Water polo: Spieth, Stevenson surge into Final Four
Senior Olivia Spieth whipped one backhand skip shot into the cage, then feathered a lob over a helpless defender and goalie minutes later Tuesday night.
Different shots. Same result.
More Stevenson goals.
Spieth, whom coach Jeff Wimer called “the greatest player I’ve ever coached,” poured in 8 goals and added 4 steals as the Patriots blitzed Hersey 17-5 in the Hoffman Estates supersectional, earning a berth in Friday’s 7:45 p.m. state semifinal against Naperville North at Barrington.
Stevenson, winner of the last 3 state titles and 7 overall under Wimer, improved to 33-1. Hersey finished 22-10.
The Patriots looked every bit like a reigning powerhouse from the opening sprint, swimming past defenders, anticipating passes and turning nearly every possession into danger.
Fast. Tough. Sharp.
Too much.
“Stevenson is fast, strong, very good,” Hersey coach Megan Brownley said afterward. “We were a little nervous at the start, but we battled all the way to the end.”
Spieth set the tone early.
Her rapid backhand skip shot made it 4-0 with 2:59 left in the first quarter. About a minute later, the senior calmly flicked a lob into the net for a 5-0 lead as Stevenson stormed ahead 6-0 after one quarter.
“She’s a special athlete,” Wimer said of Spieth, who plans to take a gap year to play professional water polo in Spain after training for years with elite players in California. “Olivia has been training with some of the best players since the eighth grade. She works incredibly hard.”
Junior Caroline Bichkoff supplied another highlight early, collecting the ball near her own goalie before racing the length of the pool untouched for a fastbreak goal and a 2-0 lead.
Senior Erika White added 3 goals for Stevenson, while Bichkoff scored twice. Senior goalkeeper Elsa Kusevskis made 8 saves before sophomore Allison Bichkoff stopped 1 shot in the fourth quarter.
Hersey showed resolve late.
Senior Emily Steinberg and senior Melissa Lock scored 2 goals apiece for the Huskies, who netted 4 times in the final 7 minutes. Lock’s final goal came with one second left after Brownley called timeout to set up the play. Senior Morgen Oswald assisted on the season-ending score.
Brownley said one of her favorite parts of the season was a bonding trip to Michigan for a team that practices and hosts matches at Prospect because Hersey does not have its own pool.
“They’re all gamers,” Brownley said. “They battled all the way through tonight.”
Boys game: Stevenson barely held the ball long enough Tuesday afternoon to let Palatine breathe.
Pass.
Pass.
Goal.
The Patriots whipped water polo balls around Hoffman Estates’ pool deck like infielders turning a double play, piling up quick-strike goals and earning another trip to the state finals with a 16-6 defeat of Palatine in a boys water polo supersectional.
Senior utility Armeet Gill and junior attacker Hudson Swanson scored 3 goals apiece for Stevenson (32-2), which extended its winning streak to 24 games and advanced to Friday’s state semifinal (5:15 p.m.) against York at Barrington.
Junior goalkeeper Anthony Cardone added 5 saves for the Patriots, who received goals from 6 players and used another swarming defensive effort to seize control after allowing a goal in the opening minute of the first-year supersectional round.
Palatine actually struck first.
Junior Ethan Kain converted a 5-meter shot in the opening minute before Stevenson responded with the next 9 goals and built an 8-1 halftime lead behind crisp passing, relentless counterattacks and a defense that rarely allowed the Pirates clean looks at the cage.
Gill scored 3 times, including one off a lightning-quick transition sequence late in the second quarter. Cardone ignited the counter with an outlet pass to senior Matt Woods, who immediately spotted Gill streaking ahead for a goal and an 8-1 lead with 50 seconds left before halftime.
“We got settled and passed well,” Stevenson coach Sean Wimer said. “We’re tough to guard when we pass well.”
Wimer praised Gill’s “smooth, fluid” throwing motion and compared sophomore Levi Schnulle’s arm strength to “a shortstop’s.”
That baseball image fit.
Stevenson zipped passes crisply and rarely allowed Palatine to recover defensively. Swanson embodied the burst the Patriots displayed all afternoon, blocking a shot early in the third quarter before scoring 16 seconds later.
“Hudson is so explosive,” Wimer said. “I love our balance.”
Junior Ben Tosyali, senior Matt Woods, sophomore defender Onat Kose and Schnulle added 2 goals apiece for Stevenson.
Kain scored 4 goals for Palatine (26-8), while goalkeeper Colin Mielas made 11 saves.
“Stevenson has an amazing press, defense and goalkeeper,” Palatine coach Joe Grzybek said, noting his Pirates cleanly executed three plays installed at Monday’s practice against the Patriots.
“Our senior class was a large, talented one,” Grzybek added. “All of those guys played the game the right way, showing good character while competing hard.”