Redwings blank Lions to win ESCC championship

By Curt Herron

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Benet had seen East Suburban Catholic Conference disappointment in two of the last three years against Saint Viator.

A year ago, the Lions scored a pair of late goals to stun the Redwings 2-1 and create a three-way tie with Carmel.

And in 2009, Saint Viator denied Benet a chance of a share along with the Corsairs when it also won the ESCC finale.

So when the sides met again in their final league match on Friday in Lisle, the Redwings sought a different script.

Thanks to goals from Brad Bozych and Paddy Lawler as well as a good defensive effort, Benet would get some revenge.

The Redwings claimed a 3-0 victory over the Lions to capture their first outright league championship since 2006.

In the process, Benet (16-3-1, 8-0) denied Saint Viator (14-3-3, 7-1) of a fifth ESCC title in the last six years.

It was the ninth shutout for the hosts, who've now won four of their last five matches to end the regular season.

Keeper Kyle Dal Santo and defenders Mike Blouin, James Colletti, Robert Tomecek and Kyle Kenagy paced that effort.

The Redwings now focus on Tuesday's Downers Grove South Regional, which feeds into the competitive Argo Sectional.

"Last year we were in the position where we could have put it away but they played great and took it away from us," Redwings coach Sean Wesley said. "So it obviously felt very good for our seniors who were part of that game last year to come back and get a result like this at home.

"Our back line has been together all year. Mike and James are center backs, Robert on the left is a returner who has started every game the last two years and Kyle is another returner. Then throw in a goalie like Kyle and you have a great backline that doesn't give up many chances.

"We think Robert is special since not only is he great in the back but also goes forward. Kyle probably had his best game of the year and kept up with Spencer Moore. And I thought that James really grew as a player today by taking guys to the touch and also letting his team recover.

"We just got beat by Naperville Central when we were up by a goal so it's nice to come back and get this result. If we can keep playing like we are defensively, we feel like we have a pretty good chance of making a nice run. These kids are special and it's been a good group to coach."

The Lions seemed to have the better of the play early on, but the tide started turning after Benet's first goal.

Bozych scored a pair of nice goals in the final half to make the final look more lopsided than it actually was.

Although not pleased about Benet's first goal, Lions coach Mike Taylor still liked their chances at the break.

"Even though we were down 1-0 at halftime, we were still in the game and had had some good opportunities," Taylor said. "But we just lost some energy in the second half and I don't know why. In our last two games, we lost some zip in the second half and that hurt us.

"In the first half I thought we played well and we connected. I actually thought that we had them in trouble at the beginning. If we connect on a couple of those, it's a whole different gamer. But it's high school soccer and you have to play for the full 80 minutes.

Saint Viator now prepares for the 2A Vernon Hills Regional, which advances to the Grayslake Central Sectional.

"I'm disappointed in the way that we lost the game but I'm proud of my kids for the season that we've had," Taylor said. "We've come through some adversity and we've only lost three games with a young team. This game was worth playing if we learn something from it for the playoffs."

In the initial 20 minutes, Tomecek sent a free kick to Mike McGrath and Mark Tun was later denied by Dal Santo.

Midway through the half, Spencer Moore created his own corner kick, which resulted in a Kevin Klinkenberg shot.

Shortly after Quinn Anderson was stopped, the Redwings moved in front for good with a goal in the 24th minute.

Blouin sent a pass inside to Lawler, who connected. The Lions' call for an offside on the score were denied.

"We talked before the game about composure all over the field and how that would be the key since everyone was so excited," Wesley said. "The first goal settled us down since I thought that we were too amped-up at the beginning and gave the ball away a lot more than we needed to."

Benet had the remaining good chances in the half, starting with Dal Santo's long free kick to his counterpart.

Down the stretch, Joey Chiariello, Bozych and Blouin were all turned away by McGrath to keep it a 1-0 match.

"It's a great feeling to be able to take the title outright," Kenagy said. "Last year was kind of disappointing since we had the momentum and they took it away from us at the last minute. They're a great team and it's always nice to beat a great team going into the playoffs.

"The chemistry is just there for this team. In the preseason, everyone got each others' backs and we all put in the hard work this summer. So we came out totally prepared for our first game. We kind of digressed a bit, but playing in these tough games have picked us back up.

"What I like the most about our team are the kids and our coach. We have a great coach who knows exactly what he's doing and why he wants to do it and we all help our team to get there. Coach always tells us to finish strong and I think today was a perfect example of that."

The Redwings had two good attempts early in the final half, but both Alex Senak and Colletti were thwarted.

Bozych struck for the initial time in the 59th minute when he fired in the first of a pair of similar shots.

After flicking the ball to the side of the net, Bozych sent a liner that just went inside the opposite post.

"It was great to a senior come through with a special moment when it counts the most," Wesley said. "He had no angle and hits a bomb that probably shouldn't go in but hits it in the only spot where the goalie isn't going to save it. It's hard to call it luck when you do it twice."

Troy Wheeler forced a corner kick a bit later but Dal Santo came out of the net to deflect Moore's effort.

With about 10 minutes left, Bozych lined a shot off Jon Surdam and Chiariello's rebound was deflected away.

On the subsequent corner kick from Tomecek, Colletti sent a header toward the net but McGrath grabbed it.

There was nothing he could do right after that, however, when Bozych scored again to mirror his other goal.

In the 71st minute, the Redwing senior beat defenders and took another shot that again just found the net.

After Dal Santo halted a late header by Kyle Koss, the Redwings finally were able to start the celebration.

"One of our main goals this season was to win conference and We worked so hard for this," Benet's Sam Knapke said. "And to win conference against these guys, who have a great team, just makes it that much better.

"We had composure and were commanding in the box and put away our chances. Brad had two great goals and Paddy had another. Even after we went up 2-0, we weren't going to let up the intensity against a team like this.

"We have great senior leadership on this team and we made a commitment to each other over the summer by putting the work in and now we're seeing the results of that.

"We know that we have a tough road ahead of us in the playoffs. But we definitely think that we have a good team and that if we play the way that we can play, there's not a team in the state that we can't beat."