Boys Soccer

Tri-Cities All-Area Boys Soccer

Posted October 27, 2011 12:00 am

By Chris Walker Daily Herald Correspondent

Lalo Cuautle, Batavia soccer

Lalo Cuautle

Batavia

Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco has joked that Lalo Cuautle could probably barely register 140 pounds on the scale and to do so he’d have to be soaking wet. “He’s not a tough looking kid or a big kid, but he plays such a big game,” he said. “We can distribute better than most teams I’ve had and that’s Lalo. He’s just a distributor. He’s simply amazing with the ball.” The stats tell the story too as the Bulldogs were only shut out once during the regular season (1-0 to Naperville North on Sept. 16) and they scored 73 goals through regional play, averaging 3.17 goals per contest.

Tyler Davis

St. Charles North

Last year, Tyler Davis was obligated to club play with the Chicago Sockers Academy, but this fall he retuned to the North Stars. He has undoubtedly been the biggest addition to any local team with 19 goals and 5 assists in the regular season. “He is explosive,” St. Charles North coach Eric Willson said. “He works very hard off the ball and defensively, has excellent foot skills and is a pure finisher. It’s been quite a return for Davis, who was named all-tournament in the Pepsi Showdown and debuted with two goals in a win over a talented East Aurora squad. The offensive highlights for Davis have been impressive. He tallied both goals in wins over Barrington and rival St. Charles East, had the game winner in a 1-0 victory over Oak Park-River Forest, assisted on the crucial score in a 2-1 win over Leyden and scored four times in two regional victories. “He is a difference-maker and the total package when it comes to forwards,” Willson said.

Mike Frasca

Marmion

Marmion senior midfielder Mike Frasca has been so suave this season that he’s actually made a serious run at Gerardo Alvarez’s school record of 46 goals in a season. Entering sectional play, Frasca had 39 goals and 13 assists. Alvarez had 46 goals and 21 assists as an all-stater for the Cadets in 2002. “He’s a terrific talent and one of the most dynamic players you’ll ever see,” Marmion coach Kevin O’Connor said. “He can shoot with either foot, has tremendous skills and is just an excellent player.” Frasca hasn’t determined where he’ll play next year but several Division I schools have shown interest, including UIC and Dayton.

Matt Koth

West Aurora

West Aurora finished with a very good 15-9 record despite playing in the ultracompetitive DuPage Valley Conference. According to Blackhawks coach Joe Sustersic, they would’ve been lucky to finish with a .500 record if not for the selflessness and athletic ability of Matt Koth. “The heart and soul of West Aurora soccer this year,” Sustersic said. “He played defense, midfield and offense.” While finding himself all over the field, Koth still found a way to score 12 goals and contribute 10 assists. “Without him this year, West would be a .500 team, if not sub-. 500 winning percentage,” Sustersic said. Koth finishes with the most wins as a player in Blackhawks history as he was a key contributor to the their three-year run that produced a 50-19-3 record.

Mick Maley

Marmion

There’s no doubt about it, Marmion senior Mick Maley is a gifted young man. Maley has succeeded in the classroom with a 4.3 grade point average and a 31 on ACT, and he’s gotten it done on the pitch, scoring 20 goals and assisting 16 others and helping the Cadets to a regional title and a 16-6-3 record through Oct. 22. “He’s a tremendous player,” Marmion coach Kevin O’Connor said. “He passes well, he’s very good on the ball. There really isn’t any part of the game that he doesn’t do well.” The retiring coach isn’t the only one Maley has impressed as he’s committed to Northwestern where he’ll play Big Ten soccer. Maley ensured the Cadets brought home the Class 2A DeKalb regional championship, as his goal was the difference in a 1-0 victory over Kaneland.

Anthony Parillo

Kaneland

Kaneland was able to out-possess most of its opponents this season and it resulted in a successful 12-7-1 campaign that ended in the DeKalb regional title game against Marmion. Sophomore Anthony Parillo had a lot to do with the success in the midfield. “Anthony was huge for us,” Kaneland coach Scott Parillo said. “Playing for Campton he really blossomed and this year and he came out and had 17 assists and that’s huge for a sophomore. It would’ve been even more if we could’ve finished more shots.” After making a splash as a freshman last fall, Parillo became a huge impact player this season. “He’s probably 100 times better than he was last year and who knows where he’s going to go as a junior. He should be even better,” his coach said. Parillo was named all-conference and received all-sectional state recognition.

Steven Soderstrom

Geneva

Geneva coach Ryan Estabrook has seen his share of talented soccer players during his tenure at Geneva so he’s saying something when he calls Steven Soderstrom the best keeper he’s seen. “He is the best keeper that I’ve seen all year and the best that I’ve seen in eight years at Geneva,” Estrabrook said. It was the first down year in quite some time for the Vikings as they finished with an 8-8-2 record. They remained competitive though and a lot of that had to do with Soderstrom being on the field as that final stopper. “He is strong on high balls and commands his box very well,” Estabrook said. “We have had other keepers at Geneva with better statistics, but none have had the skill and heart that Steven has demonstrated.” The Vikings shut out four opponents and allowed a single goal in seven contests this fall.

