Healthier Bartlett too much for Lisle
Senior Ramiro Arroyo struck twice, and dynamic play from Fabio Aiello and Anthony DiNuzzo proved too much for Lisle as Bartlett (6-4-1) defeated the reigning Class 1A state champs 3-0 in first-round play at the Glenbrook North Invite.
The Hawks next meet Palatine (8-4-0) in Northbrook at 11 a.m. today.
Bartlett is finally finding its form after dealing with several injuries from the onset of the season as it nears full strength.
There was some very entertaining play on a cool night on the turf at Techny Park. Arroyo and Carlos Avina caused problems for the Lions (10-4-0) on one side of the field until Bartlett broke a goal-less match just moments after intermission.
“Bartlett is a really strong team when it is attacking, and at the break we made sure the guys understood that we had to mark No. 5 (Arroyo) as tightly as we could, because his speed on the ball made him especially dangerous,” said Lisle coach Kevin Perez, who welcomed back nearly everyone from last year’s team which defeated Stillman Valley in OT to win its first-ever state title. “I thought we played extremely well in the first half and had a great chance of putting one in, which may have changed the course of the eventual outcome. But this is a great tournament that helps expose us to several styles of play, and we know that we’ll learn a lot from playing here.”
The Lions will play Chicago Schurz at 9 a.m. Saturday.
The Hawks mainly played through Aiello and DiNuzzo. Both were capable of distributing with confidence, or taking on the Lions’ defense with speed and trickery.
Lisle counted on Eric Osika and Pat Webb at midfield, which made for some high-speed action for fans of both sides during the first 40 minutes, as well as some nervous moments when both clubs advanced into their opponent’s end.
Webb set up Brad Blechschmidt, who crashed his shot off the bar at 23 minutes, but the Hawks tested Kazim Khan on a few occasions, with the junior keeper coming through each time. His best stop might have been at 25 minutes, when he won a 50-50 challenge with Aiello, or perhaps just before the break as Alex Quintana was put through.
“Lisle is a quality team, and I actually thought they gave us a lot of trouble in the first half with their transition game,” said Bartlett coach Ben Beary. “But we did a good job of making a few adjustments, and came out in the second half to play a very strong 20-30 minutes to finally put them away.”
Quintana touched past a hard-charging Khan, who came way off his line when he saw a dangerous ball from Arroyo sent in. Five minutes later, Arroyo doubled the Hawks’ lead with a wicked cracker from the left side, which Zach Audy and DiNuzzo helped create.
The Hawks pushed their lead to 3 goals when, on the turn, Arroyo hit a low line drive past Khan from 12 yards.
“When this team is healthy, we can be a very good, and we’re capable of another long run in the postseason, and hopefully even further than last year,” offered Aiello, who in his first match back this season scored against Neuqua Valley in a 2-1 loss Thursday night.