Wheaton N., Waubonsie sectionals provide world-class entertainment

Back in the 1980s, some of the world's top soccer playing nations gathered one year before the start of the World Cup at the site that was preparing to host the quadrennial event in a competition called the Mundialito.

The phrase is Spanish for "Little World Cup" and usually featured England or Germany or Brazil and the hosts in a round-robin format designed to allow the host nation to test its infrastructure well in advance of the final tournament.

The Mundialito went away in the mid-90s, replaced by the clunkier Confederations Cup, a competition between the champions from every continent. But its legacy certainly will live on in the hearts and minds of anyone who ventures to Wheaton North or Waubonsie Valley this week for IHSA sectional action.

Congratulations St. Charles North and Geneva -- you're both regional champions.

Your reward? A chance to play in a prep Mundialito.

In St. Charles North's case, tonight's 6:30 p.m. semifinal with Wheaton Academy comes just after the massive battle between Wheaton's two public high schools -- Wheaton North and Wheaton Warrenville South.

"As coaches we grumble about this every year," St. Charles North coach Ruth Vostal said. "There are a lot of state tournament games that could be state finals games and a lot of those games take place before the state finals.'

The North Stars (15-5) are certainly not to be overlooked. They have faced a schedule as difficult as anyone in the state and have pushed top teams New Trier and Waubonsie Valley despite losing.

"We have 6 straight regional championships and we've only been here for 8 years," Vostal said. "We've been doing extremely well. I hope we're not finished. I don't get the feeling from the team that they think it's time to be finished. I just hope we're ready for the game tomorrow."

While the North Stars' defense has been its hallmark in recent year, the offense has been coming through this year, including Saturday's 3-1 win over Glenbard West.

"I'm happy with the fact that I think we are creating numerous scoring opportunities," Vostal said. "We have had to weather the storm against a couple of these teams. But we feel that if we come out and play as hard as we can, we will give ourselves a chance."

Caitlin Winkelman has been a rock in the middle of the North Stars midfield. The thing to remember about Winkelman is that her initial position on the field was forward. Her predatory instincts have never gone away despite the way she handles her defensive role in midfield.

"She's been able to distribute through the midfield," Vostal said. "You don't want someone who gets too high or too down in that role. (Winkelman) fills that role so well for us. She's happy all the time. She never gets flustered."

Working alongside Winkelman is Maggie Hamilton, one of the revelations of the season. It was, however, no major surprise when Hamilton scored the opening goal against Glenbard West.

"She was marking Glenbard West's key player too," Vostal said. "We gave her the job of shutting down someone, and she took care of it. She did that job and did a nice job. Then we talked to her about her offense and how she had to get shots off. She pulled the trigger on that one, it was 20 yards out, and it was a great hit."

All this talk about offense and midfield might make it seem as if the North Stars have tossed aside their traditionally strong defense. And there won't ever be that chance as long as Vostal coaches the team.

"We have been stressing that it's an 11-man defense," Vostal said. "If we have 11 behind the ball or recovering to get back, it's going to be hard to score on us. We've been trying to give them four in the defense and our goalies as much information as we can on who they will be marking. As long as they're working hard and doing their best, we'll be solid in the back."

Geneva (12-7-1) has certainly drawn the shortest tournament straw this afternoon. The Vikings face defending champion Waubonsie Valley, a team that has not lost since the 2006 tournament.

Just to make things a little more daunting, this afternoon's 4:30 p.m. match takes place at the Warriors field, site of the four-team sectional.

"It's hard for me to put into words our feelings after winning the (Rosary) regional," Geneva coach Ryan Estabrook said. "We were really excited by winning a regional and we're not intimidated by Waubonsie. But we know it's going to be a tall task to play against such a great team."

Many in Geneva's squad are still new to the idea of postseason success. So the Vikings were hardly jaded after defeating Benet 1-0 on Saturday.

"It's always hard in the playoffs to find the balance between celebrating a victory and focusing on the game," Estabrook said. "If you're too content with winning the next game, it doesn't prepare you for your next game. We're trying to find that balance."

Similar to Wheaton North, the field at Waubonsie Valley is loaded. Naperville Central and Neuqua Valley meet in the other contest, which starts at 6:30 p.m.

"I'm pretty excited to see what we can do against Waubonsie," Estabrook said. "During the regular season, you like to play teams like this to test yourself and see what lessons you need to learn. Hopefully we've learned a lot of those lessons and we're ready to measure up with the best in the state and one of the best in the nation."

Like Vostal, Estabrook sees the Mundialito aspects to hit team's sectional site.

"Probably the four teams in this sectional or the four at Wheaton North -- whoever comes out of this area -- will be odds on to win the state title," Estabrook said.

Other than the insanely difficult competition, Estabrook cautioned that there is another downside to playing such tough competition. The Wheaton North and Waubonsie Valley winners meet on Memorial Day at Benedictine University in a supersectional contest.

"The team that makes it out of this will be so beat up they can't compete well the rest of the way or they will have eliminated their stiffest competition," he said.

While there are other strong teams in the state, none have quite the path as that which faces St. Charles North and Geneva this week. At least there was only one Mundialito in the world of professional soccer. This week there are two prep Mundialitos.