Perez's goal lifts Badger
Photo Gallery
Darien-Delavan Soccer vs. Badger
Photos from the Darien-Delavan Soccer game against Badger.
DELAVAN — It was remarkable poise by a sophomore.
With the score tied 2-2 late in a pivotal Southern Lakes Conference boys soccer game here Tuesday night, Lake Geneva Badger midfielder Francisco Perez found the ball on his right foot with an opening to the Delavan-Darien net.
Perez’s first instinct? Shoot, and shoot fast.
His calmer instinct? Take an extra touch on the ball, get closer to the net and dramatically increase the chances of scoring.
Perez heeded the latter instinct, all in a split-second, slipping a shot into the lower left corner underneath Delavan-Darien goalie Evan Mansfield in the 75th minute to give Badger High a 3-2 win in a matchup of unbeaten Southern Lakes teams.
“I was going to shoot it from outside of 18 (yards), but I thought about it, because if I was going to shoot it, I could have put it over the goal,” Perez said. “So I thought about it, and I took a touch (to get closer to the net), and I got it.”
First-year Badger coach Ross Fowler was impressed with Perez’s composure.
“He has that composure on the ball, and as a sophomore on the varsity level, he stands out with that composure,” Fowler said. “I was a little nervous with his (extra) touch, but he got his head up and found the corner.”
The win boosted the defending champion Badgers to 8-0 in the conference and 12-2 overall. Delavan-Darien fell to 7-1 and 13-2.
Despite the loss, Delavan-Darien coach Clay Nelson was encouraged by his team’s play against a Badger team that has been regularly beating opponents by wide margins.
“I think the kids knew they had a lot of work cut out for them,” Nelson said. “But at the same time, I felt as though from the very beginning that our kids gave us the opportunity to win the game.”
The Comets nearly did just that in the 74th minute when a tough-angled shot by Jordan Rowland surprised Badger goalie Brendan Gruenwald-Schmitz, trickling over the keeper and dancing on the goal line. But Gruenwald-Schmitz grabbed it just before it crossed.
“The keeper saved it probably on just about the line,” Nelson said. “He saved it. It was a clean save.”
About a minute later, Badger junior midfielder Matric Kotula, who had a goal and two assists, drew the Comets’ defense with a nice run up the left side before slipping a perfect pass to Perez across the field. Perez did the rest.
The Comets got on the board in just the second minute when Jesus Garcia scored off a Travis Leitzke assist. Kotula’s pass and Martin Valadez’s subsequent rocket tied it in the 12th minute, and Badger took a 2-1 lead in the 38th minute when Wesley Aranda made a beautiful move on a defender before finding Kotula in front for an easy tap-in.
Delavan-Darien tied it again in the 49th minute on a broken play. Christopher Doerr’s turnaround shot in close deflected right to teammate Audelio Peralta, who beat Gruenwald-Schmitz down low.
BADGER 3, DELAVAN-DARIEN 2
Lake Geneva Badger 2 1—3
Delavan-Darien 1 1—2
First Half
DD—Jesus Garcia (Travis Leitzke), 2:00. LGB—Martin Valadez (Matric Kotula), 12:00. LGB—Kotula (Wesley Aranda), 38:00.
Second Half
DD—Audelio Peralta (Christopher Doerr), 49:00. LGB—Francisco Perez (Kotula), 75:00.
Saves—Brendan Gruenwald-Schmitz (LGB) 4, Evan Mansfield (DD) 4.
Sep 23, 2009 at 6:41 p.m.
Suggest removal
It may not mean a whole lot, but DDHS can't be 13-2. They had a tie with Beloit Memorial earlier in the season and tied Stoughton at the Craig Quad a few weeks back. Shootout victories count as ties on your overall record, though I am sure someone will bring that up to Delavan's coach at their seed meeting.
Before you post a comment, consider this:
Note: GazetteXtra.com does not condone or review every comment. Read more in our User Policy AgreementPost Comment
Commenting requires registration.