Broncos' season ends in loss to Cary-Grove

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By Mike Garofola

Cary-Grove was on the spot Wednesday night, as the No. 1-seeded Trojans managed to stamp their authority on a game which is never meant to be played in the type of conditions that both they and Barrington had to deal with.

The Trojans (17-2-0) took full advantage of the gale-like wind at their backs in the first 40 minutes, at a Class 3A regional semifinal at Lake Zurich, striking twice within a five-minute span. They later dashed the hopes of the No. 4 Broncos (11-9-3) which fell in their second consecutive regional opener to Cary-Grove.

Cary-Grove now takes on Lake Zurich in Saturday’s regional title game.

"I don't know what to say exactly," began Barrington head coach Scott Steib, after his lads battled 80 minutes in freezing cold rain and wind against the FVC Valley champs. The Broncos were unable to solve Cary-Grove goalkeeper Tom Breen and his stubborn backline, which rarely allowed an opportunity to manifest in and around their area, even when the Broncos' enjoyed having a strong wind at their backs in the second half.

"It wasn't all about them having the wind and scoring twice in that first half,” Steib said. “We were just outplayed for long stretches and it's tough to chase the game, especially in these conditions, when you go down two goals fairly early on, and can never take a bite out of their lead to hopefully make it a game in the second half, and put some extra pressure on them."

It was apparent right from the get-go that Cary-Grove would try to play through its fine MF Drew Conner whenever possible, and although the Trojans star had plenty of the touches, it was the energy and pace given from the likes of Kevin Wilde, Zac Solarte and Mike McKune, which may have led to the eventual undoing of the Broncos.

"Drew is such a great individual player but the thing he does, and has done for us all season long, is he makes everyone around him that much better of a player, and you saw that tonight," said Cary-Grove coach Mark Olson, who in his 6th season in charge looks to grab his first regional trophy since taking over for long-time head coach Chris Phillips.

The Broncos backline absorbed plenty from the aforementioned quartet, particularly in the first quarter hour. But Barrington’s Alex Nava, Brett Qualiardi and John Gallagher were up to the task, as was keeper Max Redpath, who turned away both McKune and Solarte, who fired on frame.

At 25 minutes the Trojans broke through after Solarte delivered a blistering drive on the floor of the wet turf. Redpath did well to stay with the well-paced cracker but the rebound went out into the box and Erich Angeles sent it back in and off the back post, where an opportunistic Wilde calmly slotted for the first goal of the game.

Just afterwards, Grant McAndrew's strong tackle on McKune, who was put through by Angeles likely saved a potential 1 v 1 with McKune and Redpath. But the senior MF could do nothing five minutes later when Solarte's early ball to the right side gave Wilde yet another chance. The sophomore again showed the patience of a heart surgeon when he waited for Redpath to commit before driving just under the charging Broncos keeper.

"The one thing we didn't want to do was give up another goal after that first one before the half," began McAndrew.

"We knew the wind would be in our favor after the break, and having to come back from a one-goal deficit would have seemed a lot easier for us. But we almost cut into their lead a few minutes later, which would have been a huge confidence boost for all of us."

After 35 minutes of defending, and staying mostly in their own end, the Broncos had their first chance to break through when McAndrew sent his teammate Reid Strain through the center of the park, shredding the Trojans defense and putting the big striker into a one-vee-one with Breen.

Strain’s searing close range blast was stopped at point-blank distance to help jump-start the hearts of the Cary-Grove faithful, while keeping the Broncos off the scoreboard heading into the intermission.

"Just a huge save for us," said Olson, still relieved after recounting the 35-minute shot and save sequence. "If that ball goes in, anything could have happened in that second half, because then they would have had the momentum and the wind in their favor."

"Who’s to say how things would have gone for us if their keeper doesn't make that save for them," began Steib. "After the break, we threw everything at them for the first ten minutes or so, then play leveled off before they put that third goal in, which was the death blow for us."

Steib’s lads stretched the Cary-Grove backline just after the break, with Craig Zahour's free-kick testing Breen. Danny Jaderholm then had a go after linking with Colter Williams on his free-kick serve.

The tactical move by Steib to go with three up top in the second half appeared to be just what the Broncos' attack needed. When Strain got free inside and had his shot blocked by Eric Wilde, and Ethan Claes went close on his 40-yard missile at 51 minutes, it seemed as if it wouldn't be too long before Barrington would finally pry Cary-Grove open and steer one into the back of the net.

But when Solarte finished in close on a Conner helper in the 60th minute, the Trojans moved to a more comfortable 3-goal cushion and all but ended any chance for a come-back from the Broncos.

"That third goal really hurt us, and after that we really never got much of anything going," said a disappointed McAndrew.

"Cary-Grove did well managing their lead, and you have to credit them for the work they did to keep us out of their net," said Steib. "It's always tough to go out of the tournament, but they deserved this victory tonight, and I wish them luck the rest of the way."