‘Sully’ disposition: Sophomore midfielder’s goal gives QND halftime edge en route to regional title

MONMOUTH, Ill. — What Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer coach Greg Reis preaches in practice seems to resonate with his players.

At the very least, sophomore midfielder Sullivan “Sully” Walker is listening.

“(Reis) has been telling me ever since I scored my first goal to crash the goalie because you’re always there to make something happen,” Walker said.

So when QND senior forward Leo Cann drove a header off a Brody Jones restart right at Monmouth-Roseville goalkeeper Isaac Garcia in the waning minutes of the first half Wednesday, Walker put himself in front of the goal, just as Reis had implored him to do.

He wound up being johnny-on-the-spot because of it.

“I was like, ‘Oh, he bobbled it,’” Walker said of the goalkeeper’s inability to catch Cann’s shot cleanly. “So I tapped it in.”

With that, he changed the way the game was played. Walker’s goal with 3 minutes, 28 seconds remaining in the first half of the Class 1A Monmouth-Roseville Regional championship gave the Raiders a 1-0 halftime edge. They parlayed it into the momentum needed to finish a 5-2 victory in steady rain at Pattee Fields.

“We were ready to demolish them in the second half,” Walker said. “We had energy and everything.”

Everyone felt it.

“Staying energized, staying active and staying in shape really affected how Monmouth played,” Cann said. “After we got that goal, you could tell they were getting tired. That comes back to (Reis). He’s been working us all year, running us into the ground. We were ready for more.

“It gave us a lot more confidence to carry into the second half.”

The Raiders (10-10-2) need their confidence to remain high heading into Saturday’s sectional semifinal against Mendota (21-2-2) at Chillicothe IVC in a rematch of last year’s sectional title game. The Trojans, who lost 7-1 to the Raiders last season, beat Kewanee 3-0 in the Mendota Regional title game.

QND and Mendota played to a 2-2 draw on Sept. 30 during a tournament in Bettendorf, Iowa, but the Raiders could be without senior goalkeeper Max Frericks for the rematch.

With the Raiders leading 4-0 midway through the second half, Frericks was given a red card for a double touch on a ball he played following a save on a shot by the Titans’ Ozzy Carmona. Frericks stopped the ball with his hands and arms but never picked up the ball.

After dribbling toward the top of the box, Frericks picked up the ball when the Titans’ Alexis Bruntsh charged forward. The referee blew the play dead and gave Frericks a red card for the illegal second touch.

The red card comes with a one-game suspension, which means Frericks will not be available for Saturday’s sectional semifinal. Sophomore Carter Hankins will start in his place, although QND plans to submit an appeal to the Illinois High School Association.

“We have to limit shots, especially with Carter in net now to take pressure off him,” Cann said. “I think we can get it done, but it will be difficult. It will be a nice challenge.”

Being able to string goals together will make a difference, too.

QND junior midfielder Rylan Fischer scored less than three minutes into the second half, Cann buried a shot from the left side of the box minutes later and Fischer added another goal off a Cann corner kick. Playing a man down following Frericks’ red card, Cann added the Raiders’ fifth goal.

“We just got it done,” Cann said.

They enjoyed every second of it, too.

“Honestly, that was the most fun game I’ve played in quite a while,” Cann said. “I love the rain. It’s so fun.”