Boys soccer: Melick's 4 goals help Jacobs nab regional title over Elgin

After the Jacobs boys soccer team ousted Elgin in last year's regional final, the motivation for this season was simple for the Maroons - they wanted Jacobs. They wanted them bad. And they wanted a rematch for the ultimate revenge. But Friday in Crystal Lake there was one problem: Jacobs forward Noah Melick had other ideas.

As Maroons coach Dave Borg alluded to after No. 2 Jacobs took home a 5-0 win over No. 3 Elgin to grab its second-straight regional title, Melick was just too special and single-handedly picked the Maroons apart.

"He's a beast," said Borg, who saw his team's season end at 13-6. "We tried to have one of our best defenders take him. He's something else and amazing he's only a junior."

Last year's Daily Herald Fox Valley All-Area captain crammed the stat sheet with 4 goals to help Jacobs to its second consecutive sectional appearance. The Golden Eagles (15-5-4), who saw Patrick Murphy find the net as well in the win, will square off against the winner of Saturday's McHenry vs. DeKalb tilt Tuesday at the Huntley sectional at 7 p.m., teams that will have to be cognizant of Melick's talent.

"He's a wonderful player but honestly his greatest attribute is that he'll be the hardest-working kid on the field," Jacobs coach Anthony Cappello said of Melick, who now has 29 goals this season. "What makes him a special player is that he doesn't wait for the game to come to him, he asserts himself to the game as a forward which you don't always get."

Elgin learned that first hand when Melick ran a straight line down the field via a pass from Murphy and buried home a strike inside the right post for a 1-0 lead in the 7th minute.

Three minutes out of the half, Melick made it 2-0 as Dan Buirge served up a pass to a wide open Melick downfield. His initial shot stopped by Elgin keeper Edgar Rodriguez, Melick capitalized off the rebound for a 2-goal lead which took the wind out of the Elgin sail. Melick, though, was just getting started.

The forward made it 3-0 when Colin Walsh found Melick on another breakaway in the 50th minute and for the second time this season and his fourth goal of the game on a tap near the post in the 57th minute.

"At halftime we were up 1-0 and we said we needed more, we have to bury them," Melick said. "They wanted us the whole year and just getting this win feels good but we're not done. We're not done and we're going to make a run."