Boys Soccer: Lincoln-Way West bows to Washington
By Steve Milar For Sun-Times Media October 23, 2012 11:04PM
Lincoln-Way West's Ian McGrath (9) shoots the ball against Washington. | Allen Cunningham~For Sun-Times Media
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Updated: November 25, 2012 11:41AM
For the better part of 80 minutes Tuesday night, Lincoln-Way West went toe to toe with an athletic and talented Washington squad.
The host Warriors held an edge in possession throughout the match and had several second-half chances, but could not overcome an early goal in a 2-0 loss in a Class 2A sectional semifinal.
Washington (14-1-1), which continued a string of wins over higher-seeded teams that began with regional victories over Lemont and Bremen, struck less than two minutes in when Rafael Alarcon blasted a free kick from 30 yards out past Warriors goalkeeper Anthony Prospero.
“It kind of takes you out of your system when you give up an early goal,” West coach Jeff Theiss said. “We had to try to stretch the field and we had chances, but the ball didn’t bounce our way.”
The Warriors (14-9-3) spent the majority of the rest of the first half in Washington’s zone, nearly tying it when Shane Varner’s shot was saved in the closing seconds.
West dominated the opening 20 minutes of the second half and created four free kicks, but came up empty, though Ian McGrath was close on a shot that sailed high.
The Warriors’ best chance of the night came halfway through the final period when a long pass from Mike Wyskiel skipped past two Washington defenders, resulting in a breakaway for Adam Webb, who fired just wide.
“We talk all year about coming out strong the first few minutes of a half,” Wyskiel said. “We came at them and had a couple of good opportunities. I’ve got to credit everyone on our team. We never gave up.”
West’s momentum was abruptly halted when Gabriel Martinez scored to make it 2-0 with 16:52 left.
“I couldn’t be more proud,” Theiss said. “We bounced back strong after the first goal.
“(Webb) was a workhorse up front and I thought we’d get one (goal), but it just didn’t happen for us.”
