Palatine picks up steam heading into postseason
McKenzie Wiedemann’s goal in the sixth minute was all Palatine ended up needing to get the seventh victory in its last eight matches to end the regular season on a high note.
The Pirates (12-8-2) have plenty of momentum heading into the postseason following a 1-0 over Prospect in a Mid-Suburban League crossover played at Chic Anderson Stadium on Tuesday.
The Pirates, who open as the No. 9 seed at the Libertyville regional on next Tuesday against Rolling Meadows, played confidently against the visiting Knights (10-7-3), who seemed to be feeling the effects of a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Barrington last Friday evening.
“We absolutely laid an egg this afternoon,” said Prospect coach Tom Froats. “The girls put so much into that game with Barrington, and it seemed to take everything out of them, both physically and mentally. Right from the get-go we were flat and played with little energy.”
Wiedemann finished off what Morgan Radtke started, as the sophomore initiated the scoring sequence by curving her corner into the 6-yard box. After the hosts kept the ball alive in front of Megan McCabe, Wiedemann found a way to get it past her.
“Our defense has been playing very well of late, and that’s how we’ve closed out most of our games during the past two weeks,” said Pirates coach Willie Filian. “Except for the 5 goals Boylan put on us in our season opener, and both Conant and Naperville Central each getting (3) in on us, we’ve played scrappy, tight defense, and with our continued improvement on set pieces, things have turned around for us. We hope that it will carry on in the postseason.”
Defenders Jessica Malak, Kellie Strauss, Jessica Bachman and Radtke made sure senior keeper Meghan Ellis had an easy time of things in the first half. Except for a nice challenge off her line to punch a troublesome corner by Kelly Iovino out of the box, Ellis was never tested during her 40 minutes.
Pirates leading goal scorer Katelyn Mayer found Wiedemann after a quick throw from the near touchline, and the junior unleashed a quality shot on frame to force McCabe to save at the half-hour, and just before the break, Malak had a go from 25 yards which veered wide of the post as the hosts kept up the pressure before the break.
Froats moved his top striker, Jesse Petrovski, into the middle alongside Kelly Iovino in hopes the duo would help jump-start a stagnant Knights attack.
Instead it was the energy and pace from Megan Hood, brought on after intermission, which helped the visitors get a little something going. Another key was the work of sophomore Jenny Novak, whose sent an attempt at second-half keeper Rachel Rhodes at 56 minutes that required a save.
Mayer nearly doubled the Pirates’ lead with a wicked right-footed drive off the crossbar in the 64th minute. Moments later, an impressive display of athleticism from McCabe, who went horizontal to turn away a shot after a Wiedemann corner, helped keep the Knights within 1 goal.
“We’re finally coming together as a team, and at the right time of the season,” said Mayer, who entered the match with 12 goals and 8 assists.
“It was good to get a little revenge on Prospect after their 1-0 win against us earlier, and I really feel like we can be a dangerous opponent in the state playoffs.”
The Knights, who finish their regular season at home Saturday against Lyons Township, open their postseason at the Stevenson regional against Glenbrook North at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.