Romeoville and Lincoln-Way Central won regional championships, while some programs that have struggled in recent years showed some major signs of progress during the 2023 boys soccer season.

Here are five statistics that helped define the year in the Herald-News area.

21

That’s how many goals were scored by Romeoville senior Isaiah Pina.

The kicker? Pina split time between defender and forward and was considered by Spartans coach Nick Cirrincione to be the team’s top player on defense, as well as offense.

Pina, who was part of Romeoville’s Class 3A state runner-up squad in 2022, helped the Spartans (17-6-3) win the Marmion Regional championship before they fell to Naperville North in a Plainfield North Sectional semifinal.

12

That’s the number of goals allowed all season by Lincoln-Way Central (14-4-1).

The Knights allowed their opponent to score more than once in a game only one time, in a 2-2 tie with Sandburg. Their four losses included three 1-0 defeats and their season-ending defeat to Stagg in a Class 3A Joliet West Sectional semifinal, when the Chargers won a shootout after the teams were tied 1-1 following 100 minutes.

Senior goalkeeper Theodore Utz shined in his only year as the starter, recording eight shutouts. Drew Schiller and Dylan Maksa were senior leaders on the back line.

9

That’s the number of consecutive wins Lockport had over the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs.

The Porters struggled to find their footing early in their schedule and were just 4-4-1 before the winning streak began Sept. 26 with a 5-0 rout of Lincoln-Way West. Lockport kept winning from there, along the way going 4-0 in conference play to win the SouthWest Suburban Blue championship.

The Porters (13-5-1) had their season end with a 3-1 loss to eventual sectional champion Stagg in the Class 3A Lockport Regional championship game.

Lockport was led offensively by senior Nate Blazewski, who finished with nine goals and seven assists. Senior goalkeeper Luke Cibula recorded nine shutouts.

1.09

That’s the goals against average recorded by Plainfield Central sophomore goalkeeper Marshall DeGraff.

DeGraff, who tied a program record with 12 shutouts, earned All-State honors and helped the Wildcats have a breakthrough season.

Plainfield Central finished 15-4-2 after winning six games or less each of the prior three seasons.

DeGraff was aided by a defense led by senior Caden Bargas. Junior Sebastian Chavez scored 20 goals to lead the Wildcats’ offense.

16

That’s the number of combined wins produced by Providence Catholic and Joliet Central, who both went winless in 2022.

Providence made a splash ahead of the season when it hired Hall of Fame coach Mike Taylor, who has now won 483 games in a coaching career that began in 1981.

When the Celtics beat Joliet Catholic 7-0 in the season opener, they snapped a 23-game losing streak.

Providence went on to finish 10-7-2. Senior defender Sean McGrath earned all-sectional honors.

Joliet Central, meanwhile, finished 6-14-3, but that was a big step up from 0-20-1 in 2022. New coach Ulises Ornelas brought excitement to the program. On top of the wins, the Steelmen showed they could compete with top area teams, tying Lockport 4-4 and playing Romeoville close in a 2-1 loss.

Senior Gilberto Rios finished with seven goals and nine assists to lead Joliet Central.