Lockport boys soccer falls 3-0 to Evanston in 3A third-place match

Just over a mere 12 hours after falling in overtime in IHSA Class 3A state semifinals, the Lockport boys soccer team was hoping to bounce back quickly against Evanston in Saturday’s third-place match. Unfortunately, the Porters never were able to get on track and dropped a 3-0 decision to the Wildkits at Swanson Stadium in Rockford to finish fourth in the state’s highest class. Both squads finished the season with 16 wins, seven losses and one tie. “We looked mentally and physically drained coming off last night’s match,” Lockport coach Chris Beal said, referencing a 2-1 loss to Glenbrook South. “[Friday night’s] match was such an emotional match, and we just weren’t able to regroup. We didn’t show up at all today, which is frustrating, but we finished fourth in 3A which is something for these guys to be very proud of, because they fought every step of the way to get here. “Like most coaches across the state, if you’d told me at the beginning of the season we’d be here regardless of finish, I would have taken that in a second.” Despite the back-to-back losses in the state finals, the Porters’ postseason journey was filled with numerous highlights and amazing finishes. “This postseason has been incredible,” Beal said. “It’s just been amazing to see this team, every single player, just step up their game to another level. I was thinking [Friday night] during the second half that if we could send the match to penalty kicks, I felt like there was still some magic in the air around us, and it would be something someone would make a movie about. “Unfortunately, it didn’t work out as well would have liked these last two matches, but what a great run it was regardless.” Evanston scored a pair of first-half unassisted goals – both by Matthew Gilroy, at 16:15 and 33:01 – then added its final tally just under five minutes into the second half on an unassisted goal by Noah Thomas. The Wildkits, which controlled the action for a good portion of the match, outshot the Porters 7-4 overall and 7-2 in shots on goal. Lockport keeper Benjamin Szudy played 68 minutes allowing three goals and recording three saves, while Gabe Sikon played the final 12 minutes in net making one save. “It wasn’t the best couple of days for us, but I’m proud we were here and proud that we finished fourth,” Lockport senior captain and midfielder Christopher Huizar said. “Coming off [Friday night], we just didn’t come out with the mentality we needed to have. We talked at halftime about how this felt like a match earlier this season where we just weren’t playing well and how in that match, we were able to get back on track in the second half. We played a little better in the second half, but not well enough. “Losing today, at least for me, hurts more than our loss in the semifinals. It’s tough, because in my mind if we had played the way we had been playing this whole postseason, I feel it would have been a different outcome today.”