Redwings move to 3-0 in ESCC after blanking JCA

By Curt Herron

Things definitely got off to a rocky start for Benet Academy at the beginning of the season.

The Redwings owned a 2-3-1 mark after dropping a 4-1 decision to Naperville Central on September 12.

But since that point, Benet has begun to turn things around by going 3-0-1 in its last four matches.

Included in that streak are three straight East Suburban Catholic Conference wins, with the latest being Wednesday's 4-0 victory at Joliet Catholic Academy.

After watching his squad perform very well in a 1-1 tie with West Chicago on Monday, veteran coach Henry Wind felt that his squad could have performed better against the Hilltoppers.

But considering where the squad was at just two weeks ago, it's a good bet that the Redwings coaching staff will accept a ho-hum victory over the alternative.

"This was probably one of our worst games in the last two weeks," Wind said. "We just didn't come out with a lot of energy. But I can understand it since we gave so much energy on Monday and practiced a little long on Tuesday.

"It's not like we took shots from far outside, we had plenty of breakaways but we hit the goalpost a couple of times so we could have scored six or seven goals. Still, I like where we're at right now and we're getting better.

"I like how we're playing up the middle with Sean Mogan, Connor Miller, George Elliott and Sean O'Hara but we need to get our outside mids a little more into the mix. We're starting to come together as a team instead of playing as individuals."

The Redwings (5-3-2, 3-0) got the only goal that they would need about eight minutes into the match when George Elliott scored off of an assist from Connor Miller.

But the remainder of the first half proved to be frustrating for them since they had some other good chances but were unable to put the ball into the net.

Sean Mogan and Sean O'Hara both had opportunities around the midpoint of the initial half but their shot attempts were stopped.

With about 10 minutes left before the break, Elliott got free and looked like he might score again but his shot bounced off the post.

The Redwing defense, featuring the likes of Matt Stopka, John Bagnuolo and Ryan Reilly, allowed four shots against keeper Alex Senetar, who got his fourth shutout.

"Even though this was a pretty disappointing game, we've been doing a lot better since our Naperville Central game," Reilly said. "Our offense has finally been coming together.

"We switched around a lot of players and moved some people into the offense and moved some people back on defense and that's really helped since now we're real solid on defense.

"We really bond together well and we have great chemistry on this team. We all like each other and hang out off the field. We're ready to make a good run going into the playoffs."

The second half didn't start off much better for the Redwings after they missed a pair of close-range shots about five minutes after the break.

Following a corner kick from Bagnuolo, Elliott headed a shot off of the post and then O'Hara got the rebound but his header was also stopped.

Benet got its second goal about five minutes later when Mogan got free following a pass from Elliott and sent in a shot that eluded JCA's keeper.

The Redwings continued applying pressure and scored again with about 25 minutes left following another pair of short shot tries that were halted.

Elliott was stopped on the first attempt and Brian Morefield saw the same result on his try, but was able to put in a rebound shot to make it 3-0.

John Vieni and Hunter Miller also later had shots on goal for the Redwings, who scored again with about three minutes left when Miller connected.

While not necessarily pleased by his team's performance on Wednesday, Miller likes how the Redwings have progressed since the start of the season.

"Ever since the Naperville Central game we've been starting to play soccer," Miller said. "We're playing feet and combinations and letting the ball do the work and that's obviously working.

"I think it's just a case of us jelling and playing together and knowing what everyone can do. We've moved a lot of guys around and that's seemed to work so hopefully we keep moving forward.

"You need to have the right combination of skilled players in the right spots and the hard workers. The last few games have brought our morale up a lot because we see that we have potential."

Redwings starters vs. Joliet Catholic

Redwings Schedule