Huntley nails down FVC Valley crown
New division, same championship result for the Huntley girls soccer team.
After winning three straight Fox Division championships in the Fox Valley Conference, Huntley moved this season to the Valley Division and didn't miss a beat. The Red Raiders clinched the outright Valley title Tuesday night by scoring 3 second-half goals in a span of 8:39 to spoil Jacobs' Senior Night with a 3-0 victory in Algonquin.
"For us to win this half of the conference the first time we're playing in it, that's a big deal for us," Huntley coach Kris Grabner said. "We're very proud of it and we're even more proud because of how tough the conference was."
After a scoreless first half in which Jacobs goalkeeper Alyssa Barnard was forced to make only 1 save compared to 5 saves by Huntley keeper Kaytlyn Owens, the Red Raiders (19-3-1, 9-1-0) tilted the field with solid ball movement in the backfield, which led to more attacking.
Huntley broke the scoreless tie just 51 seconds into the second half. Senior Aimee Wronski played a ball from the left side toward junior forward Emily Konior at the top of the box. Konior spun and flicked the ball in one motion to the right side to a cutting Kelly Creager, and the senior midfielder pinpointed a left-footed shot just inside the left goal post with no chance of a save from Jacobs second-half goalkeeper Meghan Minogue. It was Creager's third goal of the season.
"I was like, 'Oh, nice,'" Creager said of Konior's flick. "I just ran in and hit it with my left foot. It's always good to score on your left foot."
The Red Raiders struck again with 31:36 left. A blocked shot by senior midfielder Taylor Henning-Fletter deflected to Aimee Wronski, who launched a shot inside the left post for her 24th goal of the season, a career high.
"Once we score a goal I think we get really pumped and we just really want to score more and keep going," Wronski said. "As a team, we're all like that and we work hard to do it."
The Red Raiders put a stranglehold on the outright title 66 seconds later, when Konior knocked in a rebound from close range for her 11th goal of the season.
"Huntley came out and wanted it," Jacobs coach Anthony Cappello said. "They had the fight, they had the desire, the urge to win. We lacked that. We came out flat. We've been in almost every game we've played this year, win or lose. We just can't find that winning mentality, that drive to work a little harder to win a ball, to realize how important every 50-50 ball is and how every opportunity can change a game. We just can't get our heads around that."
Jacobs (10-11-1, 3-7) did not manage a second-half shot on Huntley senior keeper Sara Hoffman, thanks to solid defensive play from the likes of defenders Lauren Gaitsch, Sam Zobott and Rachel Chapuis.
"They had more shots on goal than we wanted in the first half, so we talked about at halftime and really picked it up," Chapuis said. "Our ball movement was really good in the back. (Winning the Valley title) was one of our many goals to achieve throughout the season. So we've achieved this and now we'll keep moving on."