Posada on the verge of history

Updated: October 3, 2011 8:07PM

Carlos Posada is a whirl of activity on the soccer field and quiet and humble off it. Talk is irrelevant given the level of his accomplishments.

The Crete-Monee senior forward is on the verge of history. With 150 career goals, Posada is 10 goals shy of breaking former Brother Rice star Billy Savarino’s state record of 159 goals. Posada also has 51 career assists.

 After recording a combined 46 goals in his first two years at Crete-Monee, Posada scored 63 goals last year, the third highest individual total in state history. At just 5-foot-5, he is not physically imposing. His determination, toughness and athleticism set him apart.

 “He’s addicted to soccer,” third-year Crete-Monee coach Julian Lagunas said. “He’s very hard-working. During practice, everything to him is a competition, not just a drill. He wants to have a winner and loser, and the loser has to serve his punishment.”

 He started playing organized soccer at the age of 8. “I’ve always had good speed, I could handle the ball and I could pass when I had to,” he said.

 Posada’s cousin, Jorge Garcia, plays at Southland conference rival Bloom. “The thing about Carlos is, it doesn’t matter who’s in front of him, if he sees the ball, he’s going to get to it in order to score,” Garcia said.

 “I want to win at everything,” Posada said.

 He has accumulated 41 goals this year, with a personal single-game best of six. He credits a lot of his success to his father, Alejandro, who played in his native Mexico, and older brother Alex. “They were both defenders, and I’m a scorer,” he said. “My brother taught me a lot of tricks that I’ve used, how to play off the ball, take advantage of people trying to stop me,” he said.

 Posada’s prolific scoring has propelled the Warriors to a 12-2-2 mark. Crete-Monee has four regular-season matches left, hosting Rich East Tuesday and traveling to Kankakee on Thursday.

 His quest for state the record has created a buzz around campus, where even his principal singled him out at the homecoming rally last Friday. Posada has admitted and Lagunas confirmed the heightened pressure has impacted his play. “There have been some times where he has tried to force the action a little,” Lagunas said. “It’s definitely affected him.”

 “If I do get the record, I don’t know what it would say about me,” Posada said, “except that I’m a really good scorer.

 “So far, it’s been really fun.”

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