Fenwick edges Stevenson for state title
Karen Lowry now knows exactly how Derrick Rose feels at the United Center.
Lowry, Stevenson's splendid force in water polo, heard “MVP!” chants throughout Saturday night's state championship game in the home water.
“I heard them, yes,” she said. “They made me smile.
“But I play for my team, my second family,” she added, sounding like a certain Bull would after a hoops game.
Fenwick tipped Lowry and the Patriots by a 3-pointer – make that, 3 goals. The Friars' 9-6 victory upped their state-title total to six since 2004.
“They don't get old, that's for sure,” said Fenwick coach Jack Wagner. “I've had teams with superstars, and it was hard to keep their goal totals down. But this team — so unselfish, with such balanced scoring.”
And speed-boat speed.
“Their kids are so fast,” said Stevenson coach Jeff Wimer. “But I thought we handled their speed pretty well.”
Fenwick raced to a 4-1 lead in the first seven minutes. Friars freshman Cara Borkevec tossed in a pair of goals past the Pats' All-World goalkeeper, Lisa Michalowski, who averaged nearly 17 saves in three games this weekend.
Several of her stops in Saturday's final were of the high-one-handed variety.
“We took down some giants in the postseason, and Lisa played a big role in all of those wins,” Wimer said, referring to Mundelein (in a sectional final), Naperville Central (state quarterfinal) and St. Ignatius (in a 9-7 state semifinal, Saturday morning).
“Lisa … how phenomenal was she?” he added.
Fenwick (26-8) led 6-3 at the half and owned its biggest lead, 8-4, at 1:35 of the third quarter.
The “MVP” roars for Lowry rattled rafters midway through the fourth quarter. She netted 2 goals in a 27-second span, paring Fenwick's advantage to 8-6 at 3:50.
“Karen got everybody going with those goals,” said classmate Cheyenne Montijo (2 goals). “I was thinking, ‘This is our game.' But you know what? I was thinking like that the whole game.”
Fenwick struck for its final goal, a power-play score by Alexa Ovalle, at 0:58. As the clock neared 0:00, Wagner used his huge wingspan to embrace four of his bench players. Maybe five. A beaming Wimer, meanwhile, stood up to applaud as his Patriots (27-9) swam toward him.
“This season, I'm telling you, was magical,” a proud Wimer said after addressing his club. “Tonight, they all played their hearts out. To have the opportunity, to win it all, against a team like Fenwick … amazing. Our girls deserved to be commended, all of them.”
Wimer's girls threw a curve at Fenwick's Friars in the early going, showing a zone defense.
“It didn't work,” Wimer admitted. “They scored some quick goals on us. So I told my team, ‘Forget the zone.' ”
His 2011 team: unforgettable. The runner-up finish matched Stevenson's 2005 effort for best state result in program history.
Pats junior Erin McCook also scored Saturday night. Fenwick senior Annie Collins poured in 3 of her game-high 4 goals in the first half.
“We knew what we wanted tonight, and we fought for it,” said Lowry, who plans to play club polo at Illinois. “We had drive, so much faith in ourselves.”
Stevenson 9, St. Ignatius 7: In a state semifinal Saturday morning, Montijo tallied 3 goals, and Lowry and Pats senior Shelby Kohalmy contributed 2 apiece. The game was tied 5-5 at the break.
“Defense … that was the key, definitely,” Montijo said. “We also drew kick-outs at crucial times.”
Michalowski, once again, stood on her capped head in front of the nets.
“Lisa made unbelievable save after unbelievable save,” Montijo said.