Staff Reporter – CornerKICKSMedia.com
The third game of the 2024 HSSA Boys Soccer State Finals was the perfect cap to an all-day soccer experience at Triton College.
After watching two memorable state finals beforehand, Elgin and Wheaton-Warrenville South closed out a highlight-filled day by living up to all the hype of the festive state event.
The two schools played a solid game filled with back-and-forth action in the Class D state championship game, featuring several big plays to go with a strong emotional tug at the end during Elgin’s 2-1 shootout victory in front of a large crowd in River Grove.
The Maroons picked up a first-half goal from Greg Suarez and then outscored the Tigers 4-3 in penalty kicks to win the Class D state title.
“Herminio Ayala gave us confidence, as he came out playing from the back,” Elgin coach Danny Flores said. “Diego Lopez was phenomenal controlling the midfield, and Daniel Rios brought his leadership experience to the field and helped the team to not fold under pressure.”
Wheaton-Warrenville South forced overtime thanks to a first-half penalty kick from Mati Abay. The Tigers battled to the end despite playing with just 10 players for the majority of the second half.
“The team learned to persevere to the end,” Wheaton-Warrenville South coach Josh Bacheller said. “We played a man down for the final 18 minutes, but we still created chances and played well on defense.
“We had to work hard and play smart. My defense stepped up big stopping Elgin from going through us.”
Wheaton Warrenville South goalie Troy Dunlap said the state final was a bewildering experience, on and off the pitch.
“We could tell right away walking in that this was not just another game,” Dunlap said. “Starting with the locker rooms to the fanfare to the DJ, this game just felt bigger.
““The nerves were definitely high going in, but I also was excited for the huge moment in front of me. The crowd for our game was the biggest one I’ve ever played in front of. The whole atmosphere felt more like a college playoff game.”
Wheaton Warrenville South midfielder Andy Martinez said the total experience – DJ Riel, the large and enthusiastic crowd and food-stocked locker rooms – made for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“I thought the way they hyped up the game was really cool,” Martinez said. “The atmosphere was pretty vibrant.
“The crowd was really cool, because we’ve never had that many people cheering us on. It was great hearing the crowd yell and roar. The nerves really hit me when we walked onto the field and right before kickoff.”
Bio on reporter: Bobby Narang has been covering prep recruiting and sports for the past 30 years. His work also appears in the Chicago Tribune and Daily Herald.
