Grayslake Central edges North in kicks
There was a lot riding on the girls soccer matchup between District 127 schools Grayslake North and Central on Friday afternoon. The didn’t prevent good sportsmanship from having a role in the action.
In the fourth overtime of the Class 2A Grayslake Central regional championship contest, the Rams’ Skyler Jessop and Knights keeper Brooke Sauer challenged for a loose ball. They collided and the ball went wide of the post.
Both Jessop and Sauer got up and patted each other after a great play.
And it was that kind of battle the whole way.
Neither team was able to get a goal, and the game had to be decided on shootout kicks.
Grayslake Central prevailed 3-2 on the kicks to win 1-0 and claim the Rams’ first-ever regional championship.
Grayslake Central (15-6) will play the winner of Saturday’s Lake regional final between Richmond-Burton and Lakes at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Lakes sectional semifinal.
Rams keeper Kat Dickson had 3 spectacular saves in the shootout and finished with 8 in the game.
“I just used my fingertips and I knew I had it,” said Dickson of her first shootout save. “We’ve been here before. I’ve been to the regional finals three other times, and we were not about to lose this again. These seniors have been right here with me and worked so hard.”
The Rams got their shootout goals from Jessop, Allie Black and Savannah Mudd.
Grayslake Central used its experience this season, which included 3 overtime wins and a couple more via penalty kicks. Dickson now has a school-record 13 shutouts.
“Again, these girls keep showing resilience,” Grayslake Central coach Mike McCaulou said. “They keep finding a way. Every year we’ve been here, but I knew they could pull this one out. They’ve made so much history, and it’s their year.”
Grayslake North (9-11-1), which lost 3-0 in the regular season to the Rams, got their shootout goals from Andrea Lamb and Kim Shurttliff.
Sauer kept the Knights in the game and made 14 saves, including one in the kicks.
“I thought we did great as a team,” Sauer said. “We fought through it the whole time. We played as a team and had to fight through it with leadership.”
“Girls gave it their all,” Grayslake North coach Adam DeCaluwe said. “That’s all you can ask for.
“You get into overtime and we had a couple of opportunities, and (Grayslake Central) had more opportunities. We defended like crazy and gave ourselves a chance. You go into the kicks and it’s all individual, Unfortunately, Kat made the great saves. Our Brook (Sauer) was a superstar and a leader of the team.”