Girls soccer: Team effort gives Barrington supersectional win over Libertyville, sends Fillies to state for 13th time
Gabby Masterson gave Barrington its dream start, then teammates Lauren Cobb and AJ Sanchez delivered in glorious fashion to give the Fillies a 3-1 supersectional victory over Libertyville Tuesday afternoon, sending Ryan Stengren's club to the 3A state tournament.
Next up for the Fillies (19-1-2) will be downstate power O'Fallon (21-1-1) this Friday night at 7:30 in Naperville on the campus of North Central College.
"We had a lot of heroes out there today," said Stengren, who has now led his program into its 13th state tournament appearance, and first since 2023 when the Fillies lost to O'Fallon in the state final in the 98th minute.
"From the first day, our goal has always been to get into this game. And even though we have so many new players on our roster, the work, dedication and commitment to each other is what helped us play into the final weekend of the season," said the Fillies’ three-time all-state keeper Megan Holland.
The Wildcats (18-2-3) came into their seventh supersectional on a 12-game unbeaten streak, outscoring their first four postseason opponents 24-3, and looking to have an advantage on the extra wide Barrington Community Field pitch.
"We felt with the way we possess, play wide with our outside-backs and wingers, that a big field like this one (would) work in our favor," said Wildcats coach Ian Taylor.
"(That) obviously wasn't the start that we wanted, or to see three mistakes in our end leading to goals, (but) the team showed a lot of resiliency and heart all throughout the afternoon. But in the end, it just wasn't enough."
The NSC champion Wildcats did indeed have a lot of the possession, especially during the first 20 minutes with Shea Krakowski, Danica Meller and Sydney Dulak all dragging their efforts wide.
The home side would stay sharp in its tactical approach with its defensive posture, allowing their guests to have a lot of the ball before taking away passing lanes and rarely allowing the Wildcats much time and space on the ball.
"We had a plan on how to defend (Libertyville) today, and I thought for most of the game we executed it all really well," said Stengren.
The aforementioned Sanchez nearly went through in the 23rd minute, but the Fillies’ super sophomore set Cobb free shortly thereafter.
"I can always expect (AJ) to give us all a great pass, and that's what she did on our second goal," said Cobb, who bagged her second goal of the season, and easily the biggest of her career, with a sublime touch in the 32nd minute.
When it appeared the Fillies would go into the intermission with a two-goal advantage, Natalie Schmidt pulled one back. On a 50-50 ball into the box, the ball came free after Holland and a Libertyville player collided.
"I thought we turned all of their momentum back to us. But we had a couple of chances, and one great one that was saved by their keeper, before they added their third goal to make out comeback much more difficult," said Taylor.
Holland made a marvelous reaction glove save to her right on a close-range blast from Meller in the 51st minute.
Sanchez all but silenced the Wildcats faithful when she ran onto a brilliant pass from Piper Lucier, then beat keeper Tatiana Valdez with a lovely finish for her 12th goal of the season.
The assist for the three-time all-state senior Lucier was her 21st on the year.
The Wildcats would push numbers forward in an effort to draw closer in the last quarter hour, however, except for a couple of half chances handled easily by Holland, the clock would run out on a magnificent season for Taylor's club.
"It's been quite a year for this team led by a great group of seniors who led by example. We achieved so much for all to be proud of," said Taylor, who will return a solid core next spring, including all-state midfielder Shea Krakowski who finished with a team-high 24 goals.
"The way our team worked all year, is a big reason that we've been able to get this far," said Sanchez, a 2025 all-state recipient.
"I always felt confident that we could get into this game, and today the effort and work rate from everyone gave us the chance to continue playing."