Metea Valley earns tie with Geneva

Geneva junior Catherine Allon was getting antsy in Tuesday’s Upstate Eight Conference girls soccer opener against Metea Valley in Aurora.

The Mustangs were playing their first varsity contest while the Vikings were controlling possession but deadlocked in a scoreless tie in the UEC crosssover game.

Allon finally found the back of the net with 13:48 remaining, but the Mustangs responded a few minutes later to tie the match. The teams would have to settle for a 1-1 draw.

“It’s sort of frustrating to lose on a tie with 10 minutes left,” Allon said. “We like the competition of the Upstate Eight, but we couldn’t hold onto the lead.”

Allon had possession near the top of the key when she turned it into the Vikings’ lone goal of the night.

“I just took a few dribbles and nailed it in,” she said. “We had many other opportunities, but didn’t take advantage, so in the second half we switched the lineup to try to get more people up top to try to get one in.”

Rather than sulking after falling behind late, the Mustangs scored an equalizer with 10:35 remaining. Kristina Tomaras perfectly threaded a pass to freshman Jenna Kentgen, who hammered it into the net from 20 yards out.

“I just saw their defense was shifted over and she was making a perfect window,” Tomaras said. “I saw that brief moment of opportunity and played it. The wind helped a little, but she played it and had a very good shot.”

Geneva (1-0-1) had a few late chances but had to settle for the tie.

“It’s just the second game,” Geneva coach Megan Owens said. “We played well. We dominated most of the game and created a lot of opportunities, but we struggled in finishing.”

Metea Valley (1-0-1), which shut out Joliet West on Saturday for the school’s first varsity win, couldn’t manage its first conference victory but squeaked out the draw against a noted program.

“The kids showed a lot of class by hanging in there and bouncing back,” Metea Valley coach Pat Feulner said. “They could’ve gotten down but fought back, and for a young group they gave us a chance to win.”