Berquin's 2 goals lift Larkin to regional win

Michael Berquin's previously injured shoulder has been giving him some trouble in the recent cold weather, and so he's not played recently for Larkin.

But Berquin scored a pair of goals on Tuesday, which does plenty to help keep anyone warm. Larkin advanced with a nice, toasty 3-0 victory over Hoffman Estates in its opening game of the Class 3A St. Charles North Regional.

"It felt pretty good because it's a regional," Berquin said. "The cold gives my shoulder an achy feeling. The win keeps us going and keeps us motivated. It's the focus that we get to want to win state."

Larkin (20-1) led 2-0 at halftime. The first goal involved a multiplayer move finished by a Berquin chip. The second goal was a Raul Sandoval chip that hit the back of the net.

"I was happy with the first half," Larkin coach Ken Hall said. "I thought we came out and played hard. The field conditions were just terrible. That aside, I thought we played with a lot of desire and effort in the first half."

Hoffman (8-15) had its chances as well, especially an early chance from Brad Powszak. But a reshaped defense struggled against Larkin's attack. Two Hawks starters did not play Tuesday, including sweeper Mike Mertel, whose injured ankle gave way again in warmups.

"I'm not going to take anything away from (Larkin), because they're really good," Hoffman Estates coach Matt Sriver said. "And the two they have up top are really special. I don't want to make excuses. But our defense has been the strongest part of our team all year."

At times in the second half, Larkin overwhelmed Hoffman Estates' defense - and hit the post or crossbar three times. Eventually the pressure paid off when Berquin scored his second goal, an effort half-saved by Sebastian Kieruzal. The ball may have crossed the line before the Hawks goalie and a defender combined to put the ball back into their net. Regardless, Larkin led 3-0.

At that point, Hoffman Estates pressed forward, and scored a late penalty kick goal by Salih Golotic.

"I'm not happy with the effort in the second half," Hall said. "We thought we were going to waltz in and 'we're Larkin and everybody's going to back down from us.' We can't have that attitude."