When an injury sidelined him for the second half of last season, Drew Schiller missed being on the field for some special moments, including when Lincoln-Way Central won conference and regional championships.
The setback gave Schiller perspective.
Now a junior defender, he makes the most of every moment.
“Every single ball I can get, I make sure I can get to with the best of my ability,” Schiller said. “I just give it my all every play. You never know when anything bad can happen, so I have to make sure I make an impact as long as I’m out there.”
Schiller made a big difference Tuesday night, helping the visiting Knights shut down crosstown rival Lincoln-Way West for a 1-0 SouthWest Suburban Red victory in overtime.
Nico Espinosa scored the winning goal 12:18 into OT for Lincoln-Way Central (10-5, 2-0), putting in a rebound after Eddie Rafacz’s initial shot was saved by senior goalkeeper Rylan Decker.
Decker stymied the Knights throughout the night, coming up with seven saves to keep Lincoln-Way West (6-7-2, 1-1) in it.
Schiller, Matt Bettenhausen and Dale Hauser led the defense for the Knights, who held the Warriors to two shots on goal. Ryan Marszalek stopped those to earn the shutout.
Schiller tore the MCL in his right knee last September during a game against Lockport.
“It was pretty tough, especially to have all the great players we did, to not be able to compete with them and compete for state,” Schiller said.
Returning to the field this season, Schiller changed positions and moved from midfielder to defender.
“It was a little weird getting used to it because I’m used to the midfield,” he said. “I’ve figured out how to keep my positioning. I’m being able to produce and create from the back and get us moving forward.”
Lincoln-Way Central coach Dave Brown said it has been the perfect fit.
“We knew we needed to find him a home,” Brown said of Schiller. “He’s not a center back by trade, but kind of by need, we decided to see what he looked like back there.
“He can drive the ball. He’s got a great leg on him. He wins 50-50 balls and can distribute the ball. He gives us a presence back there. It’s been a nice find.”
Schiller is using that big leg to help two teams this fall. He’s also a kicker in football for the Knights.
“It’s a lot, but I enjoy it very much,” Schiller said.
While Schiller got things done on the defensive end, the Knights created some strong chances offensively but couldn’t quite convert — hammering two shots off posts and one off the crossbar.
Lincoln-Way Central kept pushing, however, and the persistence paid off when Espinosa crashed in to poke home a rebound after Rafacz’s shot was saved by Decker.
“Decker’s a great goalie,” Espinosa said. “I got shot after shot and he kept saving them. I said, ‘I’ve got to find some way to score, even if it’s not going to be pretty.’
“I saw Eddie shoot it, saw the deflection. I knew I had to be there, and I got there and scored.”
Decker’s best save came on Espinosa less than a minute before the goal, when he fully extended on a dive to get his fingertips on a line-drive shot and knock it wide.
Dane Hagen and Josh Lehman had shots on goal for the Warriors.
“The goal was unlucky,” Decker said. “Not much I could do on that one. I think we held our shape well defensively and had a few good chances on offense. We played solid overall.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.