Lemont junior Adrian Lisowski credits his dad, Greg, for providing his secret to success as a goalkeeper.
Greg was not a goalie, however. He played forward in his native Poland and has been able to provide his son with a different perspective.
“My dad taught me a couple tricks about what to do,” Lisowski said. “That just really helped me out. He played striker, so he helped me get into the mind of the attacker.”
Lisowski has seemingly been able to read every opponent’s mind in the postseason, recording shutouts in Lemont’s first four playoff games.
That streak ended Tuesday, but Lisowski delivered his most heroic performance yet that night at the Class 2A Kankakee Supersectional.
After Lemont and powerhouse Peoria Notre Dame were tied 1-1 through regulation and overtime, Lisowski made four saves during an epic 12-round shootout, which Lemont won 7-6.
That victory sealed the first state trophy in program history. Lemont (23-3-1) will take on Belleville Althoff (24-4) at 1:30 p.m. Friday in a state semifinal at Hoffman Estates.
De La Salle (26-1-2) — which suffered its only loss of the season in penalty kicks to Lemont on Aug. 31 — meets Prairie Ridge (19-4-1) in the second semifinal at 3:15 p.m.
As for Lisowski’s shootout prowess, it was no surprise to his teammates or coach Rick Prangen.
“He lives for PKs,” Prangen said.
Senior defender Ali Nabulsi had faith in Lisowski throughout the marathon shootout.
“Adrian’s ability saving penalties is honestly unbelievable,” Nibulsi said. “All those saves were legit saves on good shots on frame, and the fact he was able to do that repeatedly was impressive.”
The shootout proved to be a mental grind and a test of resiliency for Lemont.
Shooting second, Lemont failed to convert on four chances to clinch the win. Two shots were saved, one hit a post and one was fired high.
In the 12th round, Lisowski made another save and senior Mitchell Sowa — who also scored Lemont’s lone goal in regulation — finally clinched it.
It was quite the emotional roller coaster, according to senior defender Vincenzo Mancini.
“It was nerve-wracking going through it,” Mancini said. “Adrian kept making saves and we just couldn’t put it away for him. We feel bad for what we put Adrian through, but when Adrian made another save and Mitch finally put it away in the 12th round of PKs, it felt great.”
Lisowski has been coming up big all fall in his first season as a varsity starter. He has 16 shutouts and an 0.69 goals-against average.
He also takes some free kicks, and Prangen praised him for his ability to quickly get Lemont back on the attack after the ball comes to him.
“We knew we were going to be good between the pipes with Adrian,” Prangen said. “He could have been the starting keeper for us last year, but we gave it to our seniors.
“The thing about him that’s different than what we’ve had in the past is he’s a keeper who understands he can impact the flow of the game by what he does.”
For Lisowski, it all goes back to working with his dad, who still helps him prepare for games.
“He gets some shots on me,” Lisowski said. “He’s got a good shot. He can help me out with what he sees. He sees everything.”
Thus, Lisowski felt ready for Tuesday’s shootout. But he certainly didn’t expect 12 rounds. He got excited after making his first couple saves but then had to settle down and settle in for the grind.
“I stopped celebrating when I’d make a save,” he said. “I was a little gassed and I didn’t know when it was going to end, so I had to save my energy. But some guys put in some good shots. If we miss, we go home and they came through.
“So, I got to celebrate at the end.”
