Waubonsie Valley makes chances count
It doesn't matter how many scoring chances you get in a soccer game. What counts is how many of those chances you convert.
During Thursday afternoon's nonconference game in Lisle, Benet outshot visiting Waubonsie Valley 16-3, but the Warriors made the most of their few chances to rally for a 2-1 victory.
"We got our big win," Waubonsie Valley coach Jose Garcia said. "The thing is, these boys needed to find it in themselves after that (Naperville) Central loss (on Saturday morning.) It kind of put them in a depressed kind of mood and they just needed a little bit of fire to pick them back up."
Waubonsie Valley (4-2-1) netted the game-winner early in the second half thanks to a well-played shot from senior Jon Braun.
Braun swooped up a loose ball a few yards beyond the penalty area and sent a lofting and then bounding shot just inside the right post less than three minutes into the final half.
"I saw the defense and the goalie both come out," Braun said. "I think the defender and the goalie miscommunicated and the ball just popped out and I happened to be there. It wasn't a great shot, but at least it went in."
Benet (4-2-0) jumped on top 1-0 with 25:27 remaining in the first half. Daniel Morefield instigated the scoring opportunity by passing to fellow junior Ryley Guay, who reacted quickly and fired a long-range shot out of the reach of Waubonsie Valley goalkeeper Eddie Sanchez.
Unfortunately for the Redwings, it was the only opportunity that they turned into something on the scoreboard.
"That's a tough game to lose, and we played decent," Benet coach Sean Wesley said. "It's not like us to not put shots on frame. We took eight chances in the first half alone and only put three on frame. If we put six on frame I think we have a better chance of putting them away."
It was a huge win for the Warriors, who were coming off a pair of losses to Naperville Central and West Aurora.
"We had a talk before the game and it wasn't tactical, it was all mental," Garcia said. "It was just play the hardest you can and play to win and we got the win."