Girls soccer / Postseason scouting, Northwest

Girls soccer / Postseason scouting, Northwest

With the state draw in place and the tournament just about to begin, we know the structure of the knockout brackets and how many potential pairings will provide powerhouse matchups as the girls soccer state tournament proceeds.

Here's a brief look and the four sectionals that involve girls soccer teams from the Mid-Suburban League plus St. Viator, Maine West and Leyden.

Class 3A at EvanstonTop 4 seeds (in order): New Trier (17-1-1), Loyola (17-3-1), Evanston (14-4-3) Lane Tech (17-4-0). Sectional champion advances into Conant supersectional to play Schaumburg sectional champion at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2.

Outlook: Both Maine West and Leyden are caught in between the usual north shore powers, reigning state champion New Trier and Loyola. A sectional final between these two has been a regular for years, and it appears another meeting between the two is imminent on the last Friday of the month. The Trevians, behind the one-two punch of Kelly Maday and Natalie Lazar, are favored to advance. Loyola could get a stern test on its own turf from an improved Maine West (9-7-2), led by the dynamic duo of Joanne Stanfa and Rachel Kolling.

The Warriors would first need to take care of No. 8 Niles North, against whom they drew (0-0) two weeks ago, before taking on Loyola in the regional final. Unlike the first few seasons under coach Jeff Bishop, this year's Maine West club is plenty dangerous going forward and also more organized along the back, in front of senior keeper Katie Ehlers. Julie Garcia, Yessica Reyes and Ales Faroane have netted close to 30 goals between them this spring.

Rob Fowler's Leyden team has had its moments during a rebuilding year, and will have its chance to make its mark in the postseason when it takes on Chicago Public League champion Lane Tech and the marvelous two-time all-state midfielder Sophia Pavon, who is off to George Washington University next fall.

Class 3A at Glenbrook SouthTop 4 seeds (in order): Barrington (16-1-3), Lake Zurich (14-3-2), Hersey (13-5-3), Buffalo Grove (12-5-4). The sectional champion advances into the Barrington supersectional to meet the Huntley sectional champion at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 2.

Outlook: Barrington solidified its top seed following a record-setting fourth consecutive MSL championship last week in Arlington Heights against Hersey. Though the Fillies are the leading candidate to advance into their own supersectional in two weeks, coach Ryan Stengren still remains cautious of the road ahead for his fine club. "It's always different when the postseason begins, and when you're the team that everyone is after," he said. "It's important to come out and play your best soccer, and not to suffer any letdowns, regardless of who your opponent is. We will continued to fine-tune our game during training, then finish our chances when the games start, and above all else, stay healthy."

Stengren will be wary of playing both Fremd and Buffalo Grove as the playoffs continue. In order for that occur, No. 9 Fremd would have to top No. 8 seed Warren (11-7-2), while the Bison have No. 5 seed Libertyville (12-4-0) at the Wildcats' regional. The Fremd-Warren opener is guaranteed competitive matchup, with Vikings talented keeper Kelsey Stone (9 shutouts) perhaps the diffference-maker in the end.

Another semifinal of interest would be No. 6 seed Glenbrook South (13-4-2) against Willie Filian's club from Palatine. The Pirates (7-10-1) are as dangerous a No. 10 seed as there is in this area, and with its hard-running forward Kellie Reynolds (9 goals) posing an 80-minute threat up top, along with the sophomore-freshman duo of MacKenzie Filian and Sarah Clancy running the show in the middle, the chance for a highly competitive match appears in the works. "There's a lot of depth in this sectional, so there will be plenty of drama by the time this is over," said Glenbrook South coach Seong Ha, whose team has had its share of spills and thrills coming through the sectionals in recent years against MSL squads Buffalo Grove and Hersey.

Class 3A at SchaumburgTop 4 seeds (in order): St. Charles East (19-1-1), Wheaton North (13-2-3), St. Charles North (14-2-2), Conant (11-6-2). The sectional champion advances into Conant supersectional to meet the Evanston sectional champion at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 2.

