Northwest postseason scouting
Girls soccer / Postseason preview
The conclusion of last year’s girls soccer season was one to remember as Granite City, behind brilliant striker Rachel Tejeda, stunned a Final Four field with Naperville North, Conant and Fremd to become the first downstate club to win a big-school state title. Tejeda went on to earn All-American honors in her freshman season at Illinois State.
So, who will emerge this season and challenge for top honors at North Central College in Naperville in three weeks?
The power is still at Naperville Central, Naperville North, Waubonsie Valley, Neuqua Valley, and newcomers Metea Valley and Plainfield North. But all those schools are in the same amazing sectional. Here in the northwest suburbs, things will begin to sort themselves out as the first week of the tournament unfolds.
Here’s a brief look at the five sectionals in which area teams will be competing:
Class 3A
Rockford Boylan
Top 4 seeds: Barrington (15-5-0), Rockford Boylan (19-1-2), Huntley (11-5-4), Jacobs (13-9-3).
Storyline: The challenge that faces the Mid-Suburban League champion Fillies will be the present, and not the future, as they know they are two wins away from facing Boylan in a sectional opener in two weeks. “You would never know we just won the MSL Cup because the focus and work rate was even higher when we got back to training last week,” said Fillies coach Ryan Stengren. “We’re looking forward to playing our regional opener against Round Lake, which should help us get used to playing on a narrow field — much like Boylan — but nobody around here is looking past (Round Lake), Cary-Grove or Lake Zurich, if we meet either team in the regional final.” Stengren says his star player (Molly Pfeiffer, 13 goals, 7 assists) is getting close to being fit after a hamstring injury forced her to miss the end of the regular season. Her return would greatly enhance the chances of her club to play in its own supersectional on the final Tuesday of May, as it gives the top seed a true finisher. Boylan, who was dealt its only loss of the season by the Fillies (a 1-0 decision), recently completed its third undefeated conference season in five years to capture the NIC-10 crown. First-year head coach and former Prospect standout Michael Castronova led LZ (11-7-1) to a NSC championship with the help of Vanessa Abad (15 goals). No. 4 Jacobs will look for the duo of Cassidy and Catie Sherman, who have combined for 22 goals, while the Huntley has a wonderful sophomore in Delaney Loprieno (8 goals) for opponents to keep an eye on, as does Cary-Grove and senior standout Korey Kronforst.
Looking ahead: The Boylan sectional champ advances to play Schaumburg sectional champion at Barrington supersectional on Tuesday, May 29.
Niles North
Top 4 seeds in order: Loyola (20-0-1), New Trier (15-2-1), Lane Tech (16-5-2), Maine South (10-9-3).
Storyline: Unless the other teams in this sectional figure a way to convince Loyola and New Trier to withdraw, this one figures to be a two-team race to be decided in the sectional final May 25 at Niles North. Loyola defeated New Trier (2-0) before going on to win its second straight Pepsi Showdown title at Toyota Park. No. 3 Lane Tech has a marvelous talent in junior Ana Hernandez, as do the Hawks with Allison Curry (17 goals). Mike Divicenzo’s No. 7 seed Warriors will be pushed to the limit if they advance into the regional final with New Trier, but the always optimistic head coach isn’t conceding a thing despite the heavy odds against his improving young club. “As we all know, anything can happen in the playoffs, and (this) team has been breaking records all season long,” Divicenzo said, “but more importantly, they believe in themselves, as well as each other.” Maine West has a budding star in freshman Joanne Stanfa (13g, 8a) and goalkeeper Sara Stepanovich.
Looking ahead: The Niles North sectional champ advances to play the Palatine sectonal champ in the Fremd supersectional Tuesday, May 29.
Palatine
Top 4 seeds, in order: Hersey (15-6-2), Buffalo Grove (12-5-1), Stevenson (12-5-2), Carmel (14-3-2).
Storyline: The recent 3-game losing streak by MSL runner-up Hersey gave hope to others around them who may now feel the MSL East champs might have moved closer to the pack. This could be a dangerous expectation for the Huskies’ opponents, who will come to realize that Brad Abel is one of the top young coaches around and always has his side playing organized, disciplined soccer. With that said, keep an eye on the trio of Stevenson, Carmel and Prospect. The Patriots, who are regional hosts, have a terrific pair in Katie Krejsa (20 goals) and Miami-Ohio-bound midfielder Jenna Weiner (12 assists). Carmel led the ESCC in team scoring and finished second in the league. The No. 6 Knights (11-7-3) got a recent 1-0 win over a quality side from Lyons, which helped give them a needed boost in its confidence at the right time of the season. Having a superb goalkeeper such as Megan McCabe will only help Prospect.
