These soccer teams and players deserve to be remembered

By the numbers, the IHSA girls soccer tournament is finally fully of-age - having reached 21 last year.

And as the path toward this year's state finals begins next week, I want to take time out to remember those from the forgotten era, the athletes who don't qualify for inclusion on the IHSA's Web site, but who gave their sweat and sometimes, blood, for their teams and helped make everything possible for today's players.

And they deserve a little more recognition for their efforts.

First a very brief history lesson.

Girls soccer came into being as the Title IX explosion worked past the initial wave. The first teams played games in the early 80s. There weren't many teams and half these played in the fall, at the same time as boys soccer. Within a few years, the option of playing in the spring, which allowed coaches and referees to work both seasons - never mind the pressure it took off overworked fields in the fall.

As the state unified in the spring, a handful of teams quickly became dominant. Among these was St. Charles, under the direction of Tim Dailey. Naperville North, coached by Al Harris and Maine South, led by Jack Tilley were among the other top teams.

"There was a split there, sort of like the AFL and the NFL in football," Dailey said. "You had the teams that played in the fall, and Naperville North was the cream of the crop there. And you had the spring schools, and Maine South was the best team there."

And those teams toiled in obscurity. As there weren't enough teams competing in the IHSA to warrant a state tournament - an unofficial version was played at Niles West in Skokie.

Maine South dominated the early years. The Hawks won at Niles West in 1984, 85 and 86 - and went 60-0-4 in the process. This winning streak brought girls soccer out of the shadows - but just barely.

"Without state sponsorship, you have nothing," Dailey said. "We would talk about the unofficial state tournament, but that's all it was. There was no recognition. You got a little in the media, but because it was unofficial, it was difficult through the 80s."

Naperville North won the last of these unofficial titles and the IHSA finally began sponsoring tournaments in 1988, when Naperville North defeated Maine South.

Maine South exited the title game scene at that point, while Naperville North reached the title game once, in 1998.

St. Charles was the "nearly team" in these years, with three second-place and two third-place finishes in the unofficial years.

Times have changed, of course. The success of the U.S. Women's National Team made the sport popular among young girls all over the country.

Locally, the success of St. Charles' team sparked a surge in playing. The fact that some of the best players in the state play - and still play - in the western suburbs kept the competition level high.

But don't let anyone tell you those girls from long ago didn't care about the game. One of the best stories in the history of girls soccer - in sports period, took place in 1987. St. Charles played Naperville North on prom night for the Huskies, and Harris was without many of his best players.

As the game took place, one by one, a series of limos pulled up, and out walked Naperville North's players - still in their prom attire. They came to the benches, got dressed and went to win the game.

"When they stepped out, a half dozen of them, I said 'we're done, it's over now,'" Dailey said. "This was their incredible team. In those days, we had a conflict of graduation. Three or four of those finals were on our graduation day. And because it wasn't sanctioned, there wasn't the reason to come play like we have now. But without exception, the girls went to the game."

There are a number of sports the IHSA doesn't sponsor. Among these include lacrosse, rugby and ice hockey - and all toil in relative obscurity.

The IHSA could do something nice by making those old state titlists official. It's unlikely this will ever happen - but those players certainly cared, were dedicated and were true pioneers in their sport. To have their accomplishments legitimized by the state's sanctioning body would be a nice thing to do.

And for those who are about to start their path toward hopeful state glory - remember today's games rest on the shoulders of a number of players whose exploits went largely unnoticed but who deserve a massive "thank you."