Impressive Wins as ECFC Sweeps
Last week was excellent for the Rooks, with every team securing memorable victories.
Men’s First Team vs. Wisła Chicago (ISSA State Cup): 5-1 WIN
E. Dagatti (Edgewater) 41’ 48’
J.Krueger (Edgewater) 61’
H. Carerra (Edgewater) 73’
B. Kimiavi (Edgewater) 80’
Wisła Chicago 91’
Men’s First Team vs. Green Bay Glory (MWPL): 3-2 WIN
E. Dietrich (Green Bay Glory)
O. Ramirez (Green Bay Glory)
M. Andrusko (Edgewater) 60’
H. Miller (Edgewater) 67’
E. Dagatti (Edgewater) 75’
Women’s First Team vs. Firebirds SC (UWS): 6-0 WIN
K. Egan (Edgewater) 3’
K. Boos (Edgewater PK) 14’
N. Davenport (Edgewater) 23’
A. Buechel (Edgewater) 70’
D. Lucas (Edgewater) 81’
J. Freund (Edgewater) 88’
Men’s U23 Team vs. Chicago Ghost FC U23 (GCSL): 5-1 WIN
Women’s IWSL Team vs. Stingrays (IWSL): 10-0 WIN
Murtadha Kamil (right) clashes with a defender.
Men’s First Team
The Men’s First Team started off their successful week last Wednesday night by beating Wisła Chicago 5-1 in the first round of the ISSA State Cup.
Tobi Wimmer fights for a header.
At the beginning of the match, both teams matched each other's pace on the pitch. Close chances for both teams were abundant, but the defenses of both teams were up for the challenge. For the Rooks, Tobi Wimmer performed tackle after tackle to stop Wisła’s offense. Rooks goalkeeper Anton Omarov was also solid, making multiple saves to stop some clear Wisła chances.
The match remained a stalemate until Enzo Dagatti scored for the Rooks at 41’. Just after getting subbed on, Dagatti altered the tempo of the game by shooting into the right corner of the box after an impressive Rooks push into Wisła’s box.
Enzo Dagatti celebrates his goals with his teammates.
Dagatti’s presence was continued to be felt into the second half as he netted his brace at 48’. Just as both teams were warming up, Dagatti pushed upwards from the middle of the pitch and sent a ball soaring into the right corner from outside of the box to open the half.
Bardia Kimiavi runs with the ball.
Now up 2-0, the Rooks were feeling confident and continued to press on. Pushing up at 61’, Rooks forward William Acheampong would stop the ball close to goal and turn it to Jake Krueger, who would then net the ball in right. Shortly afterwards at 73’, Herbert Carerra would score his first ever goal for the Edgewater Castle FC by crushing it right again. The end of the scoring frenzy for the Rooks would occur at 80’, where Bardia Kimiavi would score off of a deflection of Wisła’s goalkeeper after recovering the ball moving forwards.
Wisła was able to net the ball in at 91’, but that was merely a consolation for the team in the dying embers of the match. The Men’s First Team advanced in dominant fashion, and are now preparing for their quarterfinals match against FC Select next Wednesday at Foster Turf Field at 8:30 PM.
Moments from the Men's First Team match against
The Men’s First Team were also impressive in their MWPL game against Green Bay Glory last Friday evening after the Rooks pulled off a massive 3 goal comeback in the second half to land a massive 3-2 win that holds massive promotion implications.
At the start of the game, Edgewater struggled against Green Bay as the impressive team continued to produce the same quality of soccer that had landed them in promotion territory throughout the beginning of the MWPL season. Green Bay players Ethan Dietrich and Osvaldo Ramirez would score before halftime, leading the Rooks in a 2 goal gap between them and their goal of promotion.
However, thanks to intuitive offensive playmaking in the second half, the Rooks were able to pull off a comeback to remember. In the span of 15 minutes, the Rooks would gain the lead they were looking for to give themselves a crucial three points that could determine their fate in the grand scheme of the MWPL season.
