Sotelo caps amazing Round Lake finish

Daily Herald Correspondent

Alejandro Sotelo felt a cramp in his leg but didn't want to come off the field.

Not with Round Lake's boys soccer team having recovered from a 3-0 halftime deficit to tie Antioch.

Sotelo kept playing through the tightness in his leg - and was rewarded.

He scored the game-winning goal, as the host Panthers prevailed 4-3 Thursday night in a grueling match, keeping them in sole possession of first place in the North Suburban Prairie Division.

Sotelo's game-winner capped a run of four Round Lake goals in an 18-minute span. It was his 10th goal of season, matching what he had all of last year. Freddie Ramirez scored his 17th and 18th goals, and Joel Tinajero had the other tally for the Panthers.

Sotelo's effort came in the 62nd minute after taking a pass from Christian Gomez. Sotelo was in the penalty area and tied up with a Sequoits defender, but he got off a shot that rolled into the back of the net.

"When the ball was sent to me, I was cramping up," Sotelo said. "But I kept going and I knew that I had a chance to score. I didn't know where I was. I just felt the ball, turned around, saw the goalie come out and shot it. I just wanted to keep going out there."

Tinajero scored the first Round Lake goal in the 44th minute. Then, Ramirez took a pass from Edgar Nieto and scored to make it a 3-2 game in the 54th minute. Ramirez tied the game five minutes later off a feed from Sotelo.

"Once (Round Lake) scored the first goal, we panicked," Antioch coach Marni Polakow said.

"We were down to them last year and didn't pull it out," Round Lake coach Hugo Tellez said. "(Antioch) dominated us in the first half. It was the tale of two (halves). It was like we came in scared or something. Once we got the first goal, that was the energy right there."

Round Lake (8-2-2, 4-0) has division games left with Vernon Hills and North Chicago.

Antioch (8-3, 3-1) got its goals from Krystian Streit, Logan Bouker and Thomas Furlong. Round Lake held 19-goal scorer Iven Hernandez without a goal, but Hernandez did pick up 2 assists. Danny Helgesen also assisted on a goal for the Sequoits.

Antioch has had a knack of losing multiple-goal leads in recent games.

"We just have to finish our opportunities," Polakow said. "Against a team like Round Lake, I knew that a three-goal lead wasn't safe. We have to keep a lead and finish a game. They just have to figure it out on the field. We'll put the best possible players out there in the best possible scenarios and have them figure it out on their own. Our leadership is 14 seniors. They should figure out how to hold a three-goal lead at this point. (Round Lake) has the potential to score goals in a flip of a switch."