With sophomore forward Caleb Kelly out of the lineup Thursday night, senior midfielder Reece Leonard realized that somebody had to step up in place of Geneva’s leading scorer.
And since it was senior night for the Vikings, the three-year varsity regular celebrated in style.
“Being on the field with all the other seniors, it made me feel good,” Leonard said. “It was fun.
“I needed to help my team any way I can.”
Leonard took it upon himself to get the scoring started and put away a pair of goals for host Geneva in a 4-2 nonconference victory over Larkin.
With 8:51 left in the first half, Leonard headed in a bouncing ball off a corner kick for the first goal. He gave the Vikings a 2-0 lead a minute later on a penalty kick for his sixth goal of the season.
Larkin (3-5-4) eventually forced a 2-2 tie with a pair of goals by Alan Chavez in the second half. Geneva (9-4-1) answered with goals from Spencer Meservy and Benjamin Murphy for the win.
Geneva coach Jason Bhatta was pleased to see how Leonard came through on such a big night.
“It’s always fun when seniors get goals,” Bhatta said. “For a kid that’s been a three-year player and such an integral part of especially the past two seasons, it was good for him to step up.”
Sophomore goalkeeper Ulises Flores got injured just before Leonard’s goal off the corner. It was the first play of the season for backup Alexander Hernandez, who broke a finger during tryouts.
“I thought the goalie was going to have it in his hands but he dropped it,” Leonard said. “I was right there in position to head it.”
Bhatta said Geneva has struggled with penalty kicks all season, but Leonard is now 2-for-2 in that department, meaning the problem may have been solved.
“We’ve been battling penalties this year, so I’m happy that we scored this one,” Bhatta said.
Larkin didn’t give up, however. Chavez cut the lead in half with 25:16 left in the second half. Ten minutes later, Chavez stunned the crowd by tying the game off a feed from Brian Ceja.
“We’ve come a long way,” Larkin coach Michael Huizar said. “We get better every game. We’re getting there. I think we can see our style a little more, the speed of play, playing with a little more intensity to try to finish the game.”
After Geneva responded to pick up the win, though, Bhatta reflected on what Leonard has meant to the program.
“We knew we had a player on our hands when he was a sophomore,” Bhatta said. “I think technically he’s always been really sound, but physically, he’s really grown into being a real player.
“His junior and senior year, he’s really been able to control the midfield. He’s not the loudest kid, but he sets the standard for us. All of the kids just know he has that personality they look up to.”
Leonard said he takes pride in the fact that his teammates look up to him.
“I try to lead with action,” Leonard said. “Whenever we get scored on or we’re down, I try to motivate the guys to get back up.”
In the postseason, Leonard will be a leader for Geneva, which surprisingly earned the top seed in the Class 4A St. Charles North Sectional. That news was announced earlier Thursday.
“It was unexpected,” Leonard said. “It’s great to go into the playoffs knowing that we’re a one seed. We should be (ready) with all the preparation we’ve done this season.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
