Goalkeeper was the original soccer position for Benjamin Pokorny, but he switched things up for a while — including his freshman year at Lemont — in search of some new excitement.
Ultimately, though, Pokorny found his way back to the net. It’s been a happy homecoming for the senior goalkeeper.
“I wanted to play out in the field,” Pokorny said. “My freshman year, I was still playing goalie for my travel team but I found that boring sometimes, so I played midfielder. Sophomore year, I went back to goalie on JV and we had a really good team. We’d win games 8-0 sometimes and I’d never get any shots on me, so that was kind of boring, too.
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“But it’s definitely not boring now. I love playing goalie now, especially in those moments where I make an insane save and just keep us in the game.”
Pokorny wasn’t tested too often, but he was always ready when called upon Thursday night. He made three saves to help visiting Lemont earn a 0-0 tie against Oak Forest in a battle of top South Suburban Blue contenders.
Matthew Koutoulogenis, Mateusz Maka, Max Plewa and Krystian Guzy led a dominant defensive effort for Lemont (7-1-2, 4-0-2).
While Nate Dunaj made six saves to record his eighth shutout in the last nine games for Oak Forest (7-2-2, 3-1-2), he got plenty of help from his back line of Luke Albertino, Ryan Semenow, David Garcia and Evan Harrison.
“I knew I was going to get a lot of shots from Lemont,” Dunaj said. “It was a defense-vs-defense battle. All the guys on my back line have been great all season. They haven’t made any mistakes.
“We wouldn’t be where we are without them.”
Pokorny, meanwhile, kept pace with Dunaj. Pokorny’s biggest save came in the 33rd minute when the Bengals’ Ulysses Morales took a free kick from 25 yards and put a low line drive on target. Pokorny dove to his left to make the stop.
Pokorny has waited for his chance to shine for Lemont after spending last season as the backup to all-state senior goalkeeper Adrian Lisowski.
“I kept working on myself and preparing for my senior year,” Pokorny said. “I knew that was when it was going to be my chance to give everything I’ve got, make an impact and make history.”
Rafal Slomba, Lemont’s first-year coach, was immediately impressed with Pokorny’s desire to get better.
“Ben’s a great kid,” Slomba said. “He has a great attitude toward the game, toward his teammates and this program. He put in a ton of work over the offseason to get to where he’s at right now.
“I know it’s tough to sit behind an upperclassman for a couple years, but kudos to Ben for sticking with it and being ready.”
Plewa credited Pokorny with being a natural leader who certainly hasn’t been shy to take control in his first season as a starter.
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“His voice is a big part of the team,” Plewa said. “He uses his voice, I think, the most of anyone on the team. He gets us hyped up.
“Then, in general, I think his goalkeeping skills are top notch. They’re unbeatable.”
Pokorny’s first taste of varsity soccer came as a sophomore in 2024. He was pulled up to the roster for the playoffs and was on the bench for Lemont’s run to a fourth-place finish in Class 2A.
Since then, he’s had one goal.
“Playing at state, that was incredible,” he said. “We had everyone from school there watching us and cheering us on. We had a great team then and I think we have a great team now.
“I want to make it back there with me as the goalkeeper.”