Girls soccer: Wheaton Academy headed to state title game

Considering the run Wheaton Academy is enjoying through the Class 1A girls soccer tournament, Alton Marquette needed a special performance Friday night.

The Explorers didn't get it.

Wheaton Academy dictated the flow of the game throughout, taking a 3-0 state semifinal victory at North Central College in Naperville. The Warriors (21-3-3) face Marian Central (14-5-2) at 5 p.m. Saturday for the state championship.

"The girls did everything we wanted them to do," Warriors coach Dave Underwood said of his game plan. "Everything. We had a couple of chances to score on that we didn't, but when you end up with 3, we'll take it."

Junior Gretchen Pearson continued her high-scoring ways, getting the Warriors off to a good start with a 23rd-minute goal.

Despite winning the possession battle the Warriors couldn't add another goal until the 64th minute.

"That's why they're here, because they're a team that just grinds it out," Underwood said. "With all due respect to them, they can kept it close, they can grind it out and they've won their last three games in penalties. So that's the last thing that we wanted was to go deep into the game at 1-0."

Sophie Lindquist earned the assist on the second goal.

"It's really exciting, but I have to give it to Sophie too because she came off the bench and had some really good assists," Pearson said.

Pearson leads the Warriors with 28 goals this season.

"She's just tireless," Underwood said. "She just makes stuff happen. That second goal I think she took the ball at the 40-yard line, she dribbled, she created some space for herself, she passed it off, a couple of passes and then she kept her run going and got the ball back in front of the goal and made a great goal.

"Kind of maybe the unsung hero might be Sophie Lindquist, who assisted both goals and did so coming off the bench and provided that spark. Both goals came within three or four minutes of her coming into the game. And then our defense was phenomenal. Nothing got behind them."

Junior defender Emmerson Fuller put the game out of reach of Marquette (14-10-3) by converting a penalty kick in the 73rd minute for her 11th goal of the season.

The Warriors have outscored their playoff opponents 41-3 so far. They are primed for the final.

"We're really, really excited," Pearson said. "This is the farthest any of the girls on our team have made it, so we're super, super excited."

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