Charles N. | 5 | 1 | 0 | Thomas Weber is very skilled |
| 18 | 22 | Glenbrook South | 3 | 1 | 2 | Christian Noordover is talented keeper |
| 19 | 23 | Barrington | 4 | 2 | 0 | Beat Marmion for own tournament title |
| 20 | 12 | Loyola | 3 | 2 | 0 | Mario Hrvojevic is a disruptive athlete |
| 21 | NR | Glenbard East | 4 | 2 | 0 | Impressive showing at downstate Morton tournament |
| 22 | HM | Highland Park | 4 | 1 | 0 | A talented team to watch |
| 23 | HM | Zion-Benton | 5 | 1 | 1 | Dominates CL South |
| 24 | 18 | Hinsdale Central | 3 | 1 | 0 | Tuesday showdown with OPRF |
| 25 | HM | Glenbard North | 4 | 2 | 0 | Nathaniel Enriquez has made an impression |
Look out for: Crystal Lake South, Juarez, Addison Trail, Wheaton North, Evanston, Buffalo Grove, St. Charles East, Glenbard West, Lane, Young, Streamwood, West Aurora, Plainfield North, St. Ignatius