Boys soccer: St. Edward returns to 1A state finals
Make room in the Elgin St. Edward trophy case for another addition.
The Green Wave struck early in both halves and used tenacious defense to defeat Chicago's Francis W. Parker 2-0 in Tuesday's Benedictine University hosted Class 1A supersectional.
Just as St. Edward (23-1-1) did in winning a sectional plaque on Saturday, coach Tim Brieger's crew had to beat a familiar foe looking for revenge. Parker's Colonels (13-7-3) lost last year's supersectional by a 2-1 tally in a quest for a fourth state trophy of their own, including a most recent third place in 2013.
"I told their coach, if there was any justice we would not have met until Peoria. This was a state final type match," Brieger said. "Yes we scored early, but other teams have folded. They put us on our heels and at halftime I told our guys we had to match their energy and intensity."
What Parker was unable to do was defend Zach Olenek's patented flip throw-ins. The senior earned his 10th and 11th assists for the year with the first coming just 1:38 into the match. As opposed to scoring late in the first of two overtime sessions to beat Rockford Christian (3-2), Carson Scarnegie chipped in a six-yarder for his eighth goal.
"Basically we always try to put one in early and Zach's throw gave me a perfect opportunity to finish," Scarnegie said. "It's an incredible feeling scoring that quickly and in such an important match. Now we need to be consistent and use the momentum in our next match."
"It's definitely repetition. I've been doing (the gymnastic) flip for seven years now and I know our guys' runs and where to place it," Olenek said. "The first one there was no one between the goalie and the defender so I figured Carson would fill that gap."
While the Colonels applied constant pressure, the Green Wave back line of Scarnegie, Michael Lopez, Cameron Kruk, and Emilio Martinez once again worked with keeper Evan Sajtar to keep the net clear.
Just 4:26 into the second half, Olenek's flip throw-in found Ibarra crashing the back post for his sixth goal and third game-winner.
"After watching film coach noted how out of position we were and to be on the front and back posts," Ibarra said. "Zach knows just how to place those throws."
"It's an amazing feeling to be going back to the state finals especially after some of the guys that graduated," Sajtar said. "I'm so impressed with this team. The shutout is definitely huge because it's a big thing for our defenders and me."
It's the 15th shutout for St. Edward and the 14th solo clean sheet for Sajtar. The Green Wave advance to Friday's 5 p.m. semifinal against Chicago Acero/Soto at EastSide Center in East Peoria.