Making a save on a penalty kick in boys soccer is a great accomplishment in and of itself, but making saves on two out of three penalty kicks is truly amazing. Oak Lawn Community High School goalkeeper Giovanni Gonzalez did that earlier this month, with one of those saves coming in the last minute of the game, to preserve a victory over South Suburban Conference Red rival Argo.
However, that was only a small portion of the impact he had for the Spartans during the month of September. And these accomplishments earned him honors as the Spartan Athlete of the Month.
Gonzalez logged a team-high 1,200 minutes in the 15 games during the month. He recorded 51 saves in all and had six shutouts.
“Gio is always depended on for his flawless ball distribution and his ability to start deadly counterattacks with his foot,” said head coach Nate Joiner.