With a 17-1-2 record and City and Regional Championship titles, the team has been tearing up the field on their way to a very successful season. 

The last seconds of the City Championship against Taft game ticked away, and the scoreboard buzz signaled the end of overtime. The game was still tied, 2-2.

As the crowd simultaneously stood up from their seats, the Boys Soccer Team waited anxiously near the halfline. Each selected player, one by one, stepped up to the penalty spot, hoping to make a shot that would help them secure the city title.

Ahead 3-2 after 8 penalty kicks, Lane was one goal away from the championship. Senior striker Jose Terrazas was taking the penalty that could win them the game. As the crowd watched silently, Terrazas buried the ball in the back of the net, winning his team a City Championship.

From easy wins to more challenging games, the team has managed to accomplish a lot this season. Now beating teams they lost or tied to last season, such as Solario or Hubbard, Boys Soccer is stronger than ever. With wins against Whitney Young, Taft and many other teams including suburban schools like New Trier, the Boys Soccer Team is starting off strong in State Playoffs.  

One of this team’s defining characteristics has been is their ability to recover in their more challenging games.

 There have been times when they have been down a goal but have come back and responded with great plays leading to a win. During their game against Whitney Young, they started off 1-0 but ended with a 3-1 win. The team also started off down against Taft during the City Championship game, but battled it out to the end and won in penalty kicks.  

Both the players on the team and observant fans noticed a pattern throughout the City Tournament. In every playoff game, the opposing team would score first. However, Head Coach Andrew Ricks felt that this pattern was just a coincidence.

“I don’t think we have a complex, I honestly think it was just coincidental,” Ricks said.“We were playing really good teams. We had the hardest route to the city final than any other team in the city.”

Coincidence or not, the boys were never fazed by falling behind in a game. With such an outstanding record, it is obvious that the final score was not reliant on which team scored first.

“It’s not who scores first, it’s who scores the most goals at the end of the game and we did it,” Ricks said. “I love the character we have of the team and the will we have to win and never give up no matter what the score is.”

Captain and starting defender Alex Rydberg, Div. 766, has been on Varsity for three years.

“This season is one of Lane’s strongest seasons ever,” Rydberg said. “This is a great record and we won conference for the first time in a long time.”

 What helps them excel?

Team chemistry. Marcin Kieta, Div. 856, a junior on the team, explained how the team’s bond has contributed towards their successful season.

“This year’s team I feel is more connected in comparison to last year’s team,” Kieta said. “The guys get along together really well and we manage to have a very successful and hard working team while having a great time.”

Agreeing with his teammate, Rydberg shared a couple ways the boys exhibit good team chemistry.  

“We play a game called Mr. President to keep everyone involved and energetic,” Rydberg said. He also spoke about the jokes they have about their past games. The team’s bond is very apparent, watch a game and one will notice how well they work together.

Kieta explained his concern for the team’s success from the beginning of the season after losing many beneficial players last year.

“I feel very proud,” Kieta said. “Coming into the season we didn’t know what type of success we were going to have with Owen Finn, Cesar Garza, Nestor, and others graduating. To see how well this team has come along has been very fun.”

However, his concern quickly vanished once he realized the team’s potential. It is clear to anyone who watches this group of boys play, that they are something special. Their raw talent, hard work, and team chemistry won them the City Championship, and is what could carry them further into state playoffs than they have ever been before.