Olympic Park, SCHAUMBURG, Illinois, USA - Louis Flores came off the bench to score one goal and Hellenic United debuntant Phil Lencioni added another as Hellenic United A.C. O30 beat Stare Byki F.C. 2-0 on Tuesday (8/4/09) in their eighth National Soccer League match of the season. HUAC now improve to 6-0-2 but face NSL powerhouse North Shore on Saturday (8/8/09, 5:00PM) at the College of DuPage.
Finally, having an almost full squad (still missing 2 starting players due to injury) in place HUAC came on the pitch to face a team that beat a depleted HUAC side last week (4-0).
While Stare Byki FC created chances and was the aggressor for much of its game against HUAC last week, the same could not be said on this night. HUAC was simply dominant throughout the game, creating chances seemingly at will and dominating the possession.
HUAC controlled the game right from the start and pinned Stare Byki FC in their defensive half for the whole 80 minutes of play with their opponents having to produce only two scoring opportunities in the entire game. One of them a scare in the second half when a Stare Byki shot was saved brilliantly by keeper Andreas Papakostas.
The first half was an onslaught of Mario Mele runs, precise Lencioni and Cirbo passes, and the relentless attacks of Louis Flores. It was all much more than Stare Byki FC could handle.
The first HUAC goal came after Alan Hernandez floated a perfect free-kick pass into the box for Flores, who shook his defender and with one seamless motion, Flores controlled the ball with his chest and snuck a low shot past the a diving Stare Byki FC goalkeeper from point-blank range.
HUAC continue to press and create scoring opportunities at will but were not able to finish thus going into the first half with a 1-0 lead.
One of Mario Mele's surging runs in the second half earned him a very well deserved penalty after being brought down in the box by two Stare Byki FC defenders. Terry Cirbo stepped up to take the kick but he could only fire his shot low and wide. The missed penalty was all but forgotten ten minutes later when debuntant Phil Lencioni schooled the Stare Byki FC defense.
Lencioni recieved the ball outside the Stare Byki box and after making two great moves to shake an on-slaught of defenders found himslef in a one-on-one situation with an oncoming goalie. Lencioni continued his run and at the perfect time he chipped the ball over the diving goalkeeper to make the final score of 2-0.
"We did a real nice job of getting after them and not letting them breathe," said HUAC coach Spiro Arsenis and then added, "When we are healthy we have nothing to fear."
Lineup: Andreas Papakostas, Dan Kralj, Gus Velios, Yannie Moraitis, Giuseppe Rivetti, Petros Ninis, Phil Lencioni, Terry Cirbo, Alan Hernandez, Mario Mele, Chris Achillides.
Subs: Chris Stavrou, Alex Javaras, Bill Javaras, Louis Flores
Game Summary
1:0 Louis Flores 30' 2:0 Phil Lencioni 53'