Boys soccer roundup: Stevenson holds off Lake Zurich in overtime to reach sectional semifinals

There's something special about postseason soccer, where memorable moments are made, favorites fall and extra time decides who advances.

Longtime North Suburban Conference rivals Stevenson and Lake Zurich needed extra time Saturday in Lincolnshire, with the No. 2 Patriots defeating the No. 7 Bears to advance into Wednesday's Fremd sectional.

Stevenson struck first with goals from Jacob Goldstein and Brody Hoffman before Lake Zurich (17-3-1) roared back behind a brilliant pair of goals from Matthew Bergfeld.

Junior Brady Brunner settled the contest with his game-winner in the 84th minute, setting off a wild celebration.

“We came out and played a great first half, put two in on them and could have had a third, but you cannot let a great team back in the game,” Brunner said.

“Even though we were chasing the game at the half, we never lost our confidence,” Bergfeld said.

Stevenson (14-2-3) next faces Glenbrook South (17-4-1), which defeated Warren (14-2-4) 3-2 in overtime in Gurnee.

The Fremd sectional features unbeaten Mid-Suburban League champion Hersey (19-0-3), which defeated Rolling Meadows 3-1 Friday.

The top-seeded Huskies face No. 5 Glenbrook North (17-3-3), a 5-2 winner over McHenry, at 5 p.m. Wednesday.

“Both teams came out to play, the intensity was high, and we got the edge on them with two goals before they scored,” said Hersey coach Mike Rusniak.

Johnny Antoniou scored twice, while MSL West Player of the Year Adam Myslinski added another.

MSL runner-up Conant survived a penalty-kick shootout Friday, defeating No. 12 Leyden 4-3 after overtime finished 0-0 in Northlake.

Trailing 3-1 in the shootout, the Cougars rallied behind goalkeeper Sam Molberger's save before Nate Connelly delivered the winner.

“It was an unbelievable result where I was already thinking about a postgame loss speech,” said Conant coach Jason Franco.

No. 3 Conant (15-4-3) faces No. 2 Glenbard West (18-6-0) at 7 p.m. Tuesday in West Chicago.

The 5 p.m. semifinal features No. 4 Addison Trail (16-5-0) against No. 9 Elk Grove (8-8-5), which stunned top-seeded Maine West (15-4-2) on Arthur Mikina's overtime winner.

Class 2A

The weekend's biggest upset came Friday in Libertyville, where No. 11 Grayslake Central (9-8-0) shocked the Wildcats 1-0 for its second consecutive regional title and 10th overall.

Despite Libertyville dominating possession, junior Chino Garcia-Perez unleashed an unstoppable long-range strike in the 54th minute.

“Even though they had a much better record than us and were the favorites to win tonight, none of us ever thought we did not have a chance to win this game,” Garcia-Perez said.

The Rams advance to Monday's Lake Forest sectional against No. 10 Carmel Catholic (8-10-4), which eliminated No. 2 Chicago Senn (15-5-3).

The other semifinal will have No. 4 Vernon Hills (14-5-2) against top-seeded Notre Dame (17-2-5).

Vernon Hills is 10-1-1 in its last 12 matches, aided by 10 shutouts from all-state goalkeeper candidate Max Gral.