Defenses step up in scoreless draw for Bartlett, South Elgin
On a cold and windy day at Millennium Field in Streamwood on Tuesday, it was a battle of wills and defense when rivals Bartlett and South Elgin squared off for an Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division girls soccer match.
In the end, both defenses walked off as the winners on Tuesday as it ended in a 0-0 tie which saw the Storm (7-1-1, 1-1-1) finish with a slight 8-6 advantage in total shots against the Hawks (5-2-1, 0-0-1).
Despite not finding the net, host Bartlett felt pretty good with the finish as its defense picked up a fifth shutout this season against a South Elgin team that entered having averaged 4 goals. The Hawks are now undefeated in 5 straight games.
"I thought we played a great team defensive game," said Hawks senior defender Shannon Brohan. "It wasn't just the starting four in the back, but our subs came in and kept playing solid in the back."
Senior Melissa Gal, junior Jamie Kenna and freshman Miranda Hedeen rounded out the starting back line for Bartlett, which kept the Storm offense silent through most of the first half.
The Storm's offense did pick up in the second half to hold a slight advantage in scoring chances and possession in the final 40 minutes. Junior Alena Ignatev had a solid opportunity in front of the net early in the half but her shot went over the frame, and South Elgin's best attack came in the final three minutes.
South Elgin sophomore Ella Struwing had a shot on goal with 2:26 left in the match, but it was met by a diving stop by Hawks keeper Tessa Jatczak (5 saves). The ball remained near Bartlett's net, and a minute later Storm junior Corinne Hildebrandt hit the crossbar with an attempt.
"We really focused at halftime on moving up the field as a unit," Storm coach Tiffany Disher said. "They listened and did a nice job working together more, and playing as one unit."
The tie felt a little bit like a loss for the Storm, which saw Bartlett hold an advantage on the attack and possession in the first half. South Elgin's defense of Hildebrandt, senior Weronika Noyszewski and sophomores Arielle Walters and Alyssa Kalke complemented senior goalie Jourdan Valkner, who made 4 saves in the Storm's sixth shutout.
"Luckily our defense showed up and stepped up because we basically just played defense in the first half," Disher said.
Bartlett junior Mariela Alba helped create plenty of solid attacks, and in the 28th minute freshman Jenna Dombrowski had the team's best attempt. Her shot deflected off a Storm defender, forcing Valkner to change her momentum at the last second. But diving back to the right, Valkner made the stop.
Along with seeing solid scoring chances, Bartlett coach Ben Beary said it was "easily our best game defensively."
"It feels good," Beary said about getting the shutout. "This game is always high emotion. I was happy we came in and played even-keeled, which helped us limit any mistakes."