Marathon goes to Huntley

ROCKFORD — Amanda Kaniewski did not expect to hear he name called when Huntley coach Kris Grabner was making his lineup to take penalty kicks.

The junior had not taken a penalty kick in a game all season, but after watching the first 9 players on her team and Jacobs battle to a 5-5 tie, it was her turn.

Kaniewski delivered, nailing a shot that hit the crossbar and bounced down to the ground and into the net to give the Red Raiders a 6-5 advantage in penalty kicks in the semifinal match at the Class 3A Rockford Boylan sectional Tuesday night.

Jacobs’ Lauren Killough missed the final shot for the Golden Eagles, giving Huntley a 3-2 victory. The was the second time this season Huntley had defeated Jacobs on penalty kicks.

Huntley advances to face Barrington in Friday’s sectional final at 6:30 p.m. Barrington defeated the Red Raiders (14-6-4) in the 2010 sectional final at Titan Stadium.

“I had no idea it was coming,” Kaniewski said. “When he called my name, I was shocked. I was going to go to my left. I always go that way and that’s what I had in my mind.”

The penalty kicks mirrored the battle Huntley and Jacobs had all night long. The teams were tied 2-2 after the first 80 minutes. After the first 5 shooters, each team had 3 goals with Kelly Manczko, Rachel Zobott and Abigail Nordeen all scoring for Huntley.

After trailing 1-0 after the first 2 shooters, Cassidy Sherman, Lizzie Travis, and Jessica Tennant all scored for the Golden Eagles (15-10-3).

The teams then tied again at 4 on the eighth shooter, and at 5 on the ninth, before Kaniewski hit the eventual game-winner.

Huntley led the game until the final 11 minutes, 19 seconds when Sherman nailed a header off a corner kick from Margaret Rivera to tie the game at 2. The Red Raiders took a 2-1 lead with 20:25 left in regulation when Nordeen scored off a penalty kick nailing a line-drive shot into the net past Jacobs goalkeeper Alyssa Koeppler (8 saves).

“The girls played their tails off and put themselves in a lot of good positions,” Jacobs’ coach A.J. Cappello said. “We wanted to make sure we were in spots to use our height and our size.”

Huntley was in a tough spot early on when starter Delany Loprieno went out with a knee injury in the game’s first 5 minutes. Lauren Grady then scored a goal to put the Golden Eagles up 1-0 with 21:24 left in the first half. Huntley did respond 52 seconds later when Kelly Manczko nailed a 40-yard shot that bounced into the net.

“We stayed composed and stayed focused,” Grabner said. “The girls were fighters.”