The Prairie plot thickens after Wauconda, Lakes tie

You couldn't draw up a better race than the one going on in North Suburban Conference Prairie Division girls soccer as the league slate heads into the home stretch.

Lakes had a shot at least clinching a tie with a victory on Thursday evening. But the Eagles landed with a 1-1 draw at Wauconda on Thursday night.

The outcome leaves Lakes (10-2-2 overall) still the front runner in the Prairie at 4-0-1, with a remaining game vs. Antioch next Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

Antioch (7-7-2) is still in the running at 3-1 in the Prairie, with an upcoming game at Vernon Hills on Saturday morning.

And Vernon Hills (10-7) is still alive as well at 3-1, with Antioch and Grant yet to be played.

Confused? No need — it's simple, according to Lakes coach Kevin Kullby.

“You just don't won't to lose at this point,” he said. “We still have to do what we need to do in our next game. Which means we need to win. We should be fine.”

The Eagles on Thursday played the game they were expected to play but saw Wauconda (9-4-3, 2-1-2) starkly limit the number of scoring opportunities.

“I thought we played fine and moved the ball pretty well,” Kullby said. “We had opportunities and to (Wauconda's) credit, they bottled us up pretty well at times. They pressured the ball well and they got their one shot — and it was good. We have to guard against that and be settled up in front of the ball.”

Lakes got its goal in the 40th minute, with just 33 seconds left before halftime. Bella Pighini worked a combination with Nicole D'Ambrose and found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.

“We have a way of connecting very well,” said Pighini, who now has 13 goals. “She gave me a good pass and I shot that one pretty well. Since last year, we've been able to work together.”

Wauconda didn't see many chances but found a great opportunity and took advantage in the 73rd minute. Freshman Kayla Wisniewski finished off a pass from Briana Vargas to tie it at 1-1.

“I was able to get open and got the shot,” said Wisniewski, who has 12 goals. “It was important to get that one. It makes us play harder as a team. We always give our hardest out there and we're better this year.”

The Bulldogs have been going though some nagging injuries as of late. Against Lakes they were missing three of their starters and had a total of five players sidelined.

“Getting a tie here was good here,” Wauconda coach Patrick Heckmann said. “We saw a lot of good things here with the way we played. We just have to get healthy with the regionals coming up. When we started the season, we had everybody — it was good, and it was nice. But the injuries have caught up with us a bit.”