Vivian's Goal And Assist Help Lift Edwardsville To Sectional Title

ALTON – The Edwardsville Tigers kept their postseason alive after a 2-0 win over Normal Community in the IHSA Class 3A Alton Sectional Final Friday night at Alton’s Public School Stadium.

Edwardsville moves on to Tuesday’s super-sectional against Naperville Central (16-4-4) which will be played at Normal Community High School at 6 p.m.

The Tigers are seeking a ninth trip to state in program history. Seven of the previous eight were under longtime head coach Mark Heiderscheid who won his 11th sectional title on the chilly Friday night.

Normal Community and Edwardsville played out to a 0-0 tie back on September 14, and the first half of the sectional final looked very similar.

The Tigers owned the majority of the possession and had some chances on net, but couldn’t break through.

Edwardsville looked particularly dominant in the air as well as 50-50 balls. This led to the game’s first real look in the eighth minute when an Edwardsville header was saved from a long-range throw-in.

A few minutes later Ben Leardi’s header from a corner kick was denied at the line by the Ironmen’s defense.

That was all the first half had to offer. Normal Community didn’t record a shot on goal.

The Ironmen had a chance from a corner kick saved by Colin Schelecte in the 44th minute, one of the only times he was challenged all game.

A little less than two minutes later Edwardsville would find its first goal.

In the 46th minute, a low-driven cross was delivered across the six-yard box, fooling the Ironmen defense and getting all the way through to an unmarked Henry Vivian who tapped it in easily at the back post to make it 1-0.

Vivian got on the scoresheet again in the 55th minute when he assisted Jack Kirgan’s goal. Kirgan scored in a similar fashion, this time making a darting run into the 18-yard box, never getting picked up by a defender, and smashing home Vivian’s cutback pass from the penalty spot.

Heiderscheid was happy to see some of the things they’d been working on in practice pay off.

“When you try and orchestrate it, that’s how you’d like them to happen by design. The kids worked it very well,” he said.

“I think on this one, we tried a variety of options. But to be honest with you, in the first half, [Normal] had so much congestion that we really couldn’t make much in terms of breakthroughs.”

Another strong defensive effort proved to be the difference maker in the first half for the Tigers who earned their second shutout of this postseason, after traveling to Quincy and beating the Blue Devils 4-0 back in the regional semifinals.

After that win came back-to-back nail-biting games over familiar Southwestern Conference opponents O’Fallon and Belleville West.

Heiderscheid thinks those kinds of games are useful when it comes to the playoffs.

“When it comes to the teams that we had to play through with O’Fallon, [Belleville] West, and the teams we played in the regular season, even teams like Althoff, CBC because they’re so stinking good; I think that’s helpful,” Heiderscheid said.

“But more importantly, is that the intensity in which those games are played is very, very immense when it comes to playoff soccer. I think that those kinds of moments, that kind of pressure is helpful.”

Friday’s sectional final didn’t end without a little drama. As play continued, things got a little more physical, leading to some words with the officials and a Normal Community player receiving a red card in the 71st minute.

Playing a man down certainly didn’t help a Normal Community team that was already down by two goals. The Ironmen close out their season with a 16-7-5 record.

Edwardsville’s next opponents won a wild Naperville North Sectional, one where the top-seeded hosts were upset 1-0 on their home field by No. 4-seed West Aurora, who eventually fell to No. 3-seeded Naperville Central in the sectional final.

That final went to a penalty shootout after a scoreless 100 minutes. Naperville Central won the shootout 4-2.

The only common opponent that Edwardsville and Naperville Central share is Class 2A powerhouse Chatham Glenwood. Central beat Chatham 1-0 on September 27 while the Tigers lost to the Titans 4-0 on September 7.

“It’s going to take a monumental effort,” Heiderscheid said about the upcoming game. “That whole sectional was loaded.”

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