Palatine produces better half in win over Fremd

Crosstown rivals Fremd and Palatine learned there are two halves to every soccer game Saturday afternoon.

Fremd scored the only goal of the first half but Palatine responded after intermission to claim a 3-1 Mid-Suburban West victory.

At 28:20 of the first half, a corner kick by Brian Hindle, headed by Lorenzo Savillo, found its way to the leg of Sal Aiello for the first goal of the game.

"We played well in the first half," said Fremd coach Steve Keller.

But the second half was a story of its own. Palatine head coach Willie Filian wasn't happy with his squad's first-half performance and he let it be known to his team.

"We lost a lot of first balls, and the guys started to complain about the officials," said Filian. "We can't take 20 or 30 minutes off and expect to win the game."

After tying the game at 1-1, the Pirates continued their pressure on the Fremd side of the field. At 13:43 of the second half, Jacob Bielanski scored the go-ahead goal.

"It was a ball off a throw-in," Bielanski said. "I was just in the right place at the right time and put it in."

The victory brings the Kinsella Cup to Palatine High School for at least another year.

The Pirates look to build on this victory and use it as learning tool for the rest of the season.

"The teams in the Mid-Suburban League are big and strong," said Filian. "Fremd is big and strong. We can use this to get ourselves ready for the rest of conference play."