Boys soccer: Neuqua Valley defeats Metea Valley

Neuqua Valley and Metea Valley might still be considered to be relative newcomers to the DuPage Valley Conference, but they don't expect to be treated any differently in the state's toughest conference.

Both were vying for a strong start during the respective conference opener for each team Tuesday, but it was the Wildcats who made the biggest statement, jumping to a 4-0 lead before allowing two late goals in a 4-2 victory in Naperville.

"It was a great way to start," Wildcats coach Arnoldo Gonzalez said. "It gives us some confidence and hopefully we can build from that."

Neuqua Valley (3-2-0, 1-0-0) finished the first half in fine fashion. The Wildcats narrowly avoided an offsides call when Abishek Venkit scored with 11:07 before halftime.

They extended that lead to 2-0 with 6:47 remaining when William Heniades converted a penalty kick.

Metea Valley (0-1-2, 0-1-0) put itself in strong position to cut its deficit in half with 23:21 left in the second half, but Neuqua Valley goalkeeper Brandon Hartsock stopped a penalty kick.

"It was a game-changing save because it was would've been 2-1 and then we were able to bounce back and get that 3-nil lead, which gave us room to breathe," Gonzalez said. "We felt like we were dominating but not putting it away and capitalizing on the attacking third of the field."

Hartsock said the save inspired the Wildcats to put the Mustangs away.

"It was a big moment and after the save it boosted our momentum and we really pushed forward," he said. "There was more communication between the team and everything."

Spencer Wiese caught up to Tyler McEvily's corner kick midway through the second half to make it 3-0.

"I just stuck my foot out," Wiese said. "It was a good play."

It wasn't much of a good play for the Mustangs, though, who continue to be victimized by set pieces.

"We were doing some decent things, but against set pieces we've been really struggling," Mustangs coach Josh Robinson said. "I think that was the fifth one (this season), I can't keep track. We're not mentally focused on set pieces, and as a result it has caused us to have fits."

The Mustangs gained some much needed momentum for Wednesday's game at Naperville North, scoring twice in the final 10 minutes.

After falling behind, 4-0 on Michael Hammond's header with 12:16 remaining, the Mustangs broke the shutout with 8:23 left on a free kick from Jaylen Brooks before Nathan Barrett scored with 31.3 seconds remaining.

"We're getting some awesome production from our young guys," Robinson said. "We're super young, even our seniors, we have seven of them, but it's a very new team. It's trying to go through some angst and growth and trying to get to know each other better."