Boys lacrosse: Wheaton Academy shuts out Lake Zurich in supersectional
Wheaton Academy's Liam White is just a freshman. But he played like a veteran Tuesday in Hoffman Estates.
White scored 4 goals as Wheaton Academy rolled past Lake Zurich 15-0 in the Hoffman Estates boys lacrosse supersectional.
White and Wheaton Academy, which starts all freshmen and sophomores, will now find out how much they have really grown as they meet traditional state power and nationally-ranked Loyola Academy in Thursday's state semifinals at 5 p.m. at the Forest View Educational Center in Arlington Heights.
Wheaton Academy is making its first trip to the IHSA state finals. The Warriors (14-3) have won four in a row and 6 of their last 7 games.
"I want thank my teammates for pushing me so hard," White said. "We were looking for a win, not for a fight. We knew they would come out fighting and that's what we did."
Wheaton Academy coach Geof Weisenborn said his team's preparation and execution was the difference.
"We knew that we had to be super prepared for Lake Zurich," Weisenborn said. "I am proud of our guys, they executed the little things, which gave us the advantage."
Davis Schneider had 3 goals for Wheaton Academy while Aiden Weisenborn and Gavin Pedrone each scored a pair of goals.
"Coach has been harping on being selfless on offense," said Schneider, who is a sophomore. "This is the moments that you dream for. We have a deep roster and it nice to play with a bunch of guys who can put the ball in the net."
Wheaton Academy saved its best half of lacrosse for the right time.
The Warriors scored 7 goals in the first half and limited Lake Zurich to just 4 shots on goal, which were turned aside by freshman Johnny Carrington.
The Warriors had 4 of the game's first 5 possessions and scored on each one. Weisenborn, White, Pedone and Schneider each tallied as the Warriors led 4-0 with 5:38 left in the quarter.
White, Schneider and Weisenborn each scored in the second quarter as the Warriors built a 7-0 lead. Only the play of Lake Zurich goalie Alex Guzman, who made 12 saves in the first half, kept the Bears in the game.
Wheaton Academy broke the game open in the third quarter. The Warriors scored 5 goals, sending the game into a running clock as White scored twice along with goals from Pedone, Breck Peacock and Schneider.
The Warriors put the finishing touches on their masterpiece with goals from A.J. Serna, Tyler Sommer, who was magnificent on faceoffs, winning nearly every one of them, and a final goal from Josh Sommer. Wheaton Academy did not allow a shot on goal in the second half.
Lake Zurich (15-6) had its modest three-game winning streak snapped. The Bears, who had 15 seniors on the squad, had never won an IHSA state playoff game until this season.
"We had 16 seniors who had to sit at home for a whole year and then have a week of practice," Lake Zurich coach Michael Sutton said. "We started out on fire and rode it the whole way. I am so proud of the seniors. I just love these guys so much and they left their mark here."