The 2nd sectional semi final of the day at Lockport Township features the 3 seeded Blackhawks of West Aurora against the 2 seed from Naperville Central. The Redhawks took down Plainfield North 2-1 to win the regional while West Aurora defeated Metea Valley 3-0. The winner will face Naperville North in the sectional final.
First Half
Opening two minutes of the game, Mitch Becker with the throw in, James Kim gets to the ball and shoots, the ball hits the arm of Raul Magana inside the box which sets up a penalty kick.
Senior William Morgan takes the PK and gets Alejandro Barrios leaning the wrong way, and puts Naperville Central up 1-0 early.
A couple minutes later, Jaziel Enriquez with a strong shot on net, but Caden Redpath swallows it up to hold onto the lead.
Ten minutes into the first half, Miguel Magana with a throw in, the ball hits Mitch Becker and it is ruled that the ball hit off his right arm. So West Aurora will get a penalty kick.
Miguel Magana will take it himself as he goes to his right, Redpath guesses correctly but the shot is strong enough to slip by for the equalizer.
Late in the half, Blackhawks attacking again, Eloi Niyibizi centers a ball as Redpath can’t knock the ball away, Hector Rosales with a chance with an empty net, but the Redhawks defense led by Rohan Bhargava and William Morgan block the shot and clear the ball away. The game is tied at 1 at halftime.
Second Half
Early in the 2nd half, Rashidi Meso dribbles towards the middle before curving a shot into the lower left corner of the net. A perfectly placed shot puts the Blackhawks up 2-1.
A minute later, Niyibizi looks to add to the lead, but his close range shot is snagged off the ground by Redpath to keep it a 2-1 game.
Under ten minutes to play, Nico Couropmitree with a long pass that finds Ben Tietjen who pops a pass to Owen Jarrell for the header, but somehow Alejandro Barrios dives and keeps the ball from crossing the goal line. West Aurora is able to clear the ball and cling to the slim lead.
Under three to play, Owen Jarrell with a free kick, Barrios can’t hang on to the ball, it finds the foot of William Morgan, but his attempt at a quick shot slides just wide of the goal. A heartbreaking loss for Naperville Central as West Aurora hangs on for the 2-1 victory. The Blackhawks now hope to avenge last year’s 5-1 sectional championship defeat to Naperville North this upcoming Friday.
Check out other Regional Soccer games in our Boys Sports Highlights!
