Area teams set to put it on line in postseason play

Prior to the start of the 2008 campaign, Huntley girls soccer coach Kris Grabner sat down with his team and discussed three primary season goals.

Slated to host a tournament as well as compete in the Harlem Invitational, goal No. 1 was to win both, which the Red Raiders did.

A bit more of a long-term goal, Grabner discussed winning the Fox Valley Conference Fox Division title outright as goal No. 2. Having shared the honors with Crystal Lake Central in 2007, sole custody this season would be a step forward.

With a 2-0 victory on May 1, goal No. 2 was met as the Red Raiders improved to 18-0 overall and finished FVC-Fox action with a 9-1 record.

At 5 p.m. Wednesday, Huntley (18-1) will begin the journey toward goal No. 3, a regional title.

The No. 3 seed will line up opposite No. 13 seed regional host, Jacobs.

Despite a close friendship with Jacobs coach, Jim Dzialo, Grabner will keep his eyes on the prize and look to advance with a win over the Golden Eagles.

"We haven't seen Jacobs this year, but I think we know what strategy to expect," said Grabner. "We are already working on how we're going to play them."

And while Jacobs (8-12) comes in with the 13 seed, the Golden Eagles are not a team to be overlooked.

"Jim is an excellent coach," said Grabner. "With what his boys did in the postseason, anything is possible with them."

Most describe the post-season as a new season. Everybody goes in 0-0.

That being said, both teams will bring their game and see how things play out.

"We will have to be disciplined against them," said Grabner. "The key for us now is for our girls to continue to do what it takes to win games.

"We will be prepared. We will rely on our consistency with defense and our fire power offensively."

The Red Raiders will take the field with 15 shutouts, having allowed just 4 goals all season. Offensively, they have seen more than a dozen different shirts find the back of the net, and are led by freshman Aimee Wronski with 18 goals.

Jacobs has won 6 of its last 10 games with key offensive play from Ashley Bliznick, Kelsey Quitschau, K.C. Roller, Jesica Perrone and Markie Rahn.

Following the Huntley-Jacobs match-up, Burlington Central will take the No. 10 seed against Rolling Meadows at 7 p.m. in the Jacobs regional. The Rockets (9-7-1) have won 9 of their last 11 games after dropping their first five of the year and will look to capitalize on in-season lessons learned.

Streamwood sectional: A sub-section of the Streamwood sectional, hosting regional action along with Jacobs will be Larkin, Lake Park and Elk Grove.

Both Larkin (No. 11 seed) and South Elgin (No. 15) will kick off post-season play on Wednesday. The Storm (4-14-1) will face Conant at 4:30 p.m. while the Royals (6-11-3) will go up against a familiar foe in Schaumburg (No. 7 seed) at 6:30 p.m.

The two were scheduled to play on March 27 of this year, but were unable to get the game in due to weather. Larkin should benefit from having closed the season with matches against Neuqua Valley, Lake Park, Waubonsie Valley and St. Charles North.

Dundee-Crown (5-12) will compete at Lake Park going up against the regional host at 5 p.m. Wednesday evening.

"We're playing real good team ball right now," said D-C coach Sebastian Falinski. "We will hold our own. I will get the girls as prepared as I can before we play."

That preparation ironically will include a pre-post season game with the Lancers Saturday.

Elgin will be faced with the challenge of looking for its first win of the year opening postseason play against No. 16 seed in Maine East.

While the Maroons (0-8-1) have struggled to come out on top, they do enter tonight's 4:30 p.m. contest with one of the area's finest forwards in senior Lizzy Niles.

Streamwood (No. 9 seed) will also open the post-season at Elk Grove, facing the regional host and No. 8 seed at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

"We are ready for the post-season," said Sabres coach Matt Polovin. "I went to watch Elk Grove play, and they definitely play a style of soccer that I think we can handle."

Palatine sectional: Fox Valley Conference Valley Division powerhouse, Cary-Grove (15-1) will participate in the Palatine sectional opening action in the Crystal Lake South regional against the regional host, and FVC Valley foe.

Both remaining contenders for the FVC Valley title, Crystal Lake South (11-6) currently holds the title from last year.

In their opening bout on May 1, Cary-Grove (No. 5 seed) walked away with the 1-0 victory via a 4-2 (shootout) conclusion after a scoreless regulation and double overtime.

Prior to their 6:30 p.m. postseason match up this Wednesday, the two will have faced off twice in a matter of seven days.

The Trojans will take the field with 15 shutouts forcing South to find ways to score on its home turf. Offensively, Kelsey Passaglia leads Cary-Grove and the area with more than 20 goals and 15 plus assists.

Also competing in the Palatine sectional, Prairie Ridge will take on Wheeling at 4:30 p.m. tonight in the St. Viator regional.

The No. 17 seed, Prairie Ridge (9-8-2) has been competitive all year winning recent back-to-back conference matches in shootout fashion.

The Wolves are yet to lose by more than two goals, and had gone unbeaten in 7 straight contests before dropping a couple late-season matches.

Wheaton North sectional: Bartlett (10-4-2) will be the lone area representative at the Wheaton North sectional opening postseason play against Glenbard West (No. 7 seed) at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Hosting the Bartlett regional, the Hawks will have home-field advantage as well as the advantage of an offense which has recently heated up.

"Having similar records going into the seeding meeting, I think we will be very evenly matched," said Hawks coach Heather Thomas of opening opponent Glenbard West. "We've got to play aggressive and play hard."

Hawks players to watch include Fran Abate, Luisa Desario and goalkeeper Erin Zaidman.

Class A: Hampshire will be the lone area representative in the Stillman Valley sectional of Class A postseason play.

Having earned the No. 1 seed of the sectional, the Whip-Purs will be looking for a three-peat. With back-to-back sectional titles in 2006 and 2007, Hampshire (12-6-2) is hoping that the third time's a charm; in regards to a state title that is.

In 2006, the Whips fell in the state quarterfinals and followed that performance by advancing to the third place contest last year. Bettering themselves will put them in the title match.

Hampshire will open up the postseason against the winner of tonight's Rockford Christian Life vs. Keith School matchup on Monday night. A win would put the Whips in the sectional semifinals against either the No. 5 seed in Winnebago or Genoa-Kingston (No. 4), a game slated for 4 p.m. on Thursday.

"It's time to be great," said Whip-Purs coach Patrick O'Brien.

While the Whip-Purs have endured some offensive woes, their combination play has compensated for finishing struggles.

Hampshire does take the field with anchor players and experienced athletes in Kelly Plichta, Kayla Meyer, Christine Schumacher, Funmi Makinde, Alex Field, Devon Murphy and Kristy Pfaffinger.

Also boasting a No. 1 seed in Class A action is St. Edward (7-7-1), which will face either Chicago Waldorf (No. 9 seed) or No. 8 seed Luther North at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday in the Westminster Christian sectional.

Sectional host Westminster Christian (No. 5 seed) will open against North Shore Country Day on Monday night.

"We usually compete very well against North Shore," said Warriors coach Josh Guge. "We're excited to host the sectional and we have seen several of the teams within the sectional play."

Elgin Academy (9-8) will play St. Benedict after the Westminster Christian contest.

The Hilltoppers concluded last season advancing further in the post-season than past teams, losing to Hampshire in overtime of the sectional finals.

"We've struggled a bit, but we will get back on track," said Elgin coach Greg Repede. "St. Edward is tough as is Willows Academy, but I think we match up. The girls are excited, and I think that they have been pointing toward this. They did so well last year, I think they would like to match or better that finish."