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Wheaton North tops Glenbard North on Gudanik overtime goal By Darryl Mellema
Little did Edwards know that his “hit and hope” ball had started the sequence that won the contest for the Falcons. That high ball from the right wing near midfield hung in the air a bit, then came down just outside the six-yard box. Glenbard North's goalkeeper flapped at the ball but could only deflect it – toward the head of Zak Gudanik, who met that ball at the left post and headed the game-winner. The win gave Wheaton North (2-2-3, 1-0) a 2-1 win and gave the Falcons a multiple-goal performance for the first time since the season-opener. “Usually I look for a deflection,” Gudanik said. “Then I move in and either head it or kick it in. I've been heading soccer balls and scoring goals like that most of my life.” Wheaton North's win gives it a good start in what figures to be a very tough DVC race this fall. “The first one is always important.” Gudanik said. “It really tells you where you are in the table.” Asked if he would have been satisfied with another tie, Gudanik said, “nooo, nooo.” That same sentiment was shared by Falcons coach Bryce Cann, who was throwing more and more players into attack in an attempt to break the deadlock as the overtimes progressed. He said he was willing to take the risk of getting caught on the break by the Panthers (2-6, 0-2.) “We had talked right before the second overtime started and I said 'we're not taking a tie,'” Cann said. “We talked about pushing up extra players just for that purpose. Sitting with three ties, we have to either get a win or a loss. That's especially true in the conference. You can't afford to take too many ties in conference play.” Wheaton North fashioned a goal by not giving up 14 minutes into the match. Pat Langan sent a leading pass on the ground into the penalty area. Josh Bennett ran onto the ball and had it partially taken off his foot. Bennett continued his run, however, and when the ball broke from his defender, found himself with only the goalkeeper to beat. Bennett stabbed the ball into the net and the Falcons had an early advantage. “It's always a good feeling to get an early goal,” Bennett said. “It was important, to get our motivation going.” Gaps opened periodically in Glenbard North's defense, but a series of free Wheaton North headers and shots failed to advance the lead. The best of these moves came shortly after the goal. Gudanik and Bennett combined on the left, with the ball coming across for Mike Lenzi, who shot from extremely close range. The officials ruled the ball did not cross the line, however, and a corner kick was eventually given. With Wheaton North unable to get a second goal, the question became whether or not Glenbard North would unlock the Falcons defense. For the most part, Wheaton North's sequence of offensive chances helped keep the ball from moving dangerously into their own defensive half. But eventually the Panthers put some passes together. With seven minutes left before halftime, Wheaton North defender Kyle Conrad stepped in to cut out a dangerous pass that had eluded the outside backs. Wheaton North set about defending its lead in the second half, with the patterns not much different than in the first. The Falcons maintained an edge in possession, had the more dangerous shots but were unable to find the back of the net. “We created a great number of opportunities, which we had talked about before the game,” Cann said. The Falcons did find the crossbar. Elvin Ahmeti cracked a shot from the top of the penalty area 12 minutes into the half but saw it carom off the woodwork. “We knew we had so many opportunities,” Bennett said. “We had to put one in the net.” Glenbard North punished Wheaton North's offensive inability to extend its lead when Jon Colucci dribbled through the defense and hit a ball on the ground to the far post. “He's a sophomore and this is his first year on varsity,” Glenbard North coach Greg Chrisman said. “He already has four goals this year. He broke his wrist and had to miss a game after he got the cast on it. But he's played our last two games and he's a great addition for us. His work rate is great.” Colucci's goal presaged Glenbard North's best spell of the game, when they held possession and might have taken advantage of a Wheaton North team that, for the moment, was knocked back on its heels. “I felt the last 10-15 minutes of the game was ours,” Chrisman said. “That's were we could have won the game. We actually had possession, which we didn't have the entire game. We just weren't able to get that second goal before the end of the game. You could feel the energy.” The Falcons had the final chances to win the game. Pat Langan hit the crossbar with a long free kick from midfield with 10 minutes left and it appeared that Wheaton North was going to finish with its fourth tie in seven matches. Then Edwards hit his hopeful ball and Gudanik delivered and the Falcons had their victory. “We never gave up,” Bennett said. “We kept going at them trying to get that second goal.”
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Man of the match: Zak Gudanik By Darryl Mellema Zak Gudanik popped up at the right moment to score the Falcons overtime winner on Thursday, and the goal showed how important proper positioning can be. With the ball hanging in the air, the tendency might have been to draw too close to the goalkeeper, to get sucked into the middle. Then when the ball was poorly cleared, it would have gone to the place where Gudanik had been standing. As it was, Gudanik was in perfect position to clean up the mess and give Wheaton North its second victory of the season. “He held his spot and stayed at home where we always talk that you need to be,” Wheaton North coach Bryce Cann said. “We talk about people making plays when you need then, and he did that tonight.” Wheaton North starters
2009 Schedule
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As he hit a high hopeful ball into the Glenbard North penalty area two minutes into the second overtime of Thursday's DuPage Valley Conference game, Wheaton North defender Bobby Edwards winced, put his arms up and started to move back toward the midfield stripe.