Vikes, Fillies in sectiional final
Fremd (26-3) and Barrington (21-6) did their part to assure that the top seeds would battle it out for the Barrington sectional title at noon Saturday.
Top-seeded Fremd rolled past Schaumburg 18-3, and the No. 2 seed Fillies handled No. 3 seed Hoffman Estates 21-2.
Emily Fogle (6 goals) and Chelsea Simon (5) did the bulk of the damage for the Fillies, and the game's outcome wasn't in doubt thanks mainly to a decisive swimming edge for Barrington. But coach Mark Markwell was appreciative of an improving Hoffman Estates program - and especially the player wearing No. 14 for the Hawks, Michelle Allen.
"I'll tell you what, that No. 14 is good," said Markwell. "She completely shut down our hole people today. I give kudos to them - you can see how much they're improving."
The Hawks (14-14), who finished third in the MSL West, were disappointed to finish with a lopsided loss, but coach Carrie Koch, in her third year coaching Hoffman's varsity team, sees a program taking big steps.
"These girls, they really were a team in the true sense," Koch said. "I mean, they had team dinners together, they really bonded with each other. Of all the teams at Hoffman Estates, I think they might have had the most unity."
And they had skill. Justine Samek led the team with nearly 100 goals, Allen had almost 50 and goalkeeper Katie Simmons was an all-conference selection. The bad news is all those players are seniors; the good news is Koch can count on promising players like sophomore Rachael Gallo and a burgeoning JV squad to fill the varsity ranks next season.
"It was a great season for us," said Koch. "We'd love to still be playing, but we finished third in the conference and we made it to the second round of sectionals - that's progress."
• Fremd used 9 goals from Erika Lauraitis and 4 from Kristina D'Andrea and 2 from Megan Kennedy in its win. Nicole Mundie scored twice for the Saxons (7-17).
• MSL East champ Wheeling (20-6) saw its season come to an end with an 11-7 loss to No. 2 seed Mundelein in the Vernon Hills sectional.
• Prospect (15-11) bowed out of the postseason with a 14-2 loss to Loyola in the Glenbrook North sectional.