Dixon’s heroics help Jacobs top Grayslake North

Simply, Jacobs boys soccer coach AJ Cappello is ecstatic to have senior Spencer Dixon in goal.

Dixon, who missed all of his junior season with a broken leg, is back in the nets for the Golden Eagles and is playing at a high level.

Collecting 5 crucial saves, Dixon’s play in goal spearheaded the Golden Eagles’ 1-0 win over Grayslake North in Fox Valley Conference crossover action at Jacobs Tuesday night.

“Spencer would have been our goalie last season and we would have been a different team,” said Cappello. “We missed him last year. He is an aggressive goalie and he is capable of making the great save like he did tonight.”

Out of Dixon’s 5 saves, 2 were outstanding.

With 27:32 left in the first half, Christopher Zamora had a clear header in front of the goal, but Dixon was able to push the ball over the net.

At the 10:27 mark of the second half, Dixon came up big again making a diving save on a breakaway shot from the Knights’ Jake Hensley.

“Grayslake North is a really good team and they had some really good shots on goal,” said Dixon. “I just had to keep my focus and play with a lot of confidence. I had to have the mentality that I wasn’t going to let up a goal. When we scored I could breathe a little easier, but I still had to keep my focus.”

Missing some chances during the first 65 minutes of the game, Jacobs (2-2-1) was finally able to score on Knights’ (3-5) junior goalie Dean Jones with 14:41 left in the contest.

Emerging from a pack in front of the net, Jacobs sophomore forward Konrad Wasilewski blasted a shot past Jones for the match’s only goal.

“For a young player, Konrad has great striker instincts,” said Cappello. “He was in the right place at the right time and had a great shot on goal. He is a very good player with a lot of talent and potential.”

Grayslake North coach Adam DeCaluwe appreciated his team’s effort, but didn’t like the results.

“We played a very good aggressive first half, but we had some breakdowns in the second half,” he said. “We had some really good chances but couldn’t finish. Jacobs is a good team and they finished when they had to. We are starting to get it as a team and starting to show some progress.”