Bad start dooms Falcons in tourney loss to Lions

By Curt Herron

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Coaches are always pleased whenever their squad connects in the early stages of both the first and second halves in a match.

But veterans like Mike Taylor have also been around long enough to know that hoping for it and doing it are different matters.

Taylor certainly couldn't have asked for better starts of both halves when his Saint Viator side met Wheaton North on Friday.

Competing in a first-round match in their own Mid-State Classic, the Lions connected in the opening minute to go up for good.

After adding a goal on a penalty later in the first half, Saint Viator took a 4-0 lead after scoring twice shortly after the break.

As a result of their 4-1 victory over the Falcons at Palatine's Celtic Park, the Lions advance to Saturday's 9 a.m. semifinals.

That's where they'll meet Wheaton Academy, which moved on following a 3-0 win over Quincy Notre Dame in another tourney opener.

West Chicago and Evanston won on penalties in the other matches. The third-place contest is at 4 p.m. and the title at 6 p.m.

Troy Wheeler collected a pair of goals while Ryan Henry and Ross Randon scored to start off halves for the Lions (10-1-3).

Saint Viator also received assists on its first and last goals from Spencer Moore while Henry helped out on Randon's score.

Wheaton North (2-7-4) completed the match scoring when Shelton Thompson connected following an assist from Isaac Roberts.

The Falcons meet QND in the 9 a.m. consolation semis. The place matches are at the same times as the championship bracket.

Just as the sides were getting used to playing on the turf at the Palatine Park District field, the tourney hosts struck.

With less than a minute gone, Moore sent a shot that keeper A.J. Bibergall couldn't handle and Henry put in the rebound.

"We came out and had a lot of good crosses and got a lot of people on the ball," Henry said. "Their goalie did a nice job by making a lot of saves. I felt that we connected really well and had a lot of positive energy.

"We're looking pretty good so far and hoping that we can go all the way in the playoffs. I like how well we connect with each other. We're also a really close team and we hang out with each other outside of practice."

Taylor was understandably pleased with how well his team started off both halves of the opener in their own tournament.

"Ryan came in and didn't assume that the goalkeeper had the ball and he pops lose and puts it away," Taylor said. "That set the tone, shows guys where we're going and lets them relax a little.

"Then we come back and score an early one in the second half and I think that third goal puts it away. And it was nice to have some of the other kids play so we could see what they've got.

"Ryan played a very good game all the way through, even when we moved him back to defense. I liked what Ross did and how he's stepping up as a senior. And Spencer plays well all the time for us."

The veteran coach likes how his squad has performed in the wake of losing Ashwin Cornelius for the season due to injury.

"I think we have a quality team and we're growing day by day," Taylor said. "We lost a couple of kids at the beginning of the year and now Ashwin. But it's not a one- or two-person effort, it's a team.

"We don't need any one person to win. Don't get me wrong, to have Ashwin would help make winning easier for us. Instead, a couple of other guys are going to have to step up now in order for us to win."

The Lions added to their advantage in the 28th minute when a foul in the box was called and they converted the penalty.

Jackson Owens was tripped up to set up the PK, which Wheeler subsequently made, resulting in a 2-0 lead for Saint Viator.

Wheaton North had some of its best opportunities during the final 10 minutes of the first half but was unable to connect.

Jackson Duncan bounced a shot off the post before a Wheeler header was thwarted, as was an attempt by Kevin Klinkenberg.

As the half wound down, George Barg was denied by keeper Mike McGrath and then Aaron Deeke sent a liner just over the net.

Saint Viator resumed its pressure on the net at the outset of the final half, beginning with an attempt from Ethan Wolfe.

Things clicked again in the 44th minute when Henry sent a pass to Randon, who put in a short try to make it a 3-0 match.

Then in the 46th minute, the Lions struck again after Owens set up a corner kick on a shot deflected by Julian Barrera.

On the corner from Moore, the ball was deflected back to him and he sent a cross to Wheeler, who headed it in for a goal.

"We had a lot of free kicks and corner kicks and put pressure on them," Randon said. "Troy had a couple of good headers that were blocked but got one later. On my goal, Ryan crossed it and I just put it in.

"At halftime, our coach told us that the next team that would get a goal would have things in their hands. If they got it, they'd be back in it and if we got it, then we would finish it, so we wanted to score.

"We lost Ashwin for the season but other guys are stepping up and we're starting to connect and things are going good now. We played a lot together over the summer and that really helped out with team bonding."

Following an exchange of attempts by Duncan and Moore which were both stopped, the Falcons collected their lone score.

Roberts started the sequence with a pass inside to Thompson, who connected on a close-range effort in the 55th minute.

Both sides had more good chances, beginning with Nick Winter forcing a corner kick from him that led to a Wheeler header.

Bibergall then hauled in a free kick from Wheeler and a liner from Kyle Koss as the match entered its final 10 minutes.

Sam Mason was denied by McGrath on a pair of liners and a late free kick from Lion Michael Duszynski was also stopped.

"We did a better job in the second half of staying composed and stringing a few more things together," Falcons coach Bryce Cann said. "But you have to start solid because an early score is really deflating.

"Saint Viator always has a talented group that's tough, strong on the ball and very well organized and disciplined. It's a great test to play teams like this but we're also used to playing teams like this.

"It's easy to look kind of silly at times against teams like this and there were times where we got exposed and they took advantage of opportunities where we weren't as organized as we should have been."