Wheaton North thrilled to win title at Toyota Park
Last year at this time, Paige Fowler was playing soccer for the Wheaton North freshman girls soccer team.
On Sunday at Toyota Park in Bridgeview, she scored a goal that gave the Falcons' varsity the team title of the largest girls high school soccer tournament in the country.
"It was my first goal this season, and it was definitely a good one to get," Fowler said, after running on to an Allie Cerone feed to the near post and scoring to give Wheaton North a 1-0 victory over New Trier in the inaugural 32-team Pepsi Showdown.
"It was exciting to give a group of players an opportunity that you know many players will never get," Falcons coach Tim McEvilly said of playing on the home field of the Chicago Fire.
"It was awesome," Falcons senior Michelle Scandora said.
The top-seeded Falcons and second-seeded Trevians were so thrilled to be playing at Toyota Park that they decided to stretch play into overtime to decide things.
Moments after an apparent goal by New Trier's Alicia Shapiro was waved off on an offside call, the Falcons raced up the field and ended the game, less than two minutes into overtime.
"I saw (Cerone) turn her hips, and as soon as she turned her hips I said, 'She's crossing,' " Fowler said. "I knew I had to get a touch on it."
In addition to the once-in-a-lifetime chance to play at Toyota Park, Scandora had an additional pleasant surprise waiting for her after the win. "I had no idea I would get the (tournament) MVP," she said.
"They all played well throughout the tournament," McEvilly said. "What Michelle does for us … she competes at the highest level at crunch time, and we need her strength in the middle of the field."
Seniors Jaime Orewiler and Hannah Perry made the all-tournament team for Wheaton North, which also had to negotiate the pressure of being named the No. 1 seed.
"We've been dealing with pressure for a while, and I think we've been pretty good at handling it," Perry said. "We knew we were coming to this tournament at the end of last year, so we've been talking the entire time about winning it."
The Trevians (12-1) held a 5-1 edge in shots on net at halftime, but the Falcons (11-1) earned a 4-1 edge in the second half.
Playing in its third game since Thursday, New Trier gave up only its second goal of the season Sunday.
"I applaud our kids, because they got out there and they played hard for the past 72 hours," said New Trier coach Jim Burnside. "We had a breakdown. That's what good teams will do to you, and (Wheaton North is) a good team."