Fremd boys soccer tops Hoffman Estates
Spencer Filosa scored twice and helped on another as host Fremd captured a crucial 5-2 Mid-Suburban West victory over Hoffman Estates on Tuesday night.
The triumph moved the Vikings one step closer to earning a berth in next week’s MSL Cup against Elk Grove, which clinched its first division title in school history with a 3-1 win at Palatine.
The Vikings (13-2-2, 8-2-0, 24 points) can put away all challengers when they visit Hersey on Friday in their MSL regular-season finale. The Vikings are even with Barrington in the MSL West but hold the tiebreaker after defeating the Broncos 2-1 earlier this season.
“We can’t get ahead of ourselves and look past Hersey, or we could be in some trouble when we got to their place, said Vikings coach Steve Keller, who for the second match in as many days, watched his team struggle early before breaking things open against Wheeling on Monday and then the Hawks (4-8-2, 2-6-2).
“We played hard in that first half, and I am proud of the boys for not giving up after getting down so quickly in that second half, said Hawks coach Matt Sriver.
“The fact is, we missed a PK in the first-half, and then their kid (Brian Hindle) hit a great free kick. Then we lose a mark, all of a sudden it’s 3-0 and it’s tough to chase a team as good as Fremd 3 goals down.
The Vikings’ Filosa got the ball rolling when he swooped in to finish what Lorenzo Savino started. The senior fired a rocket at Hawks keeper Michael Gordon, who saved brilliantly only to give up back-to-back rebounds in close.
Just after intermission, Hindle saw an opening to the near post after the Hawks set up a four-man wall, and the senior found the back of the net with a superb bending freekick from 22 yards to double the Vikings’ lead at 43 minutes.
Four minutes later, Matt Burkhardt made it 3-0, with Filosa recording the helper.
“We played a little too tense in that first half, but once Brian got us our second goal the rest just kept coming, Filosa said.
The Vikings continued on the attack, playing quick and through the middle of the park with speed and terrific touch.
“When they play that way, it’s fun to watch, and it shows how dangerous we can be when we go forward, Keller said.
Filosa collected a loose ball along the far touch line, then charged into the area before turning the corner and unleashing a cracker from a tough angle into the far inside netting to make it 4-0 at 55 minutes.
Nick Tambellini finished the scoring for the Vikings when he teed a right-footed blast off a pass from Eduardo Cruz off the post and over the end line.
Hawks sophomore Luis Colin Vargas broke the Vikings’ shutout at the hour mark when he headed a corner at the back post.
Keller substituted for several starters, including keeper Scott Sutarik who gave way to senior Jeff Pearson. He made a brilliant save in the 80th minute off Cesar Vargas’ shot from in close which led to the Hawks second goal when Andres Pena thumped in the rebound.