Wheaton Academy's season ends in West Chicago
Warriors fall 4-1 to Glenbard South in a sectional semifinal

 

By Darryl Mellema

In the quiet, subdued aftermath of Thursday’s 4-1 defeat by Glenbard South, Wheaton Academy’s players lingered near their home field, talking softly, hugging, shedding a few tears.

Although the scoreline showed a one-sided sectional semifinal result, the Warriors knew how close the match had been – and how well they had played in 2010 – but none of that really mattered because everyone knew that their time as a contestant in the IHSA Class 2A tournament was over.

“It’s rough,” Wheaton Academy sophomore Gareth Flynn said. “I feel bad for the seniors because you really want to do well for them because it’s their last year. Yeah, it’s rough.”

Wheaton Academy’s season started with the worst possible news when senior leader Tim Daniels went down with a season-ending injury. Yet the Warriors picked themselves up, regrouped and carried on. They finished with a 16-7-1 record, won the Wheaton Cup and then breezed through regional play.

“I think we adapted well after (Daniels) went down in the first game,” Flynn said. “We just pushed it to the side and kept going, just like we should have done.”

As impressed as Wheaton Academy coach Jeff Brooke was by what his team accomplished on the field, he was just as pleased with what he saw his team become in all aspects of their lives in their time together.

“We went through some challenges,” Brooke said. “But I really could not be more proud of the guys that are on this roster. They stepped up. We have six remarkable people that are leaving our program, guys who have turned into men this year. That’s the hardest part about coaching is that guys have to leave.”

The contributions made by Trevor Adams, Stephen Fernandes, Blake McNamara, Devin Moore, William West and Daniels – who remained a non-playing part of the team as he recovered – will be missed, said Brooke.

“They have guided our program and they have sought to make it stand for more than just soccer,” Brooke said. “They have made made an impression through the game of soccer to our student body, which I couldn’t be more proud of and thankful for.”

Playoff matches turn on small things sometimes, and this sat on a knife-edge throughout the first half. The Warriors got off to the best possible start when Josh Urban scored in the third minute of play when he got free in the middle of the Glenbard South (19-1-1) defense and hit a low shot past Eric Good in the Raiders’ goal.

“That was a good start,” Urban said. “Too bad we couldn’t keep it going, but that’s how games go sometimes.”

Mike Pyle was Glenbard South’s offensive hero. The senior scored all four Raiders goals, with the first tying the match in the ninth minute. Pyle’s second, on a solid solo effort, came with 10 minutes left in the half.

“Pyle got through our central mid a little bit,” Brooke said. “We knew he’s a great player. We were tracking him. He got loose a couple of times and he took advantage of the chances he had.”

The save of the match came in the dying moments of the first half. Andrew Leutkehans fed Flynn from the left wing and Flynn shot toward what appeared to be an open area of the net. Good, who was moving to his left with Leukehans’ pass, made a point-blank save, one of the best by either keeper in the match.

“He was really good,” Flynn said of Good. “He had some really good saves. Well done to him.”

Good’s save became even larger five minutes into the second half when Pyle got free on a breakaway and put the Raiders ahead 3-1.

All the chances in the final quarter of the match belonged to Wheaton Academy – except for the moment when Pyle scored his fourth goal with six minutes to play.

“We thought it was going to be a game with several goals, going back and forth,” Brooke said. “They buried theirs and we didn’t and they moved on.”

But Good withstood an onslaught. He saved from Moore with 22 minutes left, saved from Flynn with a quarter-hour to play, collected an Adam Hunt shot 13 minutes before the end of the match and was somehow in the right place with 10 minutes left when Moore crossed to Fernandes and Fernandes redirected toward goal and straight into Good’s arms.

“I thought we created good chances all night and they took advantage of what chances they had,” Brooke said. “It’s what you have to do to win a big game and Glenbard South did it tonight. I wish them the best of success.”

Glenbard South faces St. Joseph on Saturday at 6 p.m. for the sectional title.