Geneva bounces back at St. Charles East
Geneva's boys soccer team rebounded in strong fashion on Wednesday night at Norris Stadium, beating St. Charles East 3-0 in an Upstate Eight Conference River Division match.
The Vikings, who played poorly in a 4-2 conference loss to Larkin on Monday, handed the Saints their first conference loss.
“Hopefully we haven't seen the high of this team, but we've seen the low, Geneva coach Ryan Estabrook said. “It's been a funny season for us and without Seamus Kaminski (knee injury), we had a little bit of adversity and the guys did a nice job of filling his role.
Geneva (9-7-1, 3-2) scored the always-important first goal with 5:22 remaining in the first half. Brady Wahl sent in a long feed which junior Kyle Hurley followed in for a shot. Hurley's shot was unsuccessful but Carlos Gonzalez was able to collect the rebound and send it past goalkeeper Eric Meesenburg.
“We really wanted to win this game because it's the Tri-Cities, Gonzalez said. “I was a little surprised. The ball was right in front of the goal.
St. Charles East (8-7-1, 3-1) had hoped to gain some early momentum in the contest but headed into halftime trailing. The Saints never recovered.
“I think that whoever scored first was going to dictate things, St. Charles East coach Paul Jennison said. “It's been the same thing for us all year. We'll get some opportunities but tonight for a million reasons we couldn't get anything to go in.
The Saints kept within striking distance until they allowed the Vikings a free kick with 17:18 remaining. Wahl took the kick from the 25-yard line and sent the ball to Robbie Johnson who didn't get a lot of meat on his header, but apparently enough to help push it past Meesenburg to put the Vikings ahead 2-0.
“Yeah, I got a little something on it, Johnson said about the goal. “We knew they were going to be physical. Knowing a lot about them coming in really helped.
The Vikings extended their lead to 3-0 on a nice feed from Craig Hancock to Joshua Poythress with 8:08 remaining.
“I thought the best goal was the third goal on a nice counterattack, Estabrook said. “It was nice to see that kind of ball movement to seal it.
It's proven to be a bit unpredictable for both teams recently. While the Vikings enjoyed big victories over Batavia and St. Charles North, they also came out flat in a loss to Larkin. The Saints also won the rivalry match against the North Stars but were beaten soundly by Waubonsie Valley on Saturday before regrouping against Plainfield North on Monday.
“After what happened against Larkin you realize that your season can be over that quickly, Estabrook said. “We're focusing on getting ready for the playoffs.
“We just have to forget about this one and move forward, Jennison said. “Now we have to worry about Elgin (Thursday).