Huskies beat rival Friars on special evening in Oak Park

 

CLICK HERE FOR HUSKIES' TEAM PAGE

 

By Curt Herron

A large and lively crowd. Playing against the local rival. Contributing to a deserving cause.

If some teams get to experience any one of those aspects on any day of the season, they're lucky.

But Oak Park and River Forest got a chance to take part in all three of things on Friday night.

Needless to say, its match with Fenwick at historic Oak Park stadium was truly a special evening.

Oh, and by the way, the Huskies captured an exciting 4-2 win over the Friars to cap things off.

OPRF (12-2-1) stepped onto the field in pink jerseys, socks and wristbands for a good reason.

The night was a fundraiser for Maeve's Foundation, which seeks a cure for pediatric brain tumors.

On a cool evening in the Village, a huge gathering showed up to enjoy the community spectacle.

And based on their enthusiasm throughout, it's safe to say they didn't walk away disappointed.

This clearly was no ordinary match for the Huskies, who've had their share of big ones this year.

"It was a special atmosphere for all of us," Huskies senior Nick Radosavlijevic said. "We had a great showing tonight and it was fun to play in a game like that.

"When you see games in Europe with all of the fans, that's what you want to play in. It was good to see so many people who were excited to see us play Fenwick.

"Everybody wanted to beat them and we came out and played as a team and won the game. We're also proud that we could wear pink tonight to support cancer research.

"We want to keep playing like we have. The name on the front of the jersey is more important than the one on the back. We're all playing together for each other."

Coach Paul Wright's Huskies scored a pair of early goals to seize the upper hand in the match.

They still led 2-0 at the break but the Friars (7-4-1) put up a better fight in the second half.

Fenwick twice closed to within a goal of OPRF, only to see the hosts answer with another score.

The first and last of the Huskie goals was scored by Stephen Golz, off assists from Mike Bower.

David Leitson and Ryan Huettel got the other goals and Bower ended the night with three assists.

While beating a local rival is always nice, being part of an evening like this was even better.

"The whole community gets involved in this game and we also support cancer awareness on this night, so it was great to be able to wear the pink for that," Golz said.

"My friends said that they were coming out to the game so that makes you a little nervous. It also gets you excited since you're playing for your school and for pride.

"Every year it's always a close game against Fenwick. No matter how far one team gets ahead, the other will always come back. It's just a wonderful game to play in.

"We have really tight team chemistry and that definitely showed tonight. We're starting to get comfortable with everyone on the team and things are working out well."

OPRF, which has won three straight and six of seven, claimed a 1-0 lead on Golz's early header.

About 10 minutes after that goal, the Huskies added another score when Bower assisted Leitson.

Although down 2-0 midway through the match, the Friars were determined to put the heat on OPRF.

That was demonstrated in the 43rd minute when Jack Gallo scored off a pass from Dylan Kramer.

Less than a minute after that, keeper Jacob Peterson deflected a header by Golz over the net.

But the Huskies struck again in the 45th minute when Huettel fired in an attempt off a corner.

Huskies keeper Granger Sheppard stopped a liner from John Tringl a few minute after that goal.

Ben Greenberg connected in the 57th minute, off of a Kramer assist, to make it a 3-2 match.

OPRF tried to answer but Peterson hauled in a try by GianLuca Locasto and a Huettel free kick.

Golz closed out the scoring in the 77th minute after getting free following a pass from Bower.

"This was my second time playing Fenwick and the atmosphere was the same as when I played against them as a freshman," senior Sheppard said. "This rivalry is great.

"It's very impressive to see a crowd like this and I appreciate all of the fans who came out. It's also special to be able to help a good cause like cancer awareness.

"It was nice to get off to a good start against them and then when they answered in the second half, it was good to be able to rebound and to get that goal back.

"We have a really good team and I'm impressed by how well everyone has been playing. It's amazing how we're all coming together. It's a lot of fun being on this team."

The Huskies will now set their sights on the competitive West Suburban Conference Silver race.

They have league matches against Proviso West and Downers Grove North during the upcoming week.

Meanwhile, the Friars are focused on winning the Chicago Catholic League Blue Division title.

Fenwick clinches at least a share with wins over Providence Catholic and St. Joseph this week.

"Although this is a big game and it's good for the players and the community, we're focused on winning the conference," Friars coach Robert Watson said.

"It's nice to play against them and they obviously have a very good team. We didn't play very well in the first half but the second half was a lot better.

"This match is great for the community. A lot of the guys grew up, played club and went to grade school together, so there's a lot of friends on the field.

"It's a big rivalry since a lot of the parents went to the two schools. And Paul and his staff are doing the game for cancer charity, which is phenomenal."