Cary-Grove clinches share of FVC Valley title
Korey Kronforst was visibly tired.
But the fatigue didn’t hinder Kronforst’s superb performance.
The Cary Grove senior’s 2 goals keyed the Trojans to a hard fought 2-1 victory over Jacobs in Fox Valley Conference Valley Division girls action Tuesday evening in Algonquin.
“Jacobs is a very physical team,” said Kronforst. “We knew it would be a highly competitive and physical game for 80 minutes. We knew we had to keep our intensity and our focus. This was a great win against a very good team.”
The Trojans, a perfect 5-0 in league play, clinched a tie for the division championship with the win. Cary-Grove can win the title outright with a win at Crystal Lake South Thursday.
Cary-Grove (11-4-1 overall) broke the scoreless deadlock with 2:49 remaining in the first half when Kronforst scored on a penalty kick to give the Trojans an 1-0 lead, which was the score at halftime.
The Trojans didn’t waste any time building a 2-goal cushion in the second half when Kronforst broke through the Jacobs defense to score her second goal of the night with only 38 seconds elapsed.
The Trojans also got a solid performance from senior goal keeper Paige Lincicum, who had 10 saves in the game.
“Korey always get special attention from opponents defense which helps the other players get good shots,” said Cary-Grove coach Ray Krystal. “Jacobs got some good shots on goal but Paige made some great saves. We know Jacobs is an excellent team and will give great effort for 80 minutes. This team plays with a great sense of pride and they play with so much heart. “
Jacobs (13-8-3 overall), which outshot Cary-Grove 13-6, finally got on the scoreboard with 13:53 left in the game when Catie Sherman scored off a perfectly executed lead pass from Margaret Rivera to cut the Cary-Grove deficit to 2-1.
Rivera and Kelly Grady had solid shots on goal to tie the score in the last 5 minutes, but Lincicum made the save in each instance to preserve the win for Cary-Grove.
“I was very proud of our effort and work rate the entire game,” said Jacobs coach AJ Cappello. “We created a lot of chances and we didn’t panic when we got behind 2-0. Cary-Grove is a very good team and (Kronforst) is a nice player. She does a little bit of everything.”