North Stars start fast, top St. Charles East

Typical soccer matches don't have an abundance of goals - so when one team or the other scores, it completely changes the complexion of the contest.

A classic case in point was Saturday's St. Charles East-St. Charles North contest at North, the latest revival of the city's annual crosstown rivalry.

St. Charles North scored first - drawing first blood when Leah DeMoss pounced on a poorly-cleared ball and hit a sharp shot in toe net in the 19th minute of play.

The North Stars doubled their lead with 14 minutes left in the first half when they swept forward on a counter attack after a Saints corner kick. DeMoss was integral in the buildup, racing up the right wing on the break - but the finish was applied by Alyssa Peterson.

Down 2-0 at halftime and needing a response, St. Charles East found one less than 2 minutes into the second half when Cat Camic scored.

That set a frantic final half-hour of play, but while both teams pressured, the 2-1 scoreline held and St. Charles North (6-0, 4-0 Upstate Eight) remained undefeated for the season.

"This was like our first real game and it was East on top of that and I think we were all kind of rattled," DeMoss said. "But I think, in the first half, we came out and kept our composure. The second half was a completely different game."

The North Stars threatened to overrun the Saints (3-5, 2-1) at times in the first half with passing movement that was fluid and always directed toward goal.

"I thought in the first half, we switched the ball well and got different people involved," St. Charles North coach Ruth Vostal said. "The second half, we didn't do it as well. We kept telling them to get it wide because we have so much speed."

That attacking pressure made life difficult for Saints defenders. And although both North Stars goals came from defensive breakdowns, there were other times when goalie Zoe Samaan had to make her usual series of superb saves.

"I felt like our defense was pretty organized," Saints senior defender Liz Drennan said. "We know their forwards are really fast and that's always a shock to us in the beginning. But we play soccer with the North girls all the time and we know what they can do and we got it together pretty quick."

While DeMoss' opener gave the North Stars an edge, Peterson's goal sent a clear message of intent from the hosts.

"That was a big lift for the team," Peterson said. "A 1-0 game means anyone can still win the game. It isn't much of a lead. The 2-0 sets more of a pace for the game."

But the Saints weren't ready to give up, and Camic's goal restored a bit of on-field parity between the teams.

"I feel that we had more to compete for," Drennan said. "When you're two goals down, it's hard to have that fire. But even if it's 5 minutes left in the half, if you're only one goal down, you can keep going as hard as you can and not give up."