Senior midfielder Fernando Mejia has scored many goals in his life.
But when deciding where he would rank the one he bagged for Bremen in Tuesday’s season opener, it was a no-brainer.
“That was the best goal I’ve ever scored,” he said. “It was against a top-ranked team. We’re showing them what we can do. I thought I was going to miss it because I was trying to hit it with my left leg and I’m not even a lefty.”
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Mejia’s second-half goal helped the Braves upset St. Laurence 2-0 during a first-round game of the Windy City Ram Classic in Lemont.
Diego Frausto scored into an open net with the goalkeeper pulled in the final seconds to seal the victory for Bremen (1-0), which will meet Lemont or Providence in Thursday’s second round.
It was Mejia, though, who sparked his team and stunned St. Laurence (0-1) with 9 minutes, 12 seconds to play.
Luis Caratachea took a free kick from 50 yards and sent the ball into the box. It was cleared out by a defender but right to Mejia, who volleyed a 25-yard shot toward the net.
Mejia’s shot went into the net off the bottom of the crossbar to give Bremen the lead.
“I didn’t expect it go in,” Mejia said. “I saw it hit the post and I thought it was going to go out, but it tipped in. As soon as that happened, I got so much excitement inside and I was ready to win this.
“There was so much pure happiness going through my body.”
Bremen coach Tom Piotrowski said it was among the best goals he has ever seen.
“I literally got goose bumps,” Piotrowski said. “I saw him kick it and I was like, ‘If that hits the bar at just the right angle, it’s going in.’ That’s what it did.
“The excitement filled up and that picked up the rest of our team.”
Mejia played his first varsity season in the spring and quickly made an impact.
“We moved him up for regionals when he was a sophomore and he stepped up huge then,” Piotrowski said. “Once we saw that, we knew he’d be one of the top players in the area. When you come out and see him play, he sticks out.
“Making him captain was a good choice. A lot of the kids look up to him, not only because of his skill but the way he handles himself on and off the field.”
Andres Lemus, the Daily Southtown Boys Soccer Player of the Year in the spring, started the game.
He made his return from suffering a broken fibula and dislocated ankle in a club game in May, injuries originally expected to keep him out until at least October.
Bremen’s back line, including Caratachea, Edgar Perez, Eric Ruiz and Alex Esparza, held Lemus and the Vikings in check.
“It was hard, but we made it happen,” Caratachea said. “I was super excited. We knew they were a top-ranked team and we wanted to make a name for ourselves.”
Yahir Perez made two saves and Jon Linares added one to share the shutout for Bremen.
Lemus fired just high and Edgar Perez shot just wide on a couple prime scoring opportunities in the second half for the Vikings, who were coming off a 12-1 record in the spring.
“We kind of let them stick around,” St. Laurence coach Jaime Alonso said. “The guy scores a worthy goal and you tip your hat to him, but once they scored, we looked shocked. We didn’t respond. It’s a reality check for our boys.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.