Girls soccer: Metea Valley edges Neuqua Valley

Sometimes all it takes is one converted chance and you're celebrating.

That's what Metea Valley was doing after scoring midway through the second half and then holding on for a 1-0 victory over Neuqua Valley in a DuPage Valley Conference girls soccer match Tuesday in Aurora.

Jade Eriksen-Russo's fifth goal of the season came with 19:26 remaining.

"I had heard through gossip that balls in the air are harder for this particular goalie so that was something I considered whenever I had an opportunity," she said. "I just had some momentum there, the defense made a play and I had a nice touch."

Neuqua Valley (1-2-1, 0-1-0) appeared to have the better run of play in the first half but couldn't break through.

"We had some quality chances there that maybe we should've finished but we didn't," Wildcats coach Joe Moreau said. "In the second half we didn't really have anything great as far as opportunities and their goalkeeper played well coming off her line."

Both keepers - Neuqua Valley's Yanel Ortiz and Metea Valley's Amy Ahern - performed well in leading their respective back lines to keep the game tight for 80 minutes.

"I thought that the two stars of the game were the keepers," Moreau said. "Both played great."

Metea Valley coach Chris Whaley agreed.

"I said you have to be ready when the wind is at your face, especially on any ball that gets past a defender," he said. "I thought our defenders also did a really good job of pushing up and putting pressure on them."

Metea Valley (2-3-3, 2-0-1) might not have an impressive overall record thus far, but the team has played tough competition and now had a huge win heading into Thursday's conference clash against Naperville North.

"Every game we've played has been close and our schedule has been really tough," Whaley said. "I believe we're as good as any of the teams we've played, but we just haven't been on the positive side of the result."

As for the Wildcats, the talent is there, but with a lot of players stepping into new roles, it's taking some time for the team to get where it wants to be.

"We've told them that this is a process and what we're doing in practice has been good but not all of it is carrying over to games," Moreau said. "Even this past weekend we had five good practices coming in and it didn't carry over to the field, because we need to play quicker and smarter."