Redhawks blank Quincy to reach state for first time since 1988

Defense records 14th shutout in 22 matches to earn spot in Class 3A semifinals against Fremd

 

 

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By Curt Herron

If you don't allow the other team to score, there's a real good chance that they're not going to beat you.

It sounds like a simple formula, but it's certainly a lot easier said than done, as most squads find out.

However, that defensive approach has paid off in a big way all throughout the season for Naperville Central.

That was demonstrated again on Tuesday when the Redhawks made some more history in an already memorable year.

Coach Troy Adams' squad posted its 14th shutout in 22 matches following a 2-0 win over Quincy in the Class 3A Normal Community Super-Sectional.

As a result, the Redhawks (18-4) earned the program's second trip to the state finals, with the other coming when they finished second in 1988.

Central now gets to meet up with Fremd (16-5-2) in Friday's 5:00 p.m. semifinal match at Lincoln-Way North in Frankfort.

The Vikings beat New Trier 5-1 in the Maine South Super-Sectional to advance to their first state final appearance since 2005.

It will be a rematch of an August 30 match in the Best of the West Tournament where the host Redhawks captured a 3-0 victory.

Tuesday's match was an obvious concern for Adams, considering that Central was coming off a huge win over rival Naperville North.

The last time Central defeated North in the playoffs, in the 2007 sectional semifinals, it lost its next match to Neuqua Valley.

"We got a good look at Quincy on Saturday and saw that they're a very talented offensive team," Adams said. "We were worried coming off our big win over North and playing against a team from far away.

"Those that don't remember history are doomed to repeat it. I talked about the last time we beat North and look what happened. This time we weren't going to let that happen and the boys bought into it.

"Adam (Hamielec) marked up probably their most talented player and really shut him down and did a phenomenal job. He's a great senior captain who goes out and does what you ask him to do and you can't have enough of those players.

"Just getting out of our regional is hard enough to do, let alone getting out of the sectional and then winning a super. It's a testament to the boys. A lot of them talked about making a run and put in the effort in the offseason."

Shutting down the pride of Western Illinois was another feather in the cap for Central, which has allowed 12 goals all season.

Coach Matt Longo's Blue Devils (23-3) had scored multiple goals in 20 matches, with five players collecting 10 or more goals.

Quincy had been blanked only once, on October 1, in the finals of the Gateway City Classic to Washburn Rural of Topeka, Kansas.

That shutout defeat in St. Louis came against an unbeaten squad that is playing in the Kansas Class 6A semifinals on Friday.

QHS's first Illinois shutout had more painful ramifications, since it denied the program of its first state trip since 1995.

Leading the Redhawks were junior keeper Mike Pavliga and senior defenders Adam Hamielec, Kevin Linne, Mike Plant and Sean Stevens.

"They had very good forwards and it was hard to defend them but our defense has been strong all year," said Plant, an All-State selection. "It's nice to have Mike behind us because he always shores up things.

"As our coach says before every game, this could be the seniors' last game. So we come out and play like it's our last game but we don't want it to be our game and we go out and play as hard as we can.

"We've had a lot of good teams at Naperville Central, but the problem is that there's a lot of good teams in our regional, sectional and super-sectional. So it's nice to finally be able to get to state.

"After we lost to North, we were a little disappointed and it showed in the games after that. That showed us that we had to come out hard in every single game, much harder than we'd played prior to the tournament.

"I really like how we're playing now. We have great chemistry since all of our guys are really working together well. All of the bench players are supportive and everyone's doing the job that they need to do."

Central also became just the third squad to get multiple goals in a match against the Blue Devils, who yielded 20 scores all year.

Greg Burdett put the Redhawks ahead for good when he scored on a header off of a free kick from Pat Flynn in the 29th minute.

Then Jay Tegge wrapped up the victory when he fired in a liner in the 73rd minute, following an excellent cross from Stevens.

That score was a big relief for Central, which had plenty of opportunities but was thwarted often by QHS keeper Logan Kelle.

