Girls soccer: Evans hat trick leads Bartlett past Streamwood
Bartlett girls soccer coach Vince DiNuzzo has to consider whether he needs to reprint the varsity roster sheet he gives match officials before the opening kickoff.
Either that or keep penciling in No. 19, Tabitha Evans, forward, freshman.
One of two Bartlett players brought up to varsity in time to face Streamwood Saturday, Evans made a strong case for remaining with the varsity.
Shortly after substituting in during the first half, Evans used an assist from Holly Gure to blast a right-side ball that Sabres goalie Yasmine Resendiz couldn't quite catch and found its way to the back of the net for a 2-goal lead.
In the second half, Evans added 2 more goals for a hat trick that powered the Hawks (2-2-1) to a 6-1 triumph over their co-Millennium Field residents. One slight plus for Streamwood (1-2), the Upstate Eight crossover loss doesn't count against the Sabres' River Division record.
Someone might want to send a text to starters Kaitlin Brohan and Shelley Lyjak to stay in shape during the family vacation trips that made them unavailable for the spring break match. With a 5-goal win, a hat trick from Evans, and some solid play from another call-up, Mikayla Brown, they could return to find their playing time reduced.
"It was kind of a no-brainer, our freshman coach has been raving about (Tabitha) after she scored eight goals in four games. We haven't quite produced as effectively as I'd like, and we needed a couple extra bodies for today, and I figured why not give her a chance," DiNuzzo said.
"The first goal I was really going for a cross," Evans admitted. "It felt really good to see it get into the back of the net. The other two I saw the same thing - the goalie coming out and I was able to drive around her twice. I wasn't nervous about moving up because I really like the varsity players."
Bartlett took the lead just 2:18 into the match thanks to a veteran combination as Mariela Alba's corner kick set up Jenna Dombrowski for a header inside the left post. At 16:05, Gure's through ball led to Evans' first goal. The Hawks took a 3-0 lead when Kayla Hare gambled on an 18-yarder from the right wing.
Streamwood cut into the deficit when Alondra Blanco's 24-yard direct free kick caromed off the crossbar and down. Whether it crossed the goal line or not became moot when the spin brought it right in front of Stephanie Corona, who tallied her second goal of the season to get the Sabres on the board at 3-1.
After Alba banged a quality free kick off the crossbar just after halftime, the senior co-captain earned her second assist of the game and third for the year with a textbook through ball that set up Evans for a one-on-one breakaway at 47:43. Resendiz rushed out to narrow the possible angles, but when the Sabres' keeper went to the ground, Evans took the ball around her for an empty-net strike.
Hare pounced on a missed defensive clearance for an unassisted goal with 18:09 left in regulation. Sarah Jurek then earned an assist freeing Evans for a virtually identical breakaway and a 6-1 lead with 13:28 remaining.
"They didn't give up in the first half when we went down three and scoring late meant we were still in the game," first-year Streamwood coach Kristin Duffy said. "And they didn't give up in the second half either, so I'm proud of how they stayed and fought.
"It's still early in the season and hopefully we learn some lessons and will be better when we get some people back from spring break," Duffy added. "Esmerald (Navarro) made some nice recoveries defensively at sweeper, Alondra had some good moments controlling the middle and Shonali (Pierce) made some threats up top."