Off night keeps Glenbard South from state

Glenbard South's giant leap forward won't be quite as big as the Raiders hoped.

Ridgewood upset the Raiders 3-1 Tuesday night at the Class 2A Benedictine supersectional, ending Glenbard South's best boys soccer postseason one step short of a state finals berth.

The Raiders (20-2-1) won their first regional and sectional championships this year, but their third meeting with Metro Suburban Conference foe Ridgewood this season proved one too many for the MSC champion.

“Tough loss,” first-year Raiders coach Melissa Pero said. “It hurts. Tough loss. We just couldn't get the job done today. We came out nervous, I think. We weren't confident today. I don't know why, but we were.”

Glenbard South started slowly, and Ridgewood took advantage with a 10th-minute goal by junior Rafal Maslowski.

“We've had that happen to us before and we usually respond well, but tonight we weren't on,” Pero said. “This is a make-or-break game, and we were off. We were nervous and we weren't doing the things we know how to do well. We were a totally different team tonight, and Ridgewood played well. They stayed under control. They took advantage of their opportunities and they won the game.”

The Raiders evened the score 10 minutes later when Jon Miller's cross was deflected by diving Ridgewood goalkeeper Veli Milanov to Michael Pyle, who slotted the ball into the net.

Glenbard South, which defeated Ridgewood twice during the regular season, kept the pressure on and nearly took the lead in the 24th minute, when David Pyle's shot hit the crossbar squarely. But the second half was all Ridgewood, which enjoyed a 13-7 shot advantage despite late pressure from the Raiders.

The Rebels (18-6-2) found the game-winning goal in the 61st minute from Andy Mazurczak. Eight minutes later they gave themselves some cushion on Maslowski's second goal of the night.

“We just outran them,” Maslowski said.

The Rebels will meet Burlington Central at 11 a.m. Friday in the Class 2A semifinals at North Central College in Naperville.

Inexperience might have been a factor in the Raiders' loss.

“But they should be proud of themselves,” Pero said. “They've accomplished things no other team has. No other team has ever won a regional, let alone a sectional and made it to a supersectional game. They were one game away from state. It's great for them that they paved that road and they've set the standards high for the future.”