Cougars show signs of improvement in JCA win

By Curt Herron

 

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When a squad features plenty of new faces, the key is how much progress does it make from one match to the next.

By that standard, Plainfield South has already made some big leaps forward as far as coach Dave Brown is concerned.

The Cougars opened with a 2-0 loss to Lincoln-Way Central on Tuesday and then beat Morris by a 2-1 score on Thursday.

Playing its third nonleague road match of the week, South hoped to continue its progress on Saturday at Joliet Catholic Academy.

And thanks to the efforts of Rodrigo Garcia and Anthony Skrip, as well as a solid backline, the Cougars were able to do just that.

Garcia scored two goals and added an assist and Skrip got the other goal plus an assist as the Cougars claimed a 3-0 victory.

South only led 1-0 midway through the final half before Skrip and Garcia struck in quick fashion to finally end the drama.

Tyler Olsen stopped everything that came his way and Michael Dunning relieved him in the late going for the shared shutout.

The Cougars were led along the backline by Nhkole Thakhisi, Carlos Arechiga, Michael Santillo, Dominic Nirchi and Ben Graunke.

"We brought seven sophomores up this season and we have a lot of juniors who haven't played on the varsity before," Brown said. "So right now it's definitely a learning process for us. I've probably had to do more coaching this year because of the crew we have but we want to do the right things.

"The good thing today is that the mistakes were less than in the last game and even fewer than in our first game. We're improving, step by step, and on Tuesday we start conference, so we'll see what we're made of right away when we get in a pressure situation, but that's part of the process.

"We have talented young kids and they're here for a reason. They just have to kind of figure out the varsity level a little bit and improve and realize what the game speed and the physicality is all about. Hopefully we got some experience in these first few games that gives us some momentum."

Making things a lot easier for Brown and assistant Kevin Allen are the presence of veterans such as Skrip and Garcia.

The three-year performers have been paired along the forward line and look like they may become a dangerous combination.

"They're our two horses this year," Brown said. "Rodrigo and Anthony have been playing varsity for three years and have been a big for us. We're trying them up top early in the year to see if they can generate for us and we also know that we can move them around if we need to.

"We don't have much size so we want to use our team speed. When we move the ball a little bit, we can be dangerous with our speed. We've been working on getting the right runs and having the right timing and being in the right spot to give ourselves the best opportunities."

The pair teammed up on the first good scoring chance for either squad about a quarter of an hour in for the initial score.

Skrip sent a pass in front of the net and Garcia was there to connect for what proved to be the only goal South would need.

"We have a lot of younger kids who are stepping up to the varsity so they're still getting used to things," Skrip said. "As our games have been going on, we're all getting more into the groove and communicating better and everyone is working together more and we're starting to look good.

"All of us are really close and our unity is really amazing compared to some of the past years so I think that we we're going to have a good season. what I really like about this team is about how we all really work for each other. We're there for each other and we motivate one another."

JCA (0-2) responded with a liner from Nicholas Legare that hit the crossbar and a corner kick from Jameison Jamnik to Olsen.

The Cougars threatened again shortly before the break when Garcia was denied on a short shot following a pass from Skrip.

Not long after Hilltopper keeper Patrick Devine stopped a header from Skrip, he halted an effort sent in by Adam Burt.

Just before the halftime whistle blew, Garcia had a try deflected away and Burt's corner kick was halted by JCA's keeper.

"We have a lot of new kids and they're still getting used to playing on the varsity," Garcia said. "Our first game was kind of tough, but we're progressing and have been playing better together and talking more in our last two games.

"We've been working since the summer on playing together. We don't have that much size so we all have to play as a team. Most of us have been together since middle school so we're good friends and talk to each other and that teamwork helps."

In the final half, Jamnik started things with a free kick to Olsen before South's Cesar Bautista was denied on a liner.

Shortly before a water break, Miguel Espinoza's corner kick was headed away by Legare and Skrip had an attempt deflected.

Not long after the teams returned to action, Garcia sent a pass to Skrip, who connected on a short shot in the 65th minute.

About a minute later, Garcia took the ball near midfield and then drove toward the net, where he scored from close range.

JCA threatened in the late going when Ryan Lees hit the post after Dunning had stepped in for Olsen in the net for South.

The Cougars travel to Oswego East on Tuesday before playing at home against Joliet West and Ottawa on the next two days.

As is the situation with the Cougars, JCA is going through the learning process that comes with having a lot of young players.

And just as was the case with Brown, Hilltopper coach Tom Cranmer saw improvement from JCA's opener with Plainfield East.

"It was like two different teams from our opener, it was that big of an improvement," Cranmer said. "We're getting better step by step. We were a lot better offensively and were also a lot more organized defensively today.

"Ryan Lees helped mark one of their forwards and played really well and Tommy Paige made a couple of nice runs for us. We hung with them and if we could have gotten a couple of breaks, it might have been a different game."