Waubonsie Valley 4, Neuqua Valley 0
You're not supposed to graduate eight seniors, almost your entire defense, and still be as good as Waubonsie Valley's girls soccer team has been this season.
In a 4-0 win over visiting Upstate Eight Conference rival Neuqua Valley on Monday, the soccer field in Aurora was a candy store and the Warriors ran around it like they all had a fistful of dollars.
Waubonsie Valley (8-0-1, 4-0 in UEC play) has now outscored its opponents 35-3.
After a few Waubonsie players were interviewed after Monday's game, Neuqua Valley (10-4, 5-1) coach Joe Moreau was approached for his opinion of the contest.
"Just say that I agree with them, whatever they said," Moreau said jokingly. "Because I'm sure it was something about kicking our (backside)."
"They're obviously a very good team. They work the ball well all around the field - all 11 players out there."
Warriors goals came from Bri Rodriguez, Rachel Bostick, Vanessa DiBernardo, and Megan Green.
"We work as a team, and we all do what's best for the team," said DiBernardo, who assisted on Bostick's head shot goal in the 37th minute. "We work together."
That philosophy was illustrated perfectly on a play by Green, who broke in alone on the dribble in the second half and could have easily pulled the trigger on a shot. Instead, she slid a pass across the goalmouth to DiBernardo, who calmly settled it and scored from point-blank range.
Rodriguez scored the game's first goal in the 36th minute, pouncing on a loose ball in the box, taking a touch, and shooting inside the far post from 6 yards out. Bostick's goal came next, and the Warriors led 2-0 at halftime.
DiBernardo's goal came in the 57th minute, and Green finished the night's scoring off a feed from Jessie Morgan.
The Wildcats played most of the game without forward Kendra Collins, who left with an ankle sprain early in the contest. Her absence hurt, as did a tendency the Wildcats needed to clean up.
"We gave them too much room in the middle, we let girls run up the middle unmarked, and you can't have that," Moreau said.
Warriors keeper Claire Hanold made 2 saves in posting her seventh shutout of the year, for a team that won a state title last year, and is ranked No. 1 in Illinois and No. 6 nationally this season.
"We still have a lot of young players that have been on varsity for a few years, and have experience," said Warriors senior Jessica Blake. "We've pushed them in practice, and they've gotten used to the environment."