Riverside Brookfield boys soccer coach Danny Makaric watched as his team set out to make school history Saturday in the Riverside regional championship.
Then he watched as his players almost let it slip away.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 2-0 first-half lead over Wheaton St. Francis with goals by Rubin Chavez and Tyler Polanski. Then, for some reason, the players thought the game was over. They assumed the two-goal lead was enough.
It almost wasn’t.
“My kids stayed serious in the first half, but in the second half they thought it was already done,” Makaric said. “They were not really into the game.”
Wheaton St. Francis came out re-energized in the second half to score two quick goals and tie the game. Their boost in energy seemed to recharge the Bulldogs, who responded with four goals of their own — two by Chavez, one by Polanski and one by T.J. Armic — to run away with the win. The victory was the first boys soccer regional championship ever for RB.
“We made history,” Makaric said. “It’s feeling great, especially for our seniors. To win this was something special for them, special for everyone.”
RB was expected to win its first regional championship last year, but lost in double overtime. That is now a distant memory for the Bulldogs, who went into sectional play with no pressure hanging over them. RB was scheduled to play University High School Tuesday.
“At the beginning of the season we had two goals: Win conference and win the regional,” Makaric said. “We achieved both goals.
“If we win, fine, but if we don’t, that’s fine.”
