Lockport’s Aleko Kolliniatis is on a mission to bring another state championship to his family.
His dad, Nick, won a state title with Sandburg in 1993, earning All-American honors before going on to play at Bowling Green.
Aleko, a freshman midfielder, is confident he can live up to that legacy — and then some.
“I’m trying to do the same thing he did,” Kolliniatis said. “It’s obviously going to be hard, but I know I can do it.
“And — don’t tell him -— but I can do it better than him.”
Kolliniatis brought the Porters within one win of the state finals, scoring the winning goal Saturday as Lockport rallied for a 3-2 victory over Lincoln-Way East in the Class 3A Joliet West Sectional championship game.
Kolliniatis added an assist and Ismael Gomez scored two goals for the second-seeded Porters (17-4-1). Kacper Sikon and Jacob Hareza each chipped in with an assist and Matas Odinas made three saves.
Lockport, which won the program’s second sectional title in history and second in three years, will take on Hinsdale Central (14-8-1) at 5 p.m. Tuesday in the Morton Supersectional.
Josh Mensching scored both goals for top-seeded Lincoln-Way East (18-5-2). Dennis Apraku and Mateo Espinosa each had an assist and Noah Brown made six saves.
Kolliniatis, though, proved to be Lincoln-Way East’s kryptonite. His first career goal also was the game-winner in Lockport’s 2-1 victory over the Griffins on Oct. 3.
“It’s awesome,” Kolliniatis said. “Obviously, it’s better to do it here in the sectional final. I guess I only do it against the best.”
The Griffins took a 2-1 lead with 10:49 to go when Mensching headed in Espinosa’s corner kick.
Gomez — who needed just 52 seconds to answer Mensching’s goal in the first half — responded 65 seconds later this time in tying the game.
“Mentally, we’re one of the toughest teams around,” Gomez said. “Lockport is known for winning, coming back, and that’s exactly what we did. We didn’t give up.”
Kolliniatis then delivered with 8:29 left, scoring from 10 yards off a pass from Hareza.
Lockport coach Chris Beal has seen Kolliniatis show poise well beyond his years.
“He’s got a persona,” Beal said. “He’s got an attitude. He’s got confidence. He’s not arrogant, but he just has a belief in himself, and when he’s not playing, he wants to get back on the field.
“He loves the game and he wants to be out there.”
Kolliniatis feels his biggest development as a player came in 2020 when he was stuck at home in the heart of the pandemic.
“My dad has trained me,” Kolliniatis said. “Before quarantine, I was an average player. Quarantine happened and we trained every day. I’ll tell you what, I got so much better after that, and here I am now on the varsity team as a freshman.”
Joining varsity as a freshman comes with some challenges.
“They’re a lot bigger than me, a lot faster than me,” he said. “I always knew I’ve got to have a good touch, got to be quick on the ball, and you’ve got to play smart, too.”
Gomez, a senior midfielder, has quickly learned that the freshman can be trusted in big moments.
“The Lockport community knows he’s one of the best youngsters in the area,” Gomez said of Kolliniatis. “When we need him, he comes up big. Game-winning goal in a sectional final? You can’t get bigger than that.”
Kolliniatis is adding to the legacy of a last name that is quite familiar to Southland soccer fans.
It’s a name that comes with lofty expectations, but Kolliniatis isn’t concerned with that.
“Everyone thinks it would be pressure but I don’t see it as that,” he said. “I want to have fun. I don’t want to think about that.
“I’m my own person. I want to be my own self, and obviously it’s going really well for me and my team.”
