Sibling unity a winning combo for Grayslake Central

Grayslake Central’s girls soccer started its season with three of a kind.

Mikala Wollmuth.

Sabrina Wollmuth.

Rebecca Wollmuth.

The sophomore triplets all played key roles in the Rams’ 3-2 win over Round Lake at Grayslake North on Monday. Mikala Wollmuth led Grayslake Central in its season opener with a pair of goals, while Sabrina was stout in the midfield and Rebecca helped anchor the defense. Quin Garbett also scored for the Rams.

Grayslake Central is hosting the three-day tournament, which resumes today. Grant edged Waukegan 2-1 in penalty kicks in the other game.

The tournament shifted sites due to snow on Grayslake Central’s turf.

Having the opportunity to play together on the soccer field means a lot to the Wollmuth sisters, who are not identical.

“It’s pretty cool and fun to play with my sisters,” Mikala Wollmuth said .“It’s a fun experience that a lot of people don’t get a chance to do because they don’t have siblings or sisters the same age.

“I don’t think that any of use are better than one another,” she added. “When we practice, we specialize in our positions. We’ve all become better players.”

Mikala Wollmuth scored an unassisted goal in the 10th minute to give the Rams a 1-0 advantage. Garbett’s goal, off an assist from Erin Boban in the 38th minute, had Grayslake Central up 2-0 at halftime.

Round Lake cut its deficit in half when Morgin Evins tallied a goal in the 45th minute.

But Jennifer Biondo assisted on Mikala Wollmuth’s second goal in the 55th minute to hike the Rams’ lead back to 2. Wollmuth made a long run with the ball before finishing for a 3-1 advantage in favor of the Rams.

“Without my teammates, I wouldn’t have had the chances,” said Mikala Wollmuth, who had 33 goals on the freshman team last year before scoring 3 late in the season on varsity. “They gave me the opportunities.”

The Panthers netted their final goal in the 61st minute from Daisy Ortiz.

“I thought we did well,” Grayslake Central coach Mike McCaulou said. “We did things well defensively for the most part. For the first game, there’s a lot to work on. For the kids, it was good to get the first game under their belt.”

Round Lake is expected to much improved this year.

“We got two good goals that we rehearsed in practice,” Round Lake coach Andres Orbe said. “A couple of set pieces did work. In the second half, we knew that we had the wind. We had to get together, switch the ball and find our forwards. If we can finish our shots, anything can happen.”

Grant 2, Waukegan 1 (PKs): Grant ended up losing last year’s Grayslake Central invitational in penalty kicks to the host Rams. The Bulldogs’ focus on kicks paid off in their victory over Waukegan.

“I told the girls to take the kicks like they do in practice,” Grant coach Michael Kennedy said. “We practiced PKs after what happened last year. It paid off for us.”

Grant’s Marissa Allen converted a penalty kick in the 56th minute to tie the game at 1-1. Waukegan had taken a 1-0 advantage with a goal from Jasmine Rea in the 16th minute.

Grant prevailed 3-0 in penalty kicks, as Allen, Jenna Pecorini and Kelli Varney converted. Grant keeper Ana Rodas (3 saves) stopped 1 kick, while Waukegan’s other attempts went off the crossbar or went wide.

“On the (PK in regulation), I just picked a spot and shot,” Allen said. “I don’t want to second-guess myself. On the PK, I just wanted to shoot it the same way.”