One day, Lake Zurich coach Mike Schmitz and St. Charles North coach Eric Willson hope to lead their teams to Toyota Park.
But for the sixth consecutive season, both coaches saw their goals derailed in the quarterfinals of the Pepsi Showdown on Saturday. Libertyville knocked off Lake Zurich, while Morton upended St. Charles North in overtime in the eighth showcase at the Lyons Soccer Complex in LaGrange. Lyons is the only other program to advance to the Sweet 16 each of those years.
“One of these years, we’re going to get there,” Willson said. “It’s frustrating.”
While many believed this was the North Stars’ year to get there, Schmitz just had to shake his head.
“I don’t know what it is, but we just can’t get over the hump,” Schmitz said.
Slow trek back: Morton’s Joel Salmeron quietly returned to the field Thursday night during the Mustangs’ 2-1 overtime victory over West Chicago.
The senior came back quickly after straining his left MCL during a team scrimmage in late August.
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“I’m just taking it slow right now,” Salmeron said. “I’m not 100 percent, but I’m trying to do what I can. I’m going to play a little here and there until I’m back to 100 percent.”
In a rematch of the 2010 title game, Morton will battle Libertyville in one semifinal of the Pepsi Showdown on Saturday at the Lyons Soccer Complex. Lyons and Metea Valley will play in the other semifinal, with the winners advancing to Sunday’s title match at Toyota Park.
It’s not a misprint: No. 1 Naperville North will take on No. 4 Batavia on Friday in Morton, Ill. The two schools are separated by about 15 miles, but will travel about 125 miles to play one another in the opening round of the Morton Tournament.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but the point of out-of-area tournaments is to play schools that aren’t from your own backyard, right?
Soccer market: Here are a few highs and lows from the third week of the boys soccer season.
Team gains with impressive play: Metea Valley (5-0-2) went 3-0 last week by outscoring its opponents 7-0. Neuqua Valley and Lyons on tap this week.
Team drops: After moving to No. 1 spot in Tribune Top 10, Oak Park went 0-1-1 against two ranked teams — St. Charles North and East Aurora.
Individual increase: Batavia’s Anthony Torres continues to control the midfield, which is why his team is off to a 7-0 start.
Individual decrease: Washington’s Misael Martinez, one of the state’s top players, suffered a right ankle sprain against Mount Carmel and will miss three weeks.
This week’s best bet: Toyota Park is the place to be Sunday, when the Pepsi Showdown tripleheader takes place, beginning at 10:30 a.m. A complete schedule may be obtained by visiting pepsishowdown.com.
Email Joe Trost at [email protected].