South back on top

Nick Dentamaro - ndentamaro@nwherald.com Crystal Lake South's Carey Bienert (left) wins a header against McHenry's Holden Senn-Raemont during Saturday's game. Crystal Lake South won, 4-0, against McHenry. (Nick Dentamaro – ndentamaro@nwherald.com)

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By MAUREEN LYNCH – mlynch@nwherald.com

McHENRY – As time expired in the second half, Crystal Lake South players turned to coach Brian Allen and started a barrage of congratulatory hugs and handshakes.

The Gators’ 4-0 victory against McHenry in the IHSA Class 3A McHenry Regional title match Saturday still is just a signpost along South’s journey toward establishing its boys soccer program as one of the state’s elite, but the Gators’ first regional crown in five years served as proof that the system is working.

“When I took over the program [in 2007], the boys were intent on making a name for themselves,” said Allen, “and they’ve taken it in stride, working every step of the way to make that happen. They’ve done it through a lot of hard work and camaraderie. I can’t say enough about what this means to our program.”

The Gators (19-3-2) will face Larkin at 5 p.m. Tuesday in a Barrington Sectional semifinal.

When South started the season undefeated, it surprised those who had wondered how the Gators would respond to losing key players to graduation.

But the work ethic and team chemistry, senior Brandon Dybdal said, started what has become a banner season for a program seeking an identity – the Gators won the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division title outright for the first time in 12 years and broke their regional-title drought Saturday.

“We are a family,” Dybdal said. “We don’t just play for ourselves; we play for each other, our school, our coaches and our parents because we are one.”

It was important to stake an early lead against the Warriors (8-12-3), and South wasted little time getting ahead. Sophomore forward Charlie Oliver buried a shot into the right corner of the goal off a pass from teammate Jono Gutmann two minutes into the match.

The Warriors’ defense clamped down and held South there until the final three minutes of the first half. But Dybdal broke free from his defender and sent a 25-foot shot sailing past McHenry goalkeeper Carlos Wence (six saves) for a 2-0 advantage.

Oliver made it 3-0 with his 19th goal of the season when Dybdal took advantage of a lapse in the Warriors’ defense a minute later. Dybdal threaded a pass to Oliver, who turned and shot with 2:17 remaining before the break.

“I think we knew we had to play our best to beat McHenry,” Oliver said. “They’re a great team, and it wasn’t going to be easy to beat them [a third time].”

The Gators added to their lead at the 15-minute mark of the second half, when Gutmann took a pass from Oliver and scored from the top of the box.

McHenry coach Tony Caruso said the Warriors’ defensive miscues were the difference.

“As good as we played defensively, we made too many small mistakes and you can’t do that against a team as good as South,” Caruso said.

“ ... We played a tough schedule this season, and we battled and really were in every match we played. For the most part, I’m happy with the season. The guys played hard.”