A season that began with much promise came to an unceremonious end for Prospect with a 2-0 loss to Maine West in the first round of the Elk Grove Regional last Thursday.
The Knights, who won their first three matches of the 2007 campaign and stood at 5-3 following a 2-1 win over MSL East foe Elk Grove Sept. 9, finished at 6-11-1, including a 3-8 mark in conference.
"It's not what we were hoping for," said Prospect head coach Kurt Trenkle. "The issue has been not always being on the same page. We had a bad streak in the middle of the season, so we refocused on being a better team. After that, we noticed that we did start to play better. For us, it has to be a complete team effort where we possess the ball, counter-attack and play good defense."
That recipe was exactly what Maine West cooked up in the regional opener. The Warriors, substituting freely to keep legs fresh, kept the ball in Prospect's zone more often than not, leaving the Knights with few offensive opportunities of their own. And when the Knights did mount pressure, Maine West clogged the box with defenders to thwart any real scoring chances.
With just over 13 minutes left in what was a scoreless first half, a rocket-like free kick by Warriors forward David Puka from 20 yards out was stopped on a leaping, one-handed save by Prospect goalkeeper Eric Vandivier. Seven minutes later, Vandivier was called upon again, this time stopping Puka from in close with another fine save. Maine West threatened again in the half's final two minutes, with Alex Esquivel missing wide-right at the horn.
"Maine West did come out fast, and we came out in a defensive set. We did fairly well, defensively, in the first half. But give Maine West credit. They played hard," acknowledged Trenkle.
"In the first few minutes, Prospect brought it, and then we had the better of the play," said Warriors head coach Mike Divincenzo. "Prospect plays an Italian zone, but we did a great job passing the ball. Still, they held us to nothing."
The Warriors eventually broke the ice, taking a 1-0 lead on a 30-yard Puka blast that escaped Vandivier high and to his right six minutes in. Just 30 seconds later, Prospect had a chance to tie but Warriors keeper Nate Andersen smothered the ball during a wild scramble in front. Maine West then just missed the net on a tip by forward Emsad Zahirovic with 32:25 left, and the Knights came close when forward Tom Kujawa missed high on a rebound off his own free kick with 25:10 to go.
With 19:59 remaining, Maine West completed the scoring on a quick shot by Esquivel from the top of the box, set up on a nice touch-feed by Puka.
"Puka did a nice job holding the ball, and Alex finished it," Divincenzo said.
"We didn't mark tightly enough in the second half," Trenkle said.
Facing a two-goal deficit, the Knights picked up the pace down the stretch, nearly scoring with six minutes left when senior defender Joe Colmone tipped a pass by senior forward Anthony Oplawski toward the net. But Andersen stopped it to preserve his shutout, and the win.
"Their goalkeeper, he had a great game," Trenkle said. "My guys, it wasn't a lack of effort. We were working hard, playing hard, and we were able to come back. But we weren't taking shots, and if you don't shoot, you won't score."
No less than 13 seniors played their final match for the Knights, including Kujawa, fellow forward Jose Legueur, Colmone and Vandivier.
"Kujawa and Legueur have been the most dependable we've had up top, and Colmone and Vandivier each had a good season, too," Trenkle said. "We had a big group of seniors this year, so it's bittersweet to see them go. The whole group -- it's sad to see it end."
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