Geneva edges West Aurora on Keenehan's goal

It's too early to anoint anyone with any titles yet, but Katelyn Keenehan is off to a fine goal scoring start to her Geneva girls soccer career.

The Vikings have played twice this season and Keenehan has scored in both matches, including the only goal in Saturday's 1-0 victory over West Aurora. Not only is freshman Keenehan Geneva's leading scorer, she is their only scorer in 2015.

But in a tight match at Geneva where the visitors edged the total number of chances, Keenehan's goal from a tight angle after taking a Megan Albrecht pass in the fourth minute of the second half was decisive.

"It was a good cross," Keenehan said. "It's a little nerve-wracking because the ball was bouncing. I didn't think it was going to make it in because the goalie was in the corner where I shot it, so I was lucky."

Following a 3-1 opening-night loss to St. Charles North, Geneva (1-1) evened its record in preparation for its annual trip into the St. Louis area for matches with Belleville East and O'Fallon.

"We did what we needed to do," Geneva coach Megan Owens said. "It's Spring Break and we're young. I saw a lot of improvement since our first game. Defensively, for the most past, I was happy."

With an entire defense to replace and changes in other areas on the field, Owens said she is using these early matches to experiment with how her team sets up best.

"We're still looking at so much," Owens said. "Everybody got into the game in both halves. We've had a lot of underclassmen step up. We're still working and learning and building, but I'm impressed with the effort they're putting forth."

For being so early in the season, the Vikings are beginning to get a good sense as to where their season might be heading.

"It was good to win today," Keenehan said. "It raises out confidence. We're young, but I think that by the end of the season, we'll all be playing together really well."

West Aurora (1-2-1) more than held its own. The Blackhawks hit the crossbar in the first half and forced Geneva keeper Emma Harkleroad to make a handful of strong saves.

"This was definitely our best game of the season," West Aurora coach Laura Wagley said. "Coming in against a very strong Geneva team, there's really nothing to be disappointed about. We just have to finish our shots."

Sophomore Katharine Stephens and freshman Riley O'Brien unsettled the Vikings defense on more than one occasion with their runs into the penalty area and solid crosses through the goal mouth.

"We've gotten a ton of new girls this season," Stephens said. "We're connecting passes well. The coaches said this was one of the best matches we've played. It's just unfortunate we couldn't get anything into the net."

Late in the match, West Aurora moved Yulisa Espino forward to create a three-pronged attack, and the chances became even more frequent, including a shot Espino sent over the crossbar with 2 minutes to play, the final offensive action of the match.

"We have to finish," Wagley said. "That was our problem last year. When we get chances against these good teams, we have got to put them away."

Though early in the season, some program hallmarks are evident in West Aurora's play, including an 80-minute effort. The Blackhawks have Spring Break matches against Metea Valley on Tuesday and Kaneland on Thursday.

"In six years, I've never once been disappointed in my team's effort in a match," Wagley said. "Typically for us, we don't put it together until the end of the season. For three games, we're putting it together more every game, and that's going to help us."