Leyden survives Bartlett in PKs
Leyden coach Mark Valintis knew his team was being thoroughly outplayed by underdog Bartlett at the Class 3A Schaumburg boys soccer sectional final Friday.
But as regulation ended with teams deadlocked, Valintis knew that there was still a chance for his Eagles to make amends.
“Now,” Valintis told his team as the game headed into extra time, “is time to change things.”
The Eagles took their coach's words to heart, surviving an overtime onslaught by the seventh-seeded Hawks to win the sectional title 2-1 in a marathon penalty kick postscript.
Leyden will meet Rockford Boylan at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Barrington supersectional.
“I just wanted to run as fast as I could and celebrate,” said Leyden senior midfielder Juan Carlos Duarte, who for the second straight playoff game put in the winning penalty kick for the Eagles.
The goal put an end to a terrific effort by the Hawks, who were the aggressor throughout the contest.
“This was a gut-wrenching way to lose,” said Bartlett coach Ben Beary. “We had our chances in regulation and in extra time but we didn't capitalize, then we couldn't get it done in penalty kicks.”
Top-seeded Leyden opened the scoring in the first half on a rocket from senior striker David Wisniewski, whose left-footed shot from 25 yards away found the back of the net in the 11th minute.
Then Bartlett took the match over, peppering Eagles goalie Marco Granda with shot after shot and forcing the keeper to make some spectacular saves.
“I'd have to say that this was the worst game we've played all season,” said Valintis, “but if anybody deserves praise tonight besides Bartlett, which played a tremendous game, it's Marco. He and our back line was the glue that held the team together.”
Bartlett got the equalizer late in the second half when Eric Kennebeck buried a header, then the teams battled through four 10-minute overtime periods, 40 minutes that was played mostly in the Eagles' backyard as Fabio Aiello and Christian Castro had great chances but just missed.
Then came the penalty kicks, and in the cold crisp night air, each team went through 16 PKs without deciding the issue.
“I haven't seen that many since I was a freshman in high school, when I was in a game that went 21 rounds,” said Valintis.
But on Bartlett's 17th try, Granda got a hand on the Hawks' shot, then had to recover, turn and grab the bouncing ball just before it crossed the goal line.
“It's hard to describe what's going through your mind at that point,” said Granda, who came up huge in the Eagles' biggest game of the year. “I just knew that I had to do it (stop the final shot) for the team.
With Leyden holding the advantage, Duarte calmly knocked his kick into the back of the net to start the wild celebration.
“We did not play well,” said Valintis, obviously relieved to be moving on in the postseason despite the outstanding Barlett effort. “In extra time we were struggling just to find healthy bodies, and we were playing people in different positions.”
Bartlett bowed out with 11 seniors playing their final varsity game.
“It's going to be tough to see these guys go,” said Beary. “They're the kind of kids that would do anything you'd ask, and it's been fun watching them the past couple of years.”