Schaumburg hangs on against Elk Grove
Schaumburg (14-2-4) will meet its long-time Mid-Suburban West rival Conant in the sectional for the third time in as many seasons thanks in part to Riley Williams’ goal in the 52nd minute and a water-tight Saxons defense which held Elk Grove all-state striker Kelli Hubly to just 1 goal in a 2-1 victory Saturday afternoon in the Class 3A Elk Grove regional title game.
Williams’ goal gave the No. 4-seeded Saxons a 2-goal advantage, and the Saxons managed to fight off a courageous comeback from the Grens (13-8-1) to extend their postseason run in thrilling style.
“It was the type of game we kind of expected today — against a team with two great players, both all-staters,” said Schaumburg coach Greg Charvat of Hubly and defender Katie Naughton. “It came down to how both teams would adjust with the extreme heat, and how we would defend Hubly up top and Naughton in the middle running things for them.”
Alexa Ben scored Schaumburg’s first goal in the 34th minute.
“Yes, we expected a really tough game with Elk Grove,” said Schaumburg junior Amanda Kelly, who was tasked with marking the Kentucky-bound Hubly most of the day, “but it took a lot of stress off of our defense when Alexa got that first goal of the game, because it is so important at this time of the year to be the first to score.”
After a quiet beginning, Naughton, a two-time all-state selection, awoke the sun-drenched crowd with an explosive angled run from the mid-line through several Saxons up the left side before finding Nikki Zaino, who in turn quickly connected with Hubly. Her shot crashed off the football crossbar.
Minutes later, Zaino sent a lovely ball over the top to the onrushing Hubly, but this time Saxons keeper Brooke Schocker challenged smartly off her line to end the threat.
“Once we got ourselves organized and settled in, I thought we did a good job of keeping Hubly under control, and a lot of that had to do with the work of Amanda,” said Charvat.
The heat and natural turf began to slow the pace of the game, as did frequent whistles from the center official.
None of that could stop Ben. Williams found her with a marvelous assist and the sophomore did the rest, cutting back quickly to free herself long enough to send her well-aimed shot into the open side of the net in the 34th minute.
Williams struck the game-winner after Ben set her free up the center channel. After winning a foot race to the ball, Williams ran in on keeper Melissa Solorio before putting the finishing touches on her shot.
“Schaumburg did a nice job on both of their goals, and that second 1-v-1 goal was a tough one to concede,” said Elk Grove coach Dan Klaus. “But we got ourselves back into the match, and despite the heat, we had our chances to get even right until the very end.”
Hubly turned a shot wide of Schocker at the hour mark, but 60 seconds later Hubly didn’t miss.
After Becky Sneddon, who had a strong game on the outside for the Saxons, skimmed the bar at 65 minutes, the game opened up more as the Grens began to push forward in their search to equalize, leading up to a frantic few seconds before the final whistle.
Kelly Naughton’s low drive forced Schocker into a save at 72 minutes, and the Grens created a handful of corners and deep throws.
With 2.7 seconds left, Elk Grove was granted a dead-ball opportunity just outside the box.
Hubly put the ball into play, and with the clock running out, Naughton’s blast hit the bar before going over the end line — giving the Grens’ fans the impression the game had been tied, when in reality there was no time left in regulation.
“This finally ends what has been a great run by a senior class led by two great players in Naughton and Hubly, including three straight regional finals,” said Klaus. “But the girls gave it their all, and today, the better team got the result.”
“With this win, we got the game we wanted, and Conant ... now we’ll get ready for what promises to be a real battle next Wednesday at our place,” said Charvat.