At 60’, Henry Miller swung a cross into the box to Matthew Andrusko who would land a powerful header past Green Bay’s goalkeeper. Then, at 67’, Miller funded a loose ball in Green Bay’s box and finished it to tie the game. Continuing the offensive pressure, Andres Rocha would draw the game winning penalty at 75’, where Enzo Dagatti would bury the ball high above the keeper’s grasp.
With this win, the Rooks are now only 1 point behind 2nd place Green Bay Glory; the Rooks may soon find themselves in that second place position, where they would be promoted alongside the Heartland Division 2 1st place team, currently AFC Roscoe.
Be sure to catch the Men’s First Team’s next game as they face Rockford FC in what should be a rematch to remember at Wedgbury Stadium at 3:00 PM this Saturday.
The Women's First Team huddles before their match against Firebirds SC.
Women’s First Team
The Women’s First Team were solid Saturday night, beating Firebirds SC 6-0 at home.
Kristian Boos faces off with a Firebirds defender.
The Rooks’ offensive masterclass started in the opening minutes, where Kily Egan ran past Firebirds’ defenders and shot in the top right corner at 3’. Continuing to push up the pitch, the Rooks would draw a penalty at 14’ where Kristian Boos would shoot right past Firebirds’ goalkeeper’s dive.
The Rooks’ persistent defense also made sure that Firebirds lacked the chances to come back. Midfield pressing by Jackie Tamas, Paige Matacchiera and team captain Natasha Davenport would ensure that the Rooks maintained a consistent, organized possession of the ball.
Natasha Davenport positions herself to send the ball soaring.
Davenport would also have a share of the goal-scoring, launching a ball outside of the box right and getting it by deflecting her shot off of the keeper at 23’ to lock in a 3-0 lead for the Rooks at half.
Amanda Buechel (middle) sends the ball flying towards Firebirds' goal.
The Rooks continued to dominate in the second half thanks to defenders like Lauren Hall building a great back wall to continue to prevent Firebirds chances. Using the possession to her advantage, Kily Egan would press the ball forwards towards and pass it in front of Firebirds’ goal to Amanda Buechel, who kicked it in at 70’.
The lack of defending from Firebirds would continue to shine towards the end of the match, where the Rooks would score two more as the game winded down. At 81’, Darian Lucas shot a long ball left past the keeper into the left corner, and Jenna Freund would net in an empty-netter at 89’ to close out the impressive Rooks victory.
Moments from the match. Credit: Connor Macintosh (https://www.instagram.com/connor.aden/)
This week, the Women’s First Team are set to compete in the semifinal of Region 2 of the USASA Amateur Cup tonight at NIU Track and Field & Soccer Complex in DeKalb against DeKalb County United at 8:00 PM. To get tickets, click the button below:
You can also catch the livestream of the game by clicking the button below:
The Women’s First Team will also be facing Indiana Union in a crucial UWS rematch at the Fire Pitch Saturday night at 7:00 PM. To get tickets, click the button below:
Men's U23 Team
The Men’s U23 Team continued their undefeated run in GCSL U23 Division Red with a 5-1 victory against Chicago Ghost FC’s U23 squad at Foster Turf Field.
Ghost would open up the scoring at 9’ with a ball hurling to the upper right corner, but after the initial let up the Rooks would come back strong. A staunch defensive structure and consistent pressing into Ghost’s box would land the Rooks the 5-1 result, putting them in a 6 point lead in the division and extending their undefeated streak to 3 games.
The Men’s U23 Team face Chicago Ghost FC U23s again this Sunday at Waukegan's Greg Petry SportsPark at 4:30 PM.
Women’s IWSL Team
The Women’s IWSL Team continued to send a message to the IWSL First Division last Saturday with a 10-0 win against Stingrays at Wilson Turf Field.
The Rooks’ domination on the pitch was highlighted by a hat-trick by Paige Matacchiera, whose precise shots were a conundrum for Stingray's goalkeeper. With another double digit win, the Rooks have extended their undefeated streak to 2 games and stand at the top of the table.
To see their excellent play for yourself, catch the Women’s IWSL Team’s next game tomorrow at Foster Turf Field against Honey Badgers at 8:30 PM.
Written by: Gareth Mullins (https://www.instagram.com/garithimo/)