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28 | February 22, 2018 | The highland park landmark sports hplandmark.com Boys Hockey Giants face tough Carmel in postseason play Brittany Kapa Sports Editor Highland Park’s season has been peppered with ups and downs. Highland Park saw early success against teams local and in other states. However, the long season took a toll on the team recently as the team was hoping to make a comeback during postseason action. The Giants faced their biggest challenge of late, Tuesday, Feb. 13, in the first game of the Amateur Hockey Association Illinois playoffs. Carmel hosted the Giants at Glacier Ice Arena in Vernon Hills in a Red Division matchup. Highland Park freshman goalie Jack Manone made 35 saves during the night but that wasn’t enough to hold 16th-seeded Carmel at bay. The Giants’ season ended in a 2-1 loss to the Corsairs. Manone’s performance was noticed by the crowd and his teammates alike as he stopped point-blank shots and second attempts for a majority of the game, to Carmel’s frustration. “That kid has been standing on his head all year for us,” senior defenseman Charlie Levine- Wolf said. “He is a freshman and his composure in unbelievable. He’s like a little brother to all of us, I love the kid. He kept us in that game. (Carmel) was on our side a lot and the kid stood on his head.” The Corsairs controlled puck possession for much of the game, but Manone stayed solid throughout. He recorded 17 saves in the third period alone. The Giants, on the other hand, had only 19 shots on net the entire game. “He gave us a really good chance to win and unfortunately we couldn’t finish,” Levine-Wolf said. After having lost both of their Illinois High School Hockey League playoff games to Evanston, the Giants were hoping to fare better in the AHAI playoff series. “Obviously, we wish we could have gone farther, it happens; it’s playoffs and stuff like that happens,” Levine-Wolf said. Carmel scored first in the first period. The Giants were called for 16 minutes of penalty time in that period alone, including Kyle Powers, who was cited for a 10-minute misconduct penalty with 5 minutes, 33 seconds left in the first. Powers’ absence on the ice didn’t stop the Giants from making it an even game in the second, however. Sam Shachtman found the back of the next just 17 seconds into the period. Michael Gallo, despite having a broken hand, assisted on the goal. Carmel scored the game-winning goal with 12 minutes left in the third period. Giants’ coach Sean Freeman pulled Manone for the extra attacker with a minute left, but to no avail. After the game, each of the 10 seniors filed out of the locker room to thank their coaches for the season. Most, as Freeman said, have played for him for three years. It was a bittersweet moment that punctuated a season of ups and downs. “This body of work, this is something that you hold your head up high and be Gabe Schlussel drives to the net Feb. 13 in Vernon Hills during a playoff game against Carmel Catholic High School. Photos by Brittany Kapa/22nd Century Media proud of,” Freeman said. Last year, Freeman had his first losing season as a coach and came into the season with the mindset that he wasn’t going to repeat that this year. Freeman knew if they were going to be competitive this year, the team would have to train and play more like a Catholic League team. It worked, for a time. The Giants finished the regular season 33-16 and were ranked at least no worse than 15th this season, often hovering around the 10th or 11th spot. “Once you put your foot on the gas pedal, it’s hard to keep it there for six months straight,” Freeman said. “We had eight or nine guys with double-digit in goals (this season); I’ve never had that before. “We never had a scoring drought and then we get to the last couple of weeks and we just couldn’t score.” Joshua Velick (left) gives Jack Manone encouragement before the puck drops during the game. The Giants’ loss against Carmel wasn’t for a lack of trying though. Levine- Wolf, for example, took a slap shot to the left leg midway through the second period. He limped off the ice after that but was back out next shift. “Especially tonight, I wanted to leave it all out on the ice because I had nothing to lose,” he said. “I wanted to win really badly but more than that I wanted to be proud of myself when I step off the ice the last time.” The chances the Giants did have were thwarted by Carmel’s goalie Zack Abrams. He seemed to be an impenetrable brick wall, one that didn’t give up many second chances. “As a team we had much higher expectations than what unfolded by the end of the season,” Levine- Wolf said.
hplandmark.com sports the highland park landmark | February 22, 2018 | 29 Boys Swimming Vorobev state-bound after sectional performance David Jaffe Freelance Reporter Jake Reisner of Highland Park couldn’t be more excited after finishing the 50-yard freestyle during the Lake Forest sectional swim meet Saturday. Highland Park’s Andrew Vorobev has improved dramatically in the 100-yard butterfly. Despite having qualified for state in the 100 backstroke the last two seasons, he chose to compete in the fly at the Lake Forest Sectional Saturday, Feb. 17, and the 200-yard individual medley at the sectional instead of the back. Vorobev took second in each event, qualifying for state by exceeding the state cut in both the fly (52.08) and the IM (1:55.65). “I had focused on back the last two seasons,” he said. “But I had been doing well in the fly and the decision was between doing the fly and back or fly and IM. My confidence in the fly was high right now so I ended up doing the IM. I was happy with my time in the fly.” Vorobev had fast times despite trying to quickly recover from a sprained ankle. “I sprained my ankle this week,” Vorobev said. “I couldn’t walk for a couple of days but I iced it and taped it and it feels much better. I had a good week of practice and was able to recover well enough.” What makes Vorobev good in the IM is that the fly and the back, his two strongest events, are the first two strokes in the medley. That’s a big positive for Vorobev. “It’s a big advantage that the first two strokes are my best ones,” Vorobev said. “It sets me up for a fast race and I’m able to feed off of that the rest of the way.” This will be his third year at the state meet and he’s learned what he has to do to succeed. “The level of energy at state is unlike anything that you’re going to see in another meet,” Vorobev said. “I’ve learned that you have to let that energy overcome you and use it to your advantage.” Colby Treschl of Highland Park competes in the 500-yard freestyle Saturday during the Lake Forest sectional swim meet. Photos by Ernest Schweit/22nd Century Media Voting is now open! THE GLENCOE A NCHOR • THE GLENVIEW LANTERN THE HIGHLAND PARK LANDMARK • THE LAKE FOREST LEADER THE NORTHBROOK TOWER • THE WILMETTE BEACON • THE WINNETKA CURRENT voting open feb. 1 - feb. 25 Help your favorite local businesses take home an award in the second annual North Shore Choice Awards. Complete at least 50 categories and be eligible for 22nd Century Media’s North Shore Choice Awards prize — one three-night trip for two (2) adults to Riu Caribe in Cancun, Mexico, courtesy of Apple Vacations. Vote in the ballot inside your 22nd Century Media newspaper or online at www.22ndcenturymedia.com/nschoice
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