Robert Stackhouse

St. Charles East

St. Charles East didn’t finish like it would’ve liked this season, struggling through a 6-10-1 season in which they failed to carry momentum from match to match. One of the positives for the Saints was the play of senior Robert Stackhouse along with his fellow seniors. “Austin (Jackman) has been hurt a lot and the seniors have been good and Robert’s been very good,” St. Charles East coach Paul Jennison said. “We had to ask him to play in back to use his speed and leadership. He flourished in that role and really helped out.”

Anthony Torres

Batavia

When you have a team with 16 seniors, including many who are the key players on the team, sometimes it’s difficult to find one who truly stands out. There’s no doubt who the rock was for the Bulldogs. No matter what happened this season, Anthony Torres was always there for his teammates to lean on, regardless of the situation. “He’s the heart and soul of the team,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “He’s the guy everyone looks to for guidance and leadership.” Torres led the Bulldogs to their first regional championship since 1995 as well as the Upstate Eight River Division championship. Through regional play, the Bulldogs had six shutouts and had yielded one goal or less in 18 of 23 contests.

Mike Winhoffer

St. Charles North

St. Charles North obviously took a hit with the loss of standout Noah Anthony to graduation, but when you have a four-year starter returning, as was the case with Mike Winhoffer, you have to like your chances. The North Stars were solid all season long. They lost two straight late in August but didn’t lose twice in a row the rest of the year. A lot of their consistency can be attributed to Winhoffer’s work as a midfielder. “Mike had a great senior campaign for us,” St. Charles North coach Eric Willson said. “He is the very definition of a possession center midfielder. He is an accurate passer and someone who continues to show the ability to play in tight spaces.” Winhoffer assisted on 10 goals while scoring 5 on his own during the regular season, and helped the North Stars to a 13-4-3 record though their regional title on Oct. 22.

Cody Witkowski

Batavia

Cody Witkowski doesn’t just score goals, he scores timely goals in key games. Such as the one he scored in the Class 3A regional championship to rally Batavia to a 2-1 victory and its first regional championship in 16 years. “He’s just a dynamic player,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “His speed and craftiness with the ball, his vision and his goal scoring have been instrumental for us this year.” You think he made an impression on the local scene? He scored the game-winner against West Aurora and St. Charles North in 2-1 victories, tallied two goals against St. Charles East and had a hat trick against Geneva. “His focus has been great,” Gianfrancesco said. “Without that all season I think it would’ve been somewhat of a struggle for us this year.”

2011 Boys Soccer All-area roster

Player School Pos. Yr.

Lalo Cuautle Batavia MF Sr.

Tyler Davis St. Charles North F Jr.

Mike Frasca Marmion MF Sr.

Matt Koth West Aurora D Sr.

Mick Maley Marmion MF Sr.

Anthony Parillo Kaneland MF/F So.

Steven Soderstrom Geneva G Sr.

Robert Stackhouse St. Charles East MF Sr.

* Anthony Torres Batavia D Sr.

Mike Winhoffer St. Charles North MF Sr.

Cody Witkowski Batavia F Sr.

* — Honorary captain

Special mention

Cody Balogh, Sr., Batavia; Cam Callipari, Sr., Batavia; Garrett Creasor, Sr., St. Charles North; Alex Gil, Jr. Kaneland; Kevin Higgins, Sr., Geneva; Michael Macek, Jr., St. Charles East; David Quinones, Sr., West Aurora; Alex Ruble, Sr., Marmion; Matthew Switzer, Jr., Marmion; Drew Smith, Sr., St. Charles North.

Honorable mention

John Barnes, So., Batavia; Alex Behm, Sr., St. Charles North; James Brink, Sr., West Aurora; Zach Cramer, Sr., St. Charles East; Jordan Escobedo, Sr., Kaneland; Alex Guillen, So., West Aurora; Alec Koczka, Jr., Kaneland; Connor Lefelstein, Jr., St. Charles North; Sean McGrath, Sr., Geneva; Beck Neberball, So., Geneva; Yinka Onayemi, Sr., IMSA; Justin Stanko, Jr., St. Charles North; Ben Steskal, Sr., Batavia; Brad White, Sr., Marmion.

Past captains

1998: Chris Pipis, Geneva

1999: Ryan Halcrow, St. Charles East

2000: Mike Czerwinski, Batavia

2001: Jimmy Klatter, Geneva

2002: Gerardo Alvarez, Marmion

2003: Joel Del Toro, Marmion

2004: Jon Liechty, St. Charles East

2005: Steve Sloan, Geneva

2006: Andy Filipiak, Geneva

2007: Brian Holbrook, Geneva

2008: Shawn Sloan, Geneva