Saturday night at St. Laurence High School, the Caravan soccer team won the regional championship after beating the top seeded Benet Academy by a score of 0-0 (4-2 on penalty kicks). The deciding goal was scored by Devonte Ash, who also defended the goal for the Caravan.

The Caravan, who held the eighth seed in this year’s regional tournament, have had just the right combination of senior leadership and youth to be successful. According to head coach Mr. Antonio Godiñez, “We can look to the bench and use a variety of freshmen and sophomores in different lineups.”

Mount Carmel has now earned a trip to the sectional semifinals against the number four seeded Kennedy High School. The Caravan suffered a 5-1 loss to Kennedy in the second game of the year, but according to several players, they are a completely different team.

The regular season ended for the Caravan with a six game winning streak and a 14-6-1 record (6-0-1 conference), a Catholic League championship, and two Lawless award winners.

The Lawless award is given to both the best player and the best coach from each division of the Catholic League. Godinez and Scott Tobin ’16 won both awards for the South Division of the Catholic League. Tobin, who is one of the team captains, expressed surprise. ”  wasn’t expecting the award. I thought there were several other players on the team that they could have picked.”

Godinez earned his second Lawless award, but felt just as honored as the first time. “This award is a privilege, and a testament to the work that the team has done all year.” He expects the team also will have a number of players achieve all-conference honors.

For Tobin, the game that allowed the team to realize its potential was when the Caravan beat Marmion Academy by a score of 6-1. “Last year we lost a close one to Marmion, and this year when we beat them we realized that we have some potential to be a great team.”

The Caravan’s youth has been a huge part of its production according to Godinez. Two of the Caravan’s  11 starters are freshmen:  goalkeeper Sergio Valencia and center back/midfielder Axel Gongora. The team has also been helped out by 7 different sophomores who are part of a rotation of starters.

The Caravan will meet Kennedy High School tonight (Tuesday) at 4:30 PM at Glenbard South High School.