Boys soccer: Owen Suda, Lyons top Morton in sectional final

MAYWOOD – Owen Suda’s energy tank was hitting a critical stage early Friday evening.

The Lyons Township senior forward had hit the proverbial wall, spending all of his energy in a pressure-packed playoff game against Morton.

In the final 10 minutes, mainly during a three-minute segment, Suda was a whirlwind on the pitch. He scored two goals in less than a two-minute span, just missed a third goal, ran across the whole field after checking on the health of an injured Morton player and suffered a slight injury.

Suda found the perfect place to rest his weary body following Friday’s 4-2 win over Morton in the Class 3A Proviso East Sectional championship game – on the turf of Theresa L. Kelly Stadium.

Laying down at end of the “Quest for Dominance” phrase on the field, Suda was the star player in leading the Lions to their first supersectional appearance since 2019. The Lions (18-6-2) await the outcome of Saturday’s Bloom-Stagg sectional title game, playing the winner on Tuesday at the Morton Supersectional at 6 p.m.

Suda’s two second-half goals raised his season total to 13, affording him some rest. Suda laid down on the turf for over a minute following the final whistle before a group of teammates surrounded him, prompting him to rise up.

“I was very tired, and at my last straw,” Suda said. “But you can’t give up in these games. It was so rewarding, just the hard work we all put in from every position.”

Lyons coach Paul Labbato said Suda’s big game game matched his immense height on Friday.

“We almost had to sub for (Owen), but we pulled him away,” Labbato said, laughing. “We were worried if they could go a full half or 40 minutes without a breather but there were a couple of stoppages along the way to give our main guys a breather. That fourth goal was a special one. It looked like it was a small space, and Owen runs over there and gets that all-important fourth goal to give us a little bit of comfort.”

Morton star Max Aquino said the Lions had a distinct height and physical advantage over the Mustangs.

The Lions and Mustangs (16-6-2) played a completely different game from their first meeting in the regular season. The two teams finished in a 1-1 draw, but the Lions scored the first goal in the seventh minute on Friday, when Declan Kracker benefitted from a great throw-in from Collin Sullivan. The Mustangs quickly countered with goals from Aquino and Sergio Villegas to take a 2-1 lead in the 10th minute.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the boys,” Aquino said. “It’s hard coming out with a loss like this. We take great pride and took a 2-1 lead and our hopes were really high. It’s unfortunate, just the way they play. We play a completely different style. They play a lot of long balls and big throw-ins and they don’t seem to touch the ball at all. We like to keep it on the floor and playing nice football. It’s two different teams with two different styles of football. It worked for them today.”

Labbato said his team regained their focus and also benefitted from the strong wind in the second half. Lyons goalie Tyler Balon was stellar in the net, racking up five of his nine saves in the first half when the Mustangs had the wind advantage.

“They really pressed up in the first half, but we got out of the first half and only down 2-1,” Labbato said. “We kind of looked at it, changed formations and did a few things different but it didn’t matter because we got those throw-in goals. It stopped them a little bit. We were just trying to get it down to this end, and win the second ball. We got some timely goals. We don’t normally get those.”

Lyons senior defender Collin Sullivan was one of the unsung heroes in the victory, playing a key factor in three of his team’s goals. Sullivan was a big-time weapon on the pitch, with three of Lyons’ goals finding the back of the net thanks to strong throw-ins from Sullivan.

“I’m so proud of these guys and to get this far with them,” Sullivan said. “We went into the game knowing we had the wind and energy in the second half. We weren’t going to let it up.”Morton coach Jim Bageanis credited his seniors for winning four straight West Suburban Gold and regional titles. Morton sophomore goalie Diego Vargas collected four saves in the defeat.

“I’m proud of our kids,” Bageanis said. “They were in the game and the effort was there. It was a good and physical game. We just came up short today. We had a chance to get within a goal (late). You have to put those in, especially in the playoffs. We had trouble matching up with their kids. They had some good chances. We knew their strength was going to be the throw-ins and corners. We did a decent job on their corners, but not so much on the throw-ins.”