Panthers can't hold on to lead vs. West Chicago

By Kevin Chroust
Photos courtesy of James Homa

For 40 minutes, West Chicago looked like an average soccer team.

And for the 40 minutes that followed, it looked like a team capable of dictating play against just about anyone.

It was that second 40 minutes that produced three goals and plenty of optimism in a 3-2 DuPage Valley Conference victory over Glenbard North.

“We came out, pressured the ball, played with our hearts and we got the result,” West Chicago forward Esteban Fernandez said.

“We came out slow in the first half, but then in the second half we managed to get the ball better and keep possession.”

Glenbard North (2-3-2, 0-2-1 DVC) took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Jon Colucci in the 17th minute after Mike Labadessa played a ball from the left end line into the box, but from there things shifted the Wildcats’ way.

But it wasn’t until the 62nd minute that they evened the score. With the ball bouncing around on the right side of the penalty area, Fernandez hit a high, soft volley toward the net that landed behind the Panthers’ defense and goalkeeper Eric Tenut.

Three minutes later, the Wildcats (3-3-2, 1-0-1 DVC) took the lead on a 30-yard free kick by Chris Quintana.

The chances kept coming for the Wildcats, and in the 66th, sophomore center midfielder Diego Munoz played a ball into the right side of the box where Fernandez netted his second goal of the night.

He said the midfield playmakers the Wildcats have playing behind him make things quite enjoyable up top.

“They feed me balls every second, every play,” Fernandez said. “ They find me and I appreciate that.”

Despite the West Chicago dominance in the second half, Glenbard North came within a fingertip of coming all the way back.

Eric Dailly converted a penalty kick in the 69th minute to get the Panthers back within a goal, and in the 78th the Glenbard North forward hit a shot from the top of the box that West Chicago keeper Adrian Porcayo deflected wide to preserve the win.

“I put it up, and I thought it was going to go in, but the keeper made a really good save,” Dailly said.

Coach Greg Chrisman liked what he saw out of his Panthers to begin the match. His team has played from behind and comeback much of the year, so to have a lead and need to hold it was a new experience, and one they’ll need to work on.

“The possession went their way and it just got away from us,” Chrisman said. “Our goal was to get out of here with a win. We’re walking away with a loss and we’re not happy about it. If we got into halftime with a lead, we need to retain it.”

After a first half in which West Chicago didn’t produce anything all that threatening, its midfield came to life in the second and clicked the way coach Steve Brugmann has known it can all along.

Between the strong play in the middle of Munoz, Quintana and Giovanni Gomez, the Wildcats were able to counteract what Glenbard North’s Colucci, Kevin Greiner and Alex Kfoury were able to do early.

“No question we were clicking more,” Brugmann said. “It’s not a surprise at all. The strength of our team from the beginning is the midfield. … We have some real visionary people that can see the field.”