Boys soccer: Streamwood nails down first sectional title

DeKALB - Donnie Sosa and the Streamwood boys soccer team could have hung their heads Saturday after allowing their first postseason goal.

Instead the Sabres tied the game less than 2 minutes later and Sosa headed home the game-winner in the first overtime as Streamwood won its first sectional championship, beating Rockford Boylan, 2-1, at the Class 3A DeKalb sectional.

"This means a lot," said Sosa, who scored with 1:53 remaining in the first of two 10-minute overtimes. "This is what we worked for all summer long. Finally everything is paying off. We're going to enjoy this now. There is so much more to look forward to."

Streamwood (16-5-2) will play Lake Park at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Barrington supersectional with a trip to the state semifinals on the line.

"The guys were just relentless," Sabres' coach Matt Polovin said. "They gave everything they could to finish off that win."

Boylan (19-3-2) did not create many good scoring opportunities. The Titans got their goal after a shot was blocked. Sosa tried to clear the ball out of the Sabres' penalty area but the ball hit Boylan's Aidan Keefe. The deflection went to the far corner of the goal and past goalkeeper Sergio Blanco with 16:22 remaining in the second half. It was the first goal the Sabres allowed in four postseason games.

The Sabres got a good deflection of their own to tie the game with 14:33 left in the half. After a corner kick was cleared, Streamwood was able to put the ball back in Boylan's penalty area. Alan Camarena got the ball on the right side. His shot was blocked, but went across the 6-yard box. Jasminko Dizdarevic was there to put the ball in the back of the net for a 1-1 game. That was the first goal Boylan allowed all postseason.

"You can't do that if you want to keep a lead," Boylan coach Chris Mera said of giving up the tying goal so quickly. "We've been good at shutting people out."

Sosa took advantage of the only good scoring opportunity either team had in overtime. Edwin Rueda sent the corner kick toward the far post and Sosa outjumped a defender for the goal.

"(Mike Delaney) is supposed to be at the back post but I saw him make a run," Sosa said. "So I just covered back for him. It came out perfect."