Boys soccer: Glenbard East ousts WW South
The Glenbard East boys soccer team went over certain situations during practice Monday in preparation for Tuesday night's Class 3A regional semifinal hosted by the Rams.
And it's that attention to detail that boosted the Rams to a 1-0 victory over Wheaton Warrenville South and gave them one more home game, a 11 a.m. Saturday regional title match against York. The Dukes, seeded third in the Conant sectional, beat Addison Trail 4-1 in the first regional semifinal.
Specifically, it was reviewing free kicks on Monday, something that coach Josh Adler said the team goes over every week, that was the most beneficial.
With just 2:22 remaining in the match, Glenbard East (7-6-3) was awarded a free kick. Ian Moran took the kick and he knew that left-footed Brandon Pineda gave the Rams an advantage.
"I'm thinking there are a couple of minutes left and we need a big play," Moran said. "I was able to put the ball down the line for Brandon."
When soccer or any high school sport enters the postseason, one of the biggest incentives for success is fear of a game being the last game. That was on Pineda's mind.
"Today, I would have my moment. I knew I was going to have my moment. I'm the only left-handed kicker and I was on the wall on that side. This couldn't be my last game," he said.
Pineda said the Rams have a desire to always improve, and that's been crucial to the team's success this season and a big reason why they advanced to a regional final.
"In practice we always try to learn something new," he said.
Adler believes that skill is important, but success goes beyond that and it has with Glenbard East.
"It's not just about the skill. It's intangibles, hard work, our passion as to how we play," he said.
The Rams have on their jerseys the saying that Adler has stressed to his team during his tenure, "Mental toughness. Extra effort."
Glenbard East hasn't faced York yet this season.
"They are a big physical team. They're a hardworking team and have different elements that can attack you. I'll talk with my assistant coaches and we'll come up with a game plan," Adler said.
WW South, seeded 11th, finishes the season at 7-12-2. It held the edge in momentum in the scoreless first half when it put a lot of pressure on the Rams' defense and goalkeeper Gerardo Galvez made 6 of his 10 saves during the first 40 minutes.
"Our team proved tonight that we have it," said Tigers senior Gabby Lazcano. "But we have a mental slip at that moment and it results in a goal. Tonight wasn't for a lack of effort. It was a great season. I love my boys."
While Glenbard East celebrated, WW South held its final postgame meeting of the season and the pain of the season ending was on the faces of the Tigers.
"The way we played, I will never forget our last game. It was our best game of the season. We needed one in and it just didn't happen," senior Will Buxton said.