Lancers send Hillner off with a win on Huerta's goal

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By Gary Larsen

It was a meaningless game with a whole lot of meaning. At least for one of the teams involved.

Saturday’s regular season finale between Barrington and Lake Park obviously held no conference or sectional seeding ramifications, those issues having already been decided for both teams.

But when Lake Park’s Oliver Huerta roofed the game’s only goal from point-blank range with 14 seconds left, it was an exclamation point that illuminated what the day meant to the Lancers’ home crowd.

“It’s his last game here and it feels great to get him a win,” Lancers senior Ryan Castello said.

‘Him’ is Lake Park coach Norm Hillner. Saturday’s win came on the day of Hillner’s final home game in a 30-year coaching career, in front of a crowd at Krupke Field that included Hillner’s family, old friends, more than 80 former Lancer players, and parents of this year’s seniors on Senior Day.

And as icing on the cake, Huerta’s finish provided an added bonus to the day’s festivities: Hillner’s 200th career win on Lake Park’s home field.

“That goal, when it went in, the first thought in my head was ‘all right, Norm’. It’s fitting for him to get a win in his last game on this field,” Barrington coach Scott Steib said.

“It’s great to be here for Norm’s last home game. He’s someone who’s fun to watch, he loves the game, he loves his program and his kids. He’s done a lot for the coaches and the players in Illinois.”

Hillner has been heavily involved as an officer of the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association for years.

For Barrington (11-8-3), Saturday was a tune-up for the Broncos’ Class 3A regional opener against Cary-Grove (16-2), to be played Wednesday at Lake Zurich. Lake Park (15-6-2) will take on Streamwood (5-13-4) on Wednesday at West Chicago.

Barrington is the No. 4 seed of the Lake Zurich regional, taking on a top-seeded Cary-Grove team that beat the Broncos 1-0 in last year’s regional opener.

Lake Park is seeded fourth in this year’s Bartlett sectional. The Lancers will play a No. 14 Streamwood team that won 3-1 over the Lancers in a regular-season game on Sept. 22.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Lake Park senior Tim Adelman said of the rematch with Streamwood. “We didn’t finish our opportunities in the first half of that game. We had a lot of opportunities. I know Oliver hit the crossbar in that game. Then we came out flat in the first two minutes of the second half, and (Streamwood) got two goals.”

“We’ve had pretty good teams the last two years and haven’t won in the regional,” Hillner said. “So that’s a big focus for us going into Wednesday’s game.”

Barrington went into Saturday’s battle against Lake Park with some injuries that needed resting, with seven players currently trying to get healthy for the postseason.

Lake Park took the field with a roster that included 17 seniors that were recognized before the match began: Adelman, Castello, Pasquale Giovine, Marco Coria, Ed Landreth, Edgar Dorado, Osvaldo Rivera, Mitch Corsten, Brian Fischer, Pasquale Maranto, Tim Czesak, Joe Passarelli, Steve Wuthrich, Piotr Warchol, Nick Zanghi, Tom LaFontaine, and Erick Benhart.

The game itself was hard-fought, with both teams periodically finding dangerous shots along the way. Still, it remained scoreless until Castello lined up a free kick with time running out.

“I knew we had like thirty seconds half and we needed a good ball in,” Castello said. “I just wanted to get it in the middle of the box somewhere, and Oliver was there, took a beautiful touch, and struck it. I just sent it in and hoped someone would get a head on it.”

“I had the first touch on it and I knew the goal was behind me,” Huerta said. “I just turned and shot it. The last three minutes I thought we really picked it up.”

Hillner, who began coaching the Lancers in 1981, spent the week leading up to his final home game making frantic preparations.

“All the (former players) were calling and emailing me all week – first it was twenty, then it’s thirty, then it’s forty, fifty, sixty,” Hillner said. “It’s not just the all-staters and all-Americans, it’s also kids that were all-academic or won our sportsmanship award, and things like that.”

“This day is right up there with the best memories I’ll have coaching here.”

Adelman and his teammates were pumped up for Saturday’s contest.

“We all got shirts for Hillner yesterday, all of the teachers were wearing them, and we knew it was going to be our last game on this field together,” Adelman said. “It’s seventeen of our last games we’re ever going to play on this field, so everyone was focused and everyone wanted to win.”