Lockport’s Aleko Kolliniatis, who ‘shocked myself,’ scores winning goal in OT over Stagg for sectional title
· Yahoo Sports
In the biggest moment of the biggest game, Aleko Kolliniatis left his Lockport teammates with such shocked looks on their faces that you would think they had seen a ghost on Halloween morning.
Nope, it was just the junior forward saving the Porters’ season and leaving jaws on the floor with a brilliant overtime strike.
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“I ran right to the fans, so I didn’t see my teammates’ faces,” Kolliniatis said. “But I was shocked myself, to be honest. That’s one of the best goals I’ve scored, for sure.”
Kolliniatis buried a shot from 20 yards inside the far post from a seemingly impossible angle for his second goal Saturday as the Porters rallied for a 2-1 overtime win over Stagg in the Class 3A Lincoln-Way East Sectional championship game in Frankfort.
Gavin Peery had an assist, while Ben Szudy made four saves for top-seeded Lockport (14-5-2), which won the third sectional title in program history — all coming in the last six years.
The Porters will take on the host Lions (21-0-1) at 5 p.m. Monday in the Lyons Supersectional.
“This program is definitely at its best right now and it’s only going to get better from here,” Kolliniatis said. “It starts in summer camp. All the conditioning and all the hard work we do has gotten us here.”
Jakub Krol scored off an assist from David Gorz for second-seeded Stagg (16-5-1). Christian Komosinski made five saves.
Six minutes into OT, Kolliniatis turned a seemingly harmless moment into a crushing one for the Chargers. He beat a defender down the left side of the field and ripped a high, left-footed shot that banged off the inside of the far post and into the net.
“I was hoping to put it on frame, but I didn’t know it was going to end up like that, to be honest,” Kolliniatis said. “Everyone was like, ‘Why didn’t you shoot with your right?’
“I’m like, ‘I’m a lefty. Let me just take a rip at it.’”
Lockport coach Chris Beal was sure glad that he did.
“To have the audacity to even try that shot and actually pull it off, it shows he’s at a high level,” Beal said. “He can try that because he has the confidence to do it.”
Kolliniatis has now scored 18 goals. The next-highest total on the Porters is five.
As a junior, he hasn’t been shy about making this his team.
“A lot of people on this team look up to me as the leader and I love that role,” Kolliniatis said. “They come up to me with problems and I’ll tell them what to do. I love these guys to death. These are my boys. I’d never take them for granted.”
Peery credited Kolliniatis with always setting the tone for Lockport.
“It’s his passion at practice,” Peery said. “He’s always helping us.”
The Porters trailed 1-0 with just under nine minutes left in regulation before Kolliniatis finished off a beautiful combination play. Justas Ulinskas sent a long pass in and Peery headed it across the box for a tap-in goal for Kolliniatis.
Kolliniatis is now three wins away from equaling his dad, Nick, who won a state title with Sandburg in 1993.
“He’s happy for me,” Kolliniatis said. “This was the next step. One more game to state, so we’re going to keep playing hard.”
And Beal will continue to look to Kolliniatis when it matters most.
“That’s what Aleko’s done all year,” Beal said. “That’s why he’s an all-state level of player. He’s come up with so many big goals in big games.
“People can score goals in games when you win 8-1 or 9-1, but Aleko always comes up clutch in the big moments.”