BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. – A penalty kick converted into a goal by Holy Cross' Niko Jelicic in the 49th minute proved to be the deciding factor, as the Roosevelt men's soccer team's school-best season came to an end as the result of a 1-0 loss to the Saints in an opening-round match of the 2013 CCAC Tournament at Toyota Park on Saturday afternoon.
The Lakers finished their second season as a program with a 12-6-1 record, notching a school record for victories and solidifying their first-ever postseason appearance.
The match was quite chippy and physical, with Holy Cross (13-6-0) dominating possession early until Roosevelt took more ownership and offensive pressing ahead in the stanza's latter stages. Both teams had a few quality looks at frame, but neither side could light the scoreboard prior to the break.
Saturday's turning point came in just 3:49 into the final period. Jackson Grueber attempted to force dispossession as the Saints moved forward, and a Holy Cross player went down in the box to elicit the referee to stop play and issue a yellow card, with the infraction in the box garnering the Saints a penalty kick. Jelicic took the clear look and beat keeper Jake Ciglenik as the Green and White netminder dove just a tick too late to make the save.
Roosevelt created some pressure ahead, with a variety of attempts just missing. A sequence featuring three straight Laker shots were turned away, and a beautiful-looking close-range attempt by Juan Celleri looked like it was the equalizer until a Holy Cross player came in for the team save to clear the ball away before it crossed the goal line.
Time ran out on the Lakers in the match and their outstanding turnaround season.
Roosevelt accomplished its 12-win campaign, a season one year after a two-win 2012 debut, with two juniors and a core of freshmen and sophomores to give Lakers fan high hopes for the future from head coach Graham Brennan and his Green and White side.
