Wauconda, Vernon Hills tied up in Prairie
Settling the North Suburban Prairie girls soccer race will have to wait for another day.
Neither Wauconda nor Vernon Hills settled things on Friday afternoon as they tied 1-1.
The game had been rescheduled twice over the last couple of weeks because of inclement weather and poor field conditions.
The teams remain tied up after Friday with 4-0-1 Prairie records. They're both still hoping to earn a berth in the North Suburban championship game, which is set for Thursday evening at NSC Lake champion Lake Forest.
There's one divisional game remaining for both teams on Tuesday. Wauconda (12-2-3) hosts Grant, while Vernon Hills (8-4-2) has a game at Round Lake.
“We're glad to get this tie,” Vernon Hills coach Vince DeLuca said. “We just found the momentum and got the equalizer.”
The Cougars' Alex Goldstein tied it up in the 73rd minute with her eighth goal of the season, scoring on header off a dead-ball kick from Kathryn Redig.
Vernon Hills has had a recent scoring drought, losing to Warren and Deerfield 1-0 over the last week.
“Right now, were trying to get one goal to win a game,” DeLuca said. “We do have team focus, and I'm happy with the way the girls have been playing to this point.”
Wauconda got its goal courtesy of Melanie Prudhomme scoring on a penalty kick in the 38th minute. It was Prudhomme 14th goal this spring. She was given a PK because she was knocked down in the box by a Vernon Hills defender.
The Bulldogs were disappointed they couldn't close the game out and instead had to settle for the draw.
“We wanted to win the game,” said Wauconda coach Terry Stevig, who saw his team hold the 1-goal advantage until late in the match. “Both teams were very well matched against one another.
“I expect us to meet up again in the regional final in a couple of weeks. Right now, the girls know we've got another game (against Grant) we've got to win.”
Bulldogs keeper Cara Leoni had a strong effort in goal and made 12 saves. Iris Ostrovsky made 6 stops between the pipes for the Cougars.