Harper women's soccer team gets return trip to COD
The fields and gymnasiums at Harper College have been buzz this week as the Hawks were preparing for playoff games.
• College Of DuPage women's soccer team hosted the Hawks last Wednesday in the game that's called the Border Battle. COD won the contest 5-2.
Harper played its regional semifinal game Tuesday at Triton (5-9-1) and came away with a 2-0 victory.
The Hawks next play at 3 p.m. Saturday, back in Glen Ellyn at College Of DuPage. The Hawks are 0-2 against the Chaparrals this season. Coach Dwayne Cruz says the Harper back line has to play much better for the Hawks to come away victorious. COD has scored 5 goals in both previous matchups against Harper.
Cruz likes the way sophomore forward Rebecca Varilek (Rolling Meadows), freshman midfielder Melissa Hernandez (Schaumburg) and sophomore goalie Amanda Papinchock are playing.
Freshman midfielder Tegan Michl (Stevenson) is out for the year after having ACL surgery last week. Michl hurt her knee in a 3-0 home win against Rochester Community Technical College on Sept. 1.
• The men's soccer team had two playoff wins before falling short against Triton on Wednesday.
Last week, the Hawks defeated Waubonsee 4-1. On Saturday, the team traveled to Madison Area Technical College. In a previous meeting, MATC beat Harper beat 5-1. "The guys stayed with it," Harper coach Jason Diebold said of the back-and-forth 4-3 victory. Diebold called the outcome a "great result for us." Madison scored all 3 of its goals on free kicks.
"This is where I expected to be," Diebold said of Wednesdays's regional final against Triton.
Diebold was hoping that since Triton had beaten the Hawks twice previously, they might have been overconfident. But Triton was able to end the Hawks' season with a 3-2 decision.
• After being idle last weekend, Harper's sixth-ranked men's and sixth-ranked women's cross country teams will compete in regional action this weekend at Waubonsee Community College. The gun will go off for the women's race at 11 a.m., while the men's races are scheduled or 11:45 a.m.
• After winning Tuesday's match game against Concordia, the Harper women's volleyball team (19-23) opened postseason play at home Wednesday night. Facing No. 6 seed College Of DuPage, the Hawks were able to come away with the 3-set sweep. The Hawks also won two regular-season meetings with the Chaparrals.
The No. 3-seeded Hawks next play at 11 a.m. Saturday, when they travel to Madison Area Technical College to take on the host school. If the Hawks win, they will play later that same afternoon, most likely against the top-ranked team in the nation, Rock Valley.