Emotional Maroons hope to be on best behavior

The good. The bad. And the ugly.

Sometimes you see it all in 80 minutes or less if you watch the Elgin Maroons play soccer.

Individually talented on the field, the Maroons have occasionally been their own worst enemy as a group this season.

If you haven't heard, Elgin's players tend to let their emotions get to them, and in some cases, get the better of them.

"We have a little bit of a reputation of being very passionate and emotional," Maroons coach Dave Borg acknowledged. "I think some teams use that to their advantage and I don't blame them.

"You got to do what you got to do."

Said one area coach: "It doesn't take much to set off a couple of those kids. It's a shame, too, because they really have a nice team. They seem to beat themselves a lot."

Elgin's lowest moment of the season came Oct. 4 against highly regarded Neuqua Valley. Despite playing competitively with the Upstate Eight Conference champions, tempers flared in the final minutes with the Wildcats clinging to a 3-1 lead. Players from both sides were separated, red cards were handed out, and the match was stopped. Eventually it finished, but by then the damage had been done.

"When we play our game and we don't get too emotional I don't think that there are many teams we can't play with," said Borg, who threatened to overhaul his starting lineup after the game against Neuqua. "Passion is one thing, but getting overly emotional is another. We play so much better when we are calm and controlled and that's something we have to constantly stay on them about."

Borg is hoping his squad, if nothing else, has learned something along the way. Whatever the case, he knows his team will have to be on its best behavior when the fifth-seeded Maroons (10-9-1) begin play in the Lake Park Class 2A Regional Wednesday against No. 12 Hoffman Estates.

"First of all, the most important thing is to keep our composure," he said. "Second, we need strong play from the center-midfield position. We need more ball distribution in the middle."

In order to add more composure on defense, Borg recently switched the team's leading scorer, senior Lucas Valencia, from the forward to the stopper position. That in turn, has allowed creative senior Joel Perez more room to operate up top.

"We've fixed our (temper) problems already. We're ready to go," Perez said. "I like playing forward, that is my original position. Now, I can score more goals."

Streamwood Class 2A Regional -- Elsewhere in the Streamwood Sectional, third-seeded Larkin (14-5-4) will play familiar foe South Elgin today. The winner will play either Maine East or No. 9 Streamwood. Larkin defeated South Elgin 2-1 earlier this season in UEC play, but recently lost to Streamwood 1-0.

"I'm afraid of the first game more than any other game," Larkin coach Ken Hall said. "We just need to be relaxed and ready to play. The ultimate goal for us all year is to be ready for the playoffs and now is that time.

"I believe this sectional is wide-open. There is not one dominant team. Whoever gets hot and gets on a roll can win this thing."

Streamwood (10-14-1) will enter the postseason without one of its main contributors this season -- sophomore Alex Perez. Perez will miss at least one game after spending time in the hospital recently with an infection in his right leg. This season, Perez has played several different positions, including forward and goalkeeper where he has scored five goals and posted three shutouts.

"(Perez) got kicked really hard in the leg and he ended up having to go to the hospital because the first doctor gave him the wrong medication," Sabres coach Matt Polovin said. "If we can win our first game, I think he will be able to play."

Like Elgin, Streamwood is a threat to any team it may face. This season, the Sabres posted impressive victories against Larkin, Waubonsie Valley, Fenwick and St. Charles East, among others.

"Our biggest downfall this season has been our inconsistency," Polovin said. "When we can move the ball around on the ground that's when we are at our best. Offensively we will get chances to score, we just have to finish them."

West Chicago Class 2A Sectional -- Second-seeded St. Charles North (15-4-2) opens Wednesday against Addison Trail at the St. Charles East Class 2A Regional. The No. 7 Saints will also play on Wednesday against York. Should North and East both win its first round matches, the crosstown rivals would play each other for the second time this season Friday. Two weeks ago, the teams remained tied at 1-all after 80 minutes.

The twelfth-seeded Bartlett Hawks, regional hosts, will play No. 5 Geneva on Wednesday.

Lake Zurich Class 2A Sectional -- Regional host Jacobs beat Prairie Ridge Friday in a first-round match. The Golden Eagles will face No. 2 St. Viator Wednesday.

Eleventh-seeded Dundee-Crown will open up against regional host Palatine on Wednesday. The Chargers (9-9-2) enter the postseason struggling, having lost six of their final seven matches.

"We kind of finished the season on a low note," Chargers coach Rey Vargas said. "But we've had a week of practice since our last game and everybody is feeling better right now. Hopefully this time has re-energized them and we go in with a lot of energy."