Renfro scores twice, Benet scores key ESCC victory
Benet boys soccer coach Sean Wesley is thrilled to know he will have junior Nick Renfro in his lineup for one more season.
That's bad news for the rest of the East Suburban Catholic Conference.
Renfro scored 2 goals, including the game-winner, to lift the host Redwings to a 3-1 victory Wednesday over Marist in Lisle.
It was Renfro's third 2-goal game of the season. All of them have come against ESCC opponents.
Ironically, the day didn't start out well for Renfro, who leads Benet in scoring with 7 goals. The midfielder had one shot hit the right post, another bang off the left post and a third stopped by Marist goalkeeper John Kennedy, who made a diving save on a header.
"I was missing all day," Renfro said. "I had about five chances and couldn't put one in.
"Finally got one to go, got a little lucky bounce on it but it went in. That's all that matters."
Renfro's first strike came with a minute left in the opening half and gave the Redwings (7-2-1, 3-0) a 2-0 lead. Jonathan Mitra served a high-arcing, 45-yard free kick from the right wing that came down in front of the far post.
Renfro was there for the header, which rolled inside the right post.
"I thought he was great," Wesley said. "His passes in the second half were next-level stuff.
"He's screening guys into goal four times with perfectly placed passes diagonally. That's special. Now if we can convert a few more of those we won't be in so many dogfights."
This one was closer than it should have been. Marist (7-3-1, 3-1-1) mustered only 4 shots but pulled with 2-1 at the 30:15 mark of the second half.
Clark Woodard, a 6-foot-5 goalkeeper who relieved Kennedy at halftime, sent a booming punt nearly to the Benet penalty area, where it bounced and found the head of Patrick Clancy, who nodded it home.
But the RedHawks got only one more shot - a long-distance try from Clancy that Benet goalie Hunter Randolph saved easily with 3:30 to go.
Renfro had put the game out of reach seven minutes earlier when he volleyed home a throw-in from Carl Widmann.
"It went over the defender's head, I turned and I was just trying to put it on frame like the way I did," Renfro said. "(Marist) is definitely a top team in conference and it's good to get a good start. Hopefully we can keep rolling."
Sophomore Anthony Klos got the Redwings rolling by scoring his third goal of the season at the 27:47 mark of the first half. He latched onto a through ball from Thomas Miskin and beat Kennedy with a short shot.
"I saw a gap in their back line so I was just yelling for it," Klos said. "I (had) kind of whiffed on (his) first (attempt), but I had a lot of space, perfect ball into me and I just made sure to finish the second one and put it away.
"One of the big things our coach always touches on is scoring the first goal is always important because when you get that one in it's a great feeling. It's always easier playing from ahead than playing from behind."