St. Viator still unbeaten after knocking off Benet

Running up and down a soccer field under the oppressive heat Saturday was no picnic -- even if you are running on young legs.

"Saturday games are hard because kids are out of their rhythm of getting up, going to school and then playing a game," said St. Viator coach Mike Taylor. "But good teams find a way to win."

St. Viator has been a good team all year.

The Lions rode into Lisle with an unblemished season record and kept it intact, beating Benet 2-0 in an East Suburban Catholic Conference contest.

St. Viator (16-0-3, 8-0) got first-half goals from Mike King and Josh Concon, and senior goalkeeper Jonathan Harris posted his 11th shutout of the season.

"It's 87 degrees and it's a Saturday game," Harris said. "The key is to be motivated, because whenever you play Benet, they always come in hard."

Benet (6-8-1, 4-4) stuck to the script and played hard despite using an injury plagued crew that was suffering from assorted knee, neck and back injuries.

"We're already really hurting physically," said Benet coach Henry Wind. "Then to lose Pat Sloan in the first five minutes of the game -- he's another go-to guy for us."

Benet's best scoring chances came in the first half, with Chris Cole fighting hard, Connor Miller reaching the end line, and Gonda sending a free kick serve to the far post that Kevin Kron and Jonathan Hinz couldn't quite reach.

St. Viator struck first, in the 20th minute, when Matt Riggio sent in a free kick that Mike King headed into goal.

The 1-0 lead held to the 39th minute, when Concon intercepted a Benet clearing pass and teed off on it.

"I thought Petar Milenkovich worked great up front today, and Josh Concon worked hard," Taylor said. "He intercepted that ball and struck home that goal. That just came from him anticipating, and he hit a nice shot."

The Lions controlled the second half as Benet battled the heat with a hamstrung lineup.

"We ran out of gas, and they just kept coming," Wind said. "I think the danger of that team is that when they get opportunities, they like to score. We're just not a real dangerous team, and haven't been all year."

Wind applauded his side's overall effort, while the Lions showed the recipe that has kept them unbeaten this season.

"The reason this team is so good is that if one player's down, another player picks him up," Harris said. "I made a mistake early on, and my defense picked me up."

The Redwings hope to get Erik Warren back for the postseason, and in the meantime will continue to fall on seniors like Dan Gonda to keep them headed in the right direction.

"As a leader and a captain, every practice you just try to keep the guys up all the time," Gonda said. "You have to stay positive because it's too easy to get negative. You have to keep encouraging people on the field."