BELVIDERE — The Rochelle Hub varsity soccer team was without key starters when the boys conceded a 3-0 shutout loss against Belvidere earlier this season. Rochelle was back at full strength on Saturday, when the two teams reunited in the IHSA 2A Sycamore Regional Quarterfinals.

The eighth-seeded Hubs struck first to take the early lead against the sixth-seeded Bucs, with junior Antonio Ruiz blasting a goal into the Belvidere net during the 10th minute. Rochelle didn’t hold its advantage for long, however, as the Bucs found the equalizer during the 16th minute before tallying back-to-back goals over the final minutes of the opening half. Despite a late second-half goal from senior Alberto Casillas, Rochelle’s season came to a close with a 4-2 loss to the Bucs.

“We were missing a few players when we played them earlier this year,” head coach Brad Male said. “We didn’t make too many adjustments since we had those players back on Saturday, but the biggest takeaway from the game was that we weren’t aggressive enough and they were playing more aggressively than we were. They were moving the ball well and they did a good job of jamming us into the middle, which made it tough for us to put quality shots on goal.”

The Hubs (12-11-1, 6-4 Interstate 8), who trailed 3-1 at halftime after allowing goals in the 38th and 40th minutes, fought throughout the second half to extend their season. Rochelle finally broke through during the 76th minute, when Casillas cashed in an assist from Ruiz to make it a one-score match with only a few minutes left. But the Hubs made a crucial defensive mistake at the end, as a foul inside the box led to a penalty-kick goal for Belvidere in the 80th minute.

“The main message after the game was that we have to continue to play as a team and make sure we’re using all of the players on the field,” Male said. “I thought we had games during the season where that showed, but we had other games where we had two or three players who weren’t staying connected with the team. We have to continue to build our teamwork up.”

Junior goalkeeper Antonio Hueramo finished with four saves for the Hubs, who totaled 12 shots and seven shots on goal during the match on Saturday. Rochelle committed 17 fouls in the match, which led to a flurry of lost possessions and free kicks  for the Bucs, including a penalty kick at the end. The loss ends the season for the Hubs, who improved upon their 5-13-2 record from 2023.

“We had more core players returning in the midfield and I thought that was a big difference between last year and this year,” Male said. “We had a lot of players step up this year and we were able to move some players into different positions. We continued to build our camaraderie and I’m looking for our returning players to continue building their chemistry next year.”

Rochelle also fared better in conference play this season, finishing with a 6-4 record in the Interstate 8 after going just 2-8 last season. The Hubs swept their home-and-home sets against Morris, LaSalle-Peru and Ottawa while falling just one goal short during their rematches with Sycamore and Kaneland. Rochelle should be strong on defense next year, as the Hubs are only losing one senior starter, Francisco Diaz. Juniors Antonio Hueramo (118 saves) and Emmanuel Nambo as well as sophomores Eliud Lombardia and Alexis Nava are all eligible to return.

“I thought our teamwork and communication were the biggest differences between last year and this year for our defense,” Male said. “We were able to transition from defense to offense better than we did last year and that’s because we did a good job of talking and playing as a team.”

Most of the big losses will come in the midfield, where the Hubs will bid farewell to a pair of senior captains including Fernando Diaz (16 goals, two assists) and Bryan Garcia (four goals, one assist). Rochelle will also be losing senior forward Alberto Casillas (28 goals, four assists), who has led the Hubs in scoring over the last three seasons. Juniors Heilly Zepeda (two goals, four assists), Antonio Ruiz (six goals, seven assists) and Kevin Orozco (six goals, one assist) are three players to watch for in the midfield and at forward when the Hubs arrive next season. 

“It’s always tough to lose our seniors, especially our senior captains,” Male said. “Losing Alberto will be really tough. He was really aggressive up front and we looked for him to score. I thought Heilly played extremely well as a center midfielder and we’ll be looking for him and Antonio to step up next year. We’re also looking for Kevin to step up next year and hopefully we’ll be able to keep him healthy. I think we’ll be able to move some more players around next year as well.”