The wild cards: Willie Filian and Steve Keller are the Zen masters of high school soccer, not only in the area, but the state. Not only has the duo combined for over 400 career victories on the girls side, but they always prepare their clubs for the playoffs. After graduation tore a hole in last year’s fourth-place state finisher, the No. 7 Vikings (6-9-3) have struggled to find the back of the net. But true to form, Keller’s group has conceded little, and you can bet if an opponent falls behind early, senior Emily Basten and her backline mates will hold on tight, as witnessed by the paltry 13 goals Fremd has allowed in 18 matches. Fillian has watched his No. 9 Pirates turn things around in the final weeks to become a very scary side to play, especially if they get back to their home turf as the sectional host. “The playoffs can best be summarized for us in three words: shutouts, shutouts, shutouts,” said Filian. “If we maintain momentum and the game settles down and slows a bit, we feel that we can get the result.” Katelyn Mayer can score (12 goals) and McKenzie Wiedemann strikes a wonderful dead-ball. The Pirates, like their crosstown rivals, can clog the midfield and dictate pace to make life miserable for most opponents.
Looking ahead: The Palatine sectional champ advances to play the Niles North sectional champ in the Fremd supersectional Tuesday, May 29.
Schaumburg
Top 4 seeds, in order: Geneva (13-4-4), St. Charles North (12-5-2), Conant (16-3-0), Schaumburg (12-2-4)
Storyline: MSL West rivals Conant and Schaumburg are on yet another collision course for the third consecutive season — but not if No. 5 Elk Grove (12-7-1) has anything to say about it. The No. 2 seed Cougars have sent their conference foes home for good after two straight OT victories, which has now grown to a 5-game win streak since 2010. “Schaumburg has plenty of motivation to get back at us, so if we (do) run into them, it will be an all-out battle,” said Conant coach Jason Franco. “I know Elk Grove has other plans if they play (them) in their regional final, and we’ve got our hands full with Batavia (No. 7) if we want to advance into the sectionals. To be honest, the three teams from our conference, plus St. Charles North, Geneva and Batavia, make for very competitive sectional at the top end.” The Grens’ season began so brightly at 8-0-1, but injuries to outstanding striker Kelli Hubly (20 goals) and her running mate Nikki Zaino slowed the club to a crawl. Coach Dan Klaus’ recent move of his all-state sweeper Katie Naughton to the midfield appears to have been just what the doctor ordered, as has the return of the aforementioned strike force. There’s plenty of individual star power in the sectional, including the Cougars quartet of Courtney Raetzman, Kelsey Foss, Sammi van de Linde and Leah Celarek, while the Saxons counter with Ali Schmalz, Teagan Eberle, Kelsey Steenstrup and Alexa Ben, and St. Charles North features Illinois State-bound Lauren Koehl.
Looking ahead: The Schaumburg sectional champ advances to play the Boylan sectional champ in the Barrington supersectional Tuesday, May 29.
Class 2A
Lakes
Top 4 seeds: St. Viator (10-7-4) Lake Forest (13-4-2), Grayslake Central (11-7-0), Deerfield (10-3-8).
Storyline: The No. 1 Lions are not in the best of shape as regional play begins as they continue to cope with a litany of injuries, which has kept them from fielding the same starting lineup in each its 20-plus matches.
The hope for coach Mike Taylor is that his team’s beefy nonconference schedule will now make a difference, and a winnable regional allows St. Viator to pick up a full head of steam in advance of its likely sectional final opponent, Lake Forest. The Scouts have improved since the Lions defeated them 1-0 way back on April 19.
The teams share plenty of common opponents, with the ESCC runners-up going 0-4-0 against Loyola, Evanston, Fenwick and Stevenson, while the Scouts are 3-1-0 against the same group, including a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Loyola in the semifinals of the Pepsi Showdown. “We recently lost Molly McMahon (concussion) for the rest of the season, so we moved KG (Katie Gavin) into her spot in the middle and we’ve played well in our last three games with Benet, Fenwick and Stevenson,” Taylor said. “I am feeling very good about things as we get ready to begin the playoffs.” Taylor recently moved his four-year standout Katelyn Hammarlund up top to join Chloe Lutheringshausen, and their partnership has given the Lions some much needed firepower and creative spark in the attack. NSC Praire champion Vernon Hills (11-8-1) earned the No. 7 seed behind Lakes (12-8-1) and Grayslake North (13-6-1) and will look to leading scorer Kaitlin Grammins (11 goals) to help pull a surprise or two at the Deerfield sectional venue. The Cougars lost (1-0) in shoot-out to Lake Zurich in the NSC championship match last Thursday. The same goes for Lakes, which has a wonderful 1-2 scoring punch of Jenna and Leah Baker, who have netted 24 between them.
Looking ahead: The Lakes sectional champ advances to play Deerfield sectional champion in the Barrington supersectional Tuesday, May 29.
— Mike Garofola