Desario notches hat trick in win over Lake Park
Give Luisa Desario an inch and she'll find a way to put a shot on net.
The Bartlett senior netted a hat trick in Tuesday's 3-0 win over Lake Park, with two perfectly placed chip shots and a left-footed hit from 18 yards out, giving her 16 goals through 10 games.
Her second goal was a rainmaker from 30 yards out that floated under the crossbar.
"I turned, I had space and I just took a shot," Desario said. "I wanted to make sure I got it over the goalkeeper's head."
The Upstate Eight Conference game in Roselle saw Bartlett (9-1, 2-1) grab a 1-0 lead when Desario won a footrace to the ball and chipped it into net from 14 yards out.
Lake Park (5-2-2, 1-1) answered with the increased effort that has it off to a solid start this year, but the Lancers struggled to find truly dangerous space from which to launch a clean shot on net.
"It's about maintaining pressure and then finding ways to find the back of the net," said Lake Park coach John Gouriotis. "We had some great balls in the box, but you've got to get on the end of those."
Bartlett's sweeper was also a mitigating factor in the Lancers' inability to score.
"Michelle Glaser," said Bartlett coach Heather Thomas. "She's so solid, all year long. In every game, no matter what the situation, she's such a solid defender back there."
Desario scored her 15th goal of the year 11 minutes into the second half and completed the trifecta in the 71st minute, cutting back to her left and sending a left-footed shot inside the far post from the top of the penalty area.
Thomas was happier with her squad's second-half effort after a first 40 minutes in which the Hawks sent too many long balls over the top.
"We need to keep the ball on the ground and play to feet," Thomas said. "In the first half we played a lot of kickball."
"We did a better job of working it through the midfield in the second half instead of just going from defense to our forwards. We did a better job of getting to our midfielders, playing it wide and getting it in."
The Hawks' lone loss this year came last week against highly touted Neuqua Valley, and they face two-time defending state champion Waubonsie Valley on Thursday.
The Hawks lost 3-0 to Neuqua but gave the Wildcats a good run and plan to continue pushing their way into the state's upper echelon of teams.
"That's a good team. Defensively, they're strong, they play some nice balls through the mid, and they have people that can finish consistently," Gouriotis said of Bartlett.
"We've come out hard. We want it this year," Desario said. "We only lost a couple players, and we've got some good starting freshmen and sophomores. For a lot of us, it's our senior year, and we want to make a statement."