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Stevenson overpowers Zion-Benton
Updated: September 6, 2011 9:18PM
Zion-Benton took its best shot, but powerful Stevenson held on for a 2-1 road victory on Tuesday in the North Suburban Conference Lake Division boys soccer opener for both teams.
Stevenson got two goals from Joseph Hugener (51st and 55th minutes) to take command, while Zion’s goal came from Bryan Montoya (57th minute).
In the final 20 minutes, the Zee-Bees had two good chances to get level, but Montoya’s header was off frame with 13 minutes left and Stevenson keeper Jacob Azriel stoned him late in the contest.
“I thought we played well. The thing about these division games is you have to play 80 minutes,” said Zion coach Cliff Pontillo. “There was a five- to seven-minute span where we lost the center of the field and they scored their two goals.
“We came back and played a really solid final 20 minutes and gave ourselves a chance to get back level.”
Zion is 4-2-1 overall while Stevenson is 5-0-2.
Zee-Bee goalie Josue Bueno had 10 saves in the game, and was amazing during the final five minutes of the first half when Stevenson peppered him with high-quality shots.
The Bees also got a great defensive play from Luke Mivshek, who made a clean tackle on a Stevenson striker who was about to put the ball into the empty net.
Zion came into this game having won tourney titles at Vernon Hills and Wauconda.
“Those are great games for us, especially when we’re trying to find out what we have an how the pieces fit together,” Pontillo said. “Obviously, when we get into conference play, it’s the next level. We have some of the best teams in the state in this conference.”
Despite the result, the coach is excited about what’s ahead for this team.
“I love our talent,” he said. “We lost some top-notch players but this is as deep as we’ve ever been. What we’re lacking now is some experience. I think the cohesiveness is good.”
Zion is at dangerous Grayslake North on Wednesday while Stevenson is at Evanston on Saturday.
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