Barrington has OT magic against Boylan

ROCKFORD — Barrington’s Alex Avers knew exactly where Rockford Boylan goalkeeper Shelby Sonnefeldt was going to be.

It just took her a little while to get a shot off.

When Avers did get that shot it turned out to be a game-closer, as she drilled it past Sonnefeldt in the second overtime of the Boylan Class 3A sectional semifinal Tuesday.

Avers took a pass from Jenna Szczesny in the first minute of the second overtime and put it in the back of the net to give the Fillies a 3-2 win. Barrington (18-5) will go for its fourth straight sectional title at 6:30 p.m. Friday against Huntley, which won its semifinal in a shootout over Jacobs.

“She always hugged her near post,” Avers said. “I told Jenna that the shot is always there, play me, play me.”

Szczesny did exactly that, crossing the ball from left to right in front of the net to Avers for the goal.

“I picked my head up and she was wide open,” said Szczesny, who scored off of a pass from Anna Burnidge. “(On my goal) I was told to turn and face the goal. I turned and shot the ball.”

Boylan had tied the game at 2-2 after Sydney Rumple scored off of a penalty kick because of a Barrington hand ball in the goal box. Rumple’s goal came 38 seconds after Szczesny had broken a 1-1 tie.

Boylan could have ended the game in regulation after Abby Reed set up for a second penalty kick just 20 seconds after the Titans’ first. This time Fillies freshman goalkeeper Hannah Luedtke made a spectacular play on the ball to prevent a goal to send the game to overtime.

“I was trying to guess where she was going to kick it, and I changed my mind right when she was shooting it,” said Luedtke, who has never had 2 penalty kicks in a game before. “I’ve had 1 (penalty) kick, but never 2 in a row. That’s not very likely.”

Barrington cracked the scoreboard first when a ball pin-balled around the goal bouncing off of several players before junior Molly Pfeiffer was able to score with 25:23 left in the second half. Ellie Ackermann was credited with the assist.

Boylan responded when Reed sprinted past the Fillies’ defense to squeeze a shot into a small opening off of a shot that crossed from left to right.