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Batavia throttles Glenbard North

Batavia did not have the start it wanted to commence the girls soccer postseason when Glenbard North senior Emily Dybowski scored in the opening minutes off a keeper misplay.

But the Bulldogs were virtually flawless against the injury-ravaged Panthers for the next 73-plus minutes of the Class 3A Hoffman Estates regional semifinal.

Karina Rosales' pair of goals was augmented by single scores from Mackenzie Foster and Paige Renfus as the Bulldogs cruised into the Friday evening finals against Conant with a 4-1 victory.

Batavia (14-3-4), the fifth seed of the Schaumburg sectional complex faces No. 4 Conant, in its attempt to win its first postseason hardware in two years.

Glenbard North, which was missing starters Violet Jakupi, Anna Mathews, Summer Corsolini, Amanda Biondo, Emma Martinez and Katie Frye, ended its year at 7-8-3.

Batavia was so in control of the match that Glenbard North would not have another shot attempt for the remainder of the match.

It was as if the Bulldogs had a monopoly on the time of possession. Batavia would finish with 27 more shots than Glenbard North.

"It didn't happen right away," Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said of Rosales' equalizer with 10 minutes and 33 seconds remaining in the first half. "I liked the way the girls responded (from the early deficit). It might have been our best possession-type game of the season."

With Batavia continuing its unrelenting attack, there was a sense of inevitability the match would not be deadlocked for long.

Three and half minutes after Rosales' first goal, Foster, a sophomore forward, beat the Glenbard North keeper in tight congestion 8 yards in front of the goal.

Leading 2-1 at the break, Rosales did not take long to score her second goal and break the match wide open.

"We came out really strong, regardless of the little mistake we had on the goal," said Rosales, a senior midfielder. "We were sending balls through. It was just a matter of time. I thought we did a great job of pushing up and pressuring their defense."

The Panthers' defense was actually responsible for the carnage not being far greater.

Keeper Ariana DePinto stopped 17 Batavia shots, including several diving stops against the inexorable Batavia attack.

"Our defense was phenomenal," said Dybowski.

Renfus' rising rocket from 20 yards out concluded the scoring as Glenbard North played virtually the entire match from its own end.

Dybowski opened the scoring six minutes into the match when she scored on an empty-net shot following the mishandling of an Arianna Callard free kick.

"It just kind of happened," Dybowski said. "I wasn't expecting it."

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