"We know that we're not the most talented team since others have more All-State players," Hamielec said. "But I believe that we have a lot more team chemistry and heart and work better together.

"Everyone gave their all today and gave 100 percent for every ball and no one let up on anything. We won the majority of 50-50 balls which made the whole game a lot easier for us.

"In the last couple of games Sean and I have been assigned their top forwards. Mike Plant always has our back, so he makes our job a lot easier. We just try to keep them in front of us and contain them.

"It was scary coming into this game since their record was 23-2 so they looked really good on paper. We knew that their forwards had a lot of goals but it was scary since we didn't know how they played.

"This is huge for us since no one expected anything coming into the season, so it feels fantastic. Our quality is head and heart. We'll play smart and also play 100 percent toward everything."

Utilizing the wind at its back in the opening half of play, Quincy threatened to move in front during the 18th minute.

That's when Felix Bruner sent in a shot that was punched away by Pavliga, who then grabbed the rebound try by Dylan Hoschar.

The Redhawks responded to that challenge with an attempt from Sam Reskala and a free kick from Flynn that went to Kelle.

In the 28th minute, Tegge smacked a shot off the framework and Jack Patrick's rebound attempt was cleared by a defender.

But less than 90 seconds later, Central picked up the only goal that it needed when Burdett connected from close range.

The Redhawks had two other good chances before the break with Flynn lining a free kick to Kelle and sending a try wide.

"We knew that a 1-0 lead was not going to be enough, especially after watching in our own sectional how 1-0 or 2-1 leads can turn into tie games very quickly," Adams said.

"We talked about coming out in the second half and keeping the pressure on by getting shots on goal and we did a very good job of that and had a lot of good opportunities."

During the final half, Central benefited from the wind and was able to keep up regular pressure on the Blue Devil net.

That began right away when Hamielec was denied on a liner and Burdett had a close try deflected away a short time later.

Following that, Flynn was halted on a shot off a corner kick from Hamielec and Patrick sent a liner that Kelle grabbed.

Pavliga denied one of QHS's few second half threats in the 53rd minute when he hauled in a free kick from Dalton Stark.

"I know that my guys on defense are always there for me," Pavliga said. "Sean, Adam, Kevin and Mike all are playing great and are also good in the air so it makes my job a lot easier.

"This group is special and everybody plays as hard as they can in every game. Our defense knows that we have to stay strong and if we don't give up a goal, we have a great chance of winning.

"I thought our goal in the first half would be enough, but you never know because the ball can take a bad bounce. In the second half, things were under control with the 1-0 lead and the wind.

"We could have slipped up since we didn't know much about them, but we played tough since every game gets harder. We expect that in our next two games as we try to win a state championship."

Central responded with a several threats, beginning with a header by Flynn and a grounder by Patrick that were stopped.

Just before the final half's midpoint, Flynn was just wide on a free kick and Conner Allen saw the same result on a try.

Mike West was denied on an attempt a bit later and then Kelle came out of the net to halt a potential threat from Allen.

With 10 minutes left, Blake Beehler's flip throw deflected to the QHS keeper, who then hauled in a long shot by Linne.

That set the table for a nice combination where Stevens sent a ball into the box and Tegge connected for the second goal.

In the last few minutes, Patrick saw a short try get deflected away while Pavliga hauled in a long free kick from Stark.

The shutout was the fourth in the playoffs for the Redhawks, who allowed two goals in a sectional semifinal win over Batavia.

That's quite a contrast to Central's last four regular season matches, where it went 1-3 after yielding half of its 12 goals.

But the memories of giving up two goals apiece to Naperville North, Benet Academy and West Chicago have obviously faded away.

The Redhawks benefited from that late-season hiccup and now are just one victory away from playing for a state championship.

They know all too well, however, that defeating Steve Keller's Fremd side for the second time will be a difficult challenge.

"We haven't accomplished all that we've set out to do since we still have a couple of more games to go," Adams said.

"So we'll take Wednesday and Thursday to prepare for a very good Fremd team that I'm sure will battle us for 80 minutes."