Hersey knocks Titans out of tourney

Again, the Glenbrook South boys soccer season came to a premature end in the IHSA Regional. The Titans suffered a 1-0 shootout loss to Hersey on Tuesday night in the Glenbrook South Regional.

Hersey, three-time winners of the Mid-Suburban League championship, will meet Waukegan on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the regional finals.

The two teams played a scoreless regulation match before going into four overtimes. The game was finally decided when senior midfielder Rolando Herrera fired the game-winning goal on Hersey's fourth attempt in the shootout. The Huskies were up 3-2 in the shootout when Chris DeLetto of the Titans missed on his attempt. Herrera followed and converted on his shot, sending the Hersey players storming on to the field in celebration.

"These guys played with the heart of a lion," Herrera said. "It was a physical game. We were missing a couple players and we still stayed with it."

Hersey played a man short for much of the second half after Alex Gardasevic was ejected from the game. Gardasevic, the leading scorer for the Huskies with 18 goals during the regular season, had three shots on goal before leaving.

"We had tough conditions tonight," Hersey coach Darren Llewellyn said. "It was a very physical game. I felt like we had more against us than just the opponent.

"I'm proud of the boys for overcoming adversity," Llewellyn said. "I tell the team that all the time. You have to control what you can control and overcome adversity."

Hersey, which won its third MSL title with an 8-3 record this year, improved to 12-5-3 overall. Waukegan advanced to the regional finals with a 1-0 win in two overtimes over Lake Forest.

Glenbrook South, which placed fourth in the CSL South with a 2-2-1 mark, finished the season 12-9-4 overall. The Titans closed out the regular season Oct. 16 with a 7-0 win over Northside Prep. DeLetto had two goals. The senior finished the season with 11 goals. Fellow seniors Ned Pavlovic had 10 goals and five assists and Raul Hudema scored eight goals and four assists.