Junior defender Dominic Williams was prepared to make something happen for Lockport.
And then he did.
“I was just on top of the play, making sure I was ready,” Williams said. “You have to be ready when the ball comes to you.”
Williams volleyed home a header from teammate Gabe Czako to score the first of Lockport’s two short-handed goals Saturday in a stunning 2-1 upset of perennial power Morton in the Class 3A third-place game at Hoffman Estates.
It’s the first state trophy in program history for Lockport (20-2), which rebounded from Friday’s 3-2 semifinal loss to eventual state champion York.
More Top Picks Makita Xdt16z Lithium Ion 18v
Williams’ goal was his second of the season and gave the Porters a 1-0 lead with 16:09 left in the second half.
Lockport played down a man after senior midfielder Adam Doyle was ejected after picking up his second yellow card with 33:29 remaining.
“I was ready and just pounced on the opportunity,” Williams said. “It felt absolutely amazing.”
Dawid Molek felt similarly just over five minutes later when he also scored short-handed.
Morton’s Luis Gonzalez slid to block a shot in the box and the ball rolled out of the penalty area to the onrushing Molek. The senior forward blasted a 23-yard shot off the hand of diving goalkeeper Brendan Flores and inside the right post.
“I just saw it coming to me, so I was like, ‘I can shoot this first time,'” Molek said. “If anything, we’ll get a deflection off it and see what happens.
“It felt great. We already knew we were doing better, so we just kept pushing and pushing until we got those goals through.”
The Porters then had to hold off a furious comeback by Morton (21-3-3).
The Mustangs cut the deficit in half on Gonzalez’s power-play goal with 5:32 to go, then thought they had scored the equalizer when Eddie Barraza headed home a corner kick at the final buzzer.
The referee ruled the ball had gone in just after time expired.
It was a thrilling ending to a game that started off as a slog. Consolations games are often like that, but Lockport coach Chris Beal said he was incredibly proud of how his players responded after the semifinal defeat.
“It’s a huge comeback and it’s a testament to these kids,” Beal said. “We’ve shown time and time again this season, when we’re up against adversity and things look against us, that’s what brings us together.
“The team that comes out and plays hard for the third-place playoff shows real character. It shows how much it means to you as an individual and a team.”
The victory — and the hardware that came with it — definitely meant a lot to Molek and Williams.
“We worked all season for this, so to just get those two goals and win out is great,” Molek said. “We just want to leave our name and the mark.
“The seniors worked really hard this season. We just wanted to leave it all out there.”
They did, and now the Porters have something to leave in the school’s trophy case.
“It feels absolutely great,” Williams said. “I’m just grateful for the experience with all these guys.
“There’s no one else I’d rather experience it with. This is the team to make history with, and it will be at Lockport forever.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.