New Trier’s soccer team currently holds a record of 4-0-3. The home game at Prospect was the first victory of the season, resulting in a 3-2 finish. What seemed to be a tie game ended as a win within the last five minutes when returning senior Charlie Malkin scored a last minute goal.
Malkin said, “The game came down to 2-0, which is the most dangerous score because the other team only has to score one point and when they are only one point down, they could easily catch up.”
Malkin was previously out of the game for twenty minutes due to leg pains and requested that he be let back in at the five minute mark to see if he could make a difference. He made his mark when he scored the winning goal and broke the tie.
Two days later the team played against Mather and won 4-0. Joey Long, Jack Cornelo, Tim Moriarty, and Kyle Bergland respectively scored. Senior Sam Elrad said, “We played really well by outplaying them. Defensively, offensively, in every aspect we played smarter than them. This was also a motivational boost for the team, since we won by so much.”
On Sept. 2, the Trevians headed over to the Barrington tournament. Their first game was against St. Charles North. Playing smart again, the game ended 4-1, adding another win to their record. It wasn’t until halfway into the game when New Trier kicked it into high gear.
St. Charles originally had a one goal lead in the second half. Jack Cornelo, Charlie Malkin, Will Belliel, and Steven Childs struck back with four unanswered goals. Goalie and senior Andrew Gjertsen racked up six saves. “It was different because of the smaller fields at Barrington,” said Malkin.
The following day the Trevians took on Wheaton-Warrenville South. This was the first of their three tie games. It ended in a stalemate, 0-0.
Despite the offensive opportunities of each team, the ball never found its way into a goal. “We played well enough to win, but we weren’t able to finish any of our opportunities to score,” said head coach Wes Molyneaux. On the defensive side, goalie Jonathon Jaggard tallied up six saves.
The Trevians played against Rockford Boylan on Sept. 6, finishing in a 2-2 tie. The game was 2-0 at halftime (in New Trier’s favor), but Malkin’s bad score theory was proven true when Rockford caught up with two goals to match New Trier’s. “We became too comfortable and let our guard down. We thought we had it,” said Elrad.
Many of New Trier’s shots hit the goal post against Lake Zurich. The game ended in another scoreless tie, which cost New Trier the championship and the team ended the Barrington tournament in third place. Molyneaux believes their finish is a success for the Trevians as Barrington is one of the top three tournaments in the state. New Trier recently won a home game against Niles West with a result of 5-1.
The soccer team has many plans for the future. “We’re looking forward to playing against Evanston and Waukegan. We beat Waukegan last year on their field and this year they’re playing on ours. Playing against Evanston is the traditional game where the winner gets the fire hydrant trophy,” Molyneaux said. The New Trier-Evanston match will be on September 26. The team plans to get the hydrant after losing to Evanston for the past six years.
“I feel like we have a chance to go to state this year. The team has a lot more depth,” said Malkin.