Blackhawks fall in OT to Wildcats in regional opener

By Curt Herron

When one squad rallies from two goals down to win in overtime you can bet the team they beat won't forget about the outcome.

That's what West Chicago had going for it, and West Aurora had working against it, in Tuesday's Class 3A West Chicago Regional.

With both DuPage Valley Conference squads used to playing in close matches this season, another nail-biter was anticipated.

And the Wildcats and Blackhawks didn't disappoint as they battled on even terms throughout 80 minutes of regulation play.

But unlike their September 22 meeting where West High beat Wego 4-3 in Aurora, goals proved to be hard to come by this time.

Much of the credit for that goes to the two starting keepers, who both turned in fine performances in the postseason setting.

While it wasn't a big shock that Wego's Adrian Porcayo again stood out in the net, his counterpart's effort was surprising.

West High freshman Alex Guillen turned in an impressive varsity debut by even upstaging the Wildcats' talented senior keeper.

But when all was said and done, it was Wego's hard work and determination that proved to be the difference in its 1-0 victory.

The Wildcats were assured of getting their revenge when Chris Quintana found the net with 2:55 left in the first overtime.

As a result, Wego (7-8-6) advances to Saturday's 5 p.m. title match against Naperville North, which won 2-0 over Romeoville.

Coach Steve Brugmann's team played in a match that was decided by one goal or less for the 16th time in 21 outings this year.

Click to hear coach Steve Brugmann interview

The Wildcats hadn't necessarily fared all that well in their numerous close matches, going only 3-6-6 prior to Tuesday's play.

Coach Joe Sustersic's Blackhawks (16-6-1) had also been involved in several matches which were decided by one goal or less.

That included the last eight matches of the regular season, when West High went 6-1-1 to improve to 9-3-1 in one-goal marches.

Click to hear coach Joe Sustersic interview

But trends and numbers didn't mean much on this evening, when the hosts enjoyed the upper hand on chances in the second half.

Shortly after Aldair Vega had a corner kick deflected by Guillen, Quintana scored following a cross from Esteban Fernandez.

Click to hear Chris Quintana interview

There were a limited number of chances before the break, beginning when Porcayo shut down a breakaway threat by Danny Talancon.

Around the midpoint of that half, Guillen stopped a free kick from Danny Alanis and fell on Jared Perez's try that hit the post.

West High threatened again in the final seconds before the intermission but Porcayo dove to halt an attempt from Cesar Garcia.

The second-half tone was established immediately following the break when Wego's Jenaro Terrazas sent a shot wide of the net.

Click to hear Jenaro Terrazas interview

Garcia, Richard Paret and Perez all had good shot tries over the next four minutes before Porcayo tipped away a Blackhawk shot.

Vega followed with a series of threatening attempts, beginning with a line drive on a corner kick with about 30 minutes left.

Blackhawk Benni Ness was denied on a liner that went to the Wego keeper and teammate Mario Alvarez was just wide on an attempt.

Shortly before the midway mark of the final half, Terrazas sent a shot toward the net but Blackhawk David Quinones cleared it.

A few minutes later, Guillen made a diving save on a try by Fernandez before Quinones headed away a shot from Carlos Martinez.

With about 11 minutes remaining in regulation, Guillen tipped a ball over the net following a liner on a free kick from Vega.

There were few good chances during the last 10 minutes of regulation, resulting in the squads to determine things in overtime.

The close loss was a tough pill to swallow for Blackhawk seniors like Mike Vazquez, who conceded that Wego deserved the win.

Still, West High had plenty to be proud of in what could have been a rebuilding year but instead became a successful campaign.

Click to hear Mike Vazquez interview