Tritschler, Antioch measure up

From the stands, he looks about 10 feet tall. Of course, that couldn’t be true.

Grayslake Central boys soccer coach Steve Feldman chimed in on the huge Antioch goalkeeper, a senior, Thomas Tritschler.

“He’s a fullback,’’ Feldman said. “He played great. Their goalie saved them.”

Antioch coach Marni Polakow, the former three-sport athlete at Stevenson, also chimed in about her keeper.

“He’s an intimidating force,’’ Polakow said. “But what a great kid, with a great attitude.”

Antioch build a 3-0 lead at Central on Wednesday. And then things got interesting. The Rams tallied twice to tighten up the game before Antioch prevailed 4-2.

Now, how big is Tritschler anyway? And why is he not on the football field?

“I’m 5-foot-11 and weigh 220 pounds,’’ Tritschler said. “Football is not my sport. They tried to recruit me. I liked soccer. I’ve been playing since kindergarten. And for my size, I have quick feet.”

There were several chances to score by both teams in the early going. With less than 16 minutes to play in the opening period, John Lonergan dribbled one in for the Sequoits.

“I thought we played great,’’ Lonergan said. “We had played a good game against Stevenson but lost. That woke us up.”

Early in the second period, the Sequoits took command. Krystian Streit did the honors for Antioch (4-1). Streit wasn’t through helping his squad as he fed high-scoring Iven Hernandez with a gorgeous pass and the junior delivered for the third Sequoit goal.

“That was a beautiful play,’’ Polokow said. “Those two are a dynamic duo.”

By the time this game ended, Hernandez had scored his eighth goal of the season.

Two minutes later, the Rams (2-2) answered back. It was the versatile Steven Anderson doing the honors. When not scoring, he plays goal keeper.

“I love playing goalie,’’ Anderson said. “But it’s a good break to get on the field.”

Feldman is glad Anderson is on this team.

“That’s his second career goal,’’ Feldman said. “The team rallies around him and he played great.”

Seven minutes later, things tightendd up. Jackson Frey scored on a rebound and the Rams were back in it.

“We have a lot of seniors,’’ Feldman said. “But we are still young. We are trying some new things.”

Tritschler saluted the Rams.

“Grayslake has worked on that long throw-in,’’ he said. “And that can work on their turf field.”

Tristschler added some late saves before Hernandez settled this game with a rebound goal with less than five minutes to play.

“We have really jelled,’’ Polokow said. “We have solid junior and senior boys. I have waited for them to mature, and they have.”