Outlook: Conant coach Jason Franco says he would put the top four from this sectional up against any other in the state, and it looks like he may have a point. The two clubs from St. Charles, along with Wheaton North, are among the top 10 in the state, with North having recently defeated high-profile Waubonsie Valley in penalty kicks. And Wheaton North recently gave 2014 state runner-up East its first defeat of the season.

"Both St. Charles North and Wheaton (North) may be playing better than anyone right now," said Franco. "North is so much more dangerous and cleaner in the back from the time we played and beat them early on, and Wheaton North beat some top-tier teams like Plainfield North and Naperville North, showing they are ready for the state playoffs."

The Falcons have a first-rate finisher up top in Lexi Pelafas (15 goals). She can change the course of a match in an instant, and if the Saints' Darcy Cunningham is close to being 100 percent healthy, then the Cougars will be in for the game of their lives should they get past MSL West rival Hoffman Estates in a regional opener.

"Ralph (Tooren) has done a great job at Hoffman, so that's not a walkover for us on that night," said Franco, "and No. 5 Batavia (13-3-4) is very athletic and direct, so a regional final with them will be a tough task."

The Cougars have an all-state player in Leah Celarek along with a marvelous defender, Katie Lomas, in front of a four-year standout betwen the sticks, Haley Anderson. In addition, there's plenty of talent up and down the Conant roster - but it will all have to come together in a concerted effort should the Cougars meet St. Charles East in its sectional semifinal.

"Hopefully we get a shot at them," Francos said. "If we do, it will take out best game to beat a team like that, but if we can put together an 80 minutes like we did against Neuqua Valley (early on) we'll have the chance to advance."

Class 2A in Arlington Heights (at Morris Field, Forest View Educational CenterTop 4 seeds (in order): Carmel (14-3-1), Grayslake North (17-3-2), St. Viator (14-3-0), Lake Forest (12-5-1). The sectional champion advances into the Concordia College supersectional to meet the Fenton sectional champion at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2.

Outlook: A clear hierachy of contenders and pretenders only slightly revealed itself in the closing days of the regular season, with East Suburban Catholic Conference champion Carmel and North Suburban Conference champ Lake Forest moving only a small step above in an impressive top seven teams. The road to the Concordia University supersectional is a difficult one, but whomever gets there will have a great chance to take the last step to the state's Final Four. St. Viator coach Mike Taylor takes his team through a highly competitive nonconference schedule each season - but then, so does Lake Forest coach Ty Stuckslager, whose Scouts are the reigning 2A state champions.

"This is a very touch bunch at the top, and we won't take anybody lightly from the very start. But we like the position we're in and we feel we're at the best place we've been all season long as we go forward," said Taylor.

Losses to both Benet and Carmel sealed the Lions' fate with a seed below Grayslake North, which has impressed against Fox Valley foes. Lakes coach Kevin Kullby, whose team lost to Lake Forest two weeks ago in the NSC title contest and enters the postseason at 12-4-3, anticipates a competitive sectional. "Certainly (North) getting the No. 2 seed was a bit of a surprise, but they beat us, Lake Forest lost to Carmel, so did Viator, and they play a relentless high-pressure defense which has carried them throughout the season and should present problems for the top three teams. In my mind, Lake Forest is the team to beat because they are so dangerous on corners and set pieces because (Paige Bourne) can serve the ball like no other, and at this time of the year, that can be the difference between advancing or going home."

St. Viator looks like it's on a collision course with CSL North champ Deerfield (14-7-2) at the Warriors' regional final. "At this time of the year we fully expect to playing (St. Viator)," said Grady, "and our hope this year is to replicate our 4-3 victory from two years ago, albeit after not falling behind by 3 goals to force a huge comeback."

Should St. Viator get past Deerfield, next up would be like Grayslake North at the spacious Morris Field, an advantage Taylor feels would greatly benefit his club.

"It's big and wide, and we're on turf, and we've played there a lot and you have to be fit and ready to play for 80 minutes on a big field like that, which we are."

The other semifinal would feature Carmel and Lake Forest, resulting in one of the top 2A teams in the state bowing out of the postseason.

- Mike Garofola