Girls Soccer: Bella Najera, St. Charles North stun Geneva in sectional semifinal; await St. Charles East in sectional final
On one half of the sideline, St. Charles North could collectively exhale and bask in the triumphs of being on the winning end of a heart-racing finish.
On the other half, a stunned Geneva squad - that saw its most successful season in half a decade end in difficult fashion - took a pause to process it.
Moments later, though, hugs and handshakes were exchanged with a 4-3 St. Charles North victory in the Class 3A sectional semifinal score fading to black in the far end zone.
"I thought Geneva played absolutely fantastic tonight," North Stars coach Brian Harks said. "Soccer is one of those weird games where Geneva did exactly what they needed to do to put themselves in good position (to win). Those girls showed a lot of heart; they came to play today, and that's what postseason soccer is all about."
It took a roller-coaster ride to ultimately reach the final destination: St. Charles North and St. Charles East will meet for the Class 3A West Chicago Sectional championship for the fourth year in a row on Saturday at 1 p.m.
The Saints defeated Batavia 3-0 in the first semifinal on goals by Kara Machala, Tatum Smith and Grace Williams.
The Vikings, riding the wave following their first regional title since 2017, had a 3-1 halftime lead.
Geneva's Lilly Coats and Rilee Hasegawa popped in their first two goals, which was answered by North Stars senior Laney Stark with 6:46 left in the first half. Hasegawa then found just enough of an angle on a sharp cross along the baseline to find the outstretched foot of Leyna Yonehara in the half's final seconds to put the Vikings up two goals heading into the break.
The North Stars (16-3-2) were on the ropes. Their furious comeback began on Stark's second goal, a gritty second effort to fight through heavy traffic and a rebound off goalkeeper Jordan Forbes with 31:16 remaining to cut the deficit to 3-2.
"At halftime, our girls were challenged, and I was really proud with the amount of heart, drive and focus that they showed just to get the job done," Harks said.
Geneva sophomore Cami Bishop was tagged with a red card amid heavy contact near midfield with 27:14 left, and the North Stars kept on the attack with the player advantage the rest of the way.
Stark later found Sophie Kirsten on a cross with just under 13 minutes remaining to tie it, and Najera pounded the go-ahead goal in the tense final few minutes to cap off the comeback.
"I couldn't be prouder of them," Geneva coach Megan Owens said. "They did everything we asked. We scored, we told the team 'defense,' and I feel like we dominated the majority of the game. It's just we had to play down a player for [under] 30 minutes, and there's only so long you can sustain in the heat and everything else. But, they stepped up. They outworked North for very long stretches of time, and I'm just incredibly proud of this group.
"The result of the game is the result of the game, but it's just hard (when) you see your season come to an end," Owens continued.
"Every year, you form a little family, and then it's over. They worked so hard, and throughout this game and the craziness that happened, they maintained their composure and maintained their sportsmanship. They rose above. They played for each other, and they're just amazing teammates to each other. That doesn't always happen every year with every team."
Najera, the 2021 DuKane Conference Player of the Year, "just took a crack and thankfully it went in," as she put it, on her one-on-one opportunity.
" ... She's a special player," Harks said. "Different players stepped up in different moments. Laney Stark with two (goals), Kayla Floyd was all over the air game. Sophie Kirsten (had) her best finish of the year with a great ball and perfectly executed play. When it was in the final moments, couldn't think of anybody better to have the ball at her feet."
Stark's efforts were among many catalysts in the end.
"She's been fantastic, especially since we've only had her for one year," Najera said. "On offense and defense, I feel like Laney is such a great help. She's so fast; she's so physical. She puts a lot of pressure on defense and she gets it done on offense, too."