Bartlett, St. Francis look
to find footing in early goings
By Derek Wolff
With the first few weeks of the 2014 season behind them, Bartlett and St. Francis are off to slow starts. They both hope to reverse that trend when they square off at 2 p.m. Saturday on St. Francis' home field in Wheaton.
The Spartans have found some success at home, with a 1-1 record including a 9-0 drubbing of Joliet Catholic Academy on home soil.
Coming off three losses in a row, St. Francis coach Kevin Ward said home-field advantage couldn’t hurt his side as it looks to find its form.
“It sure does not hurt,” Ward said. “We have a renewed sense of pride with our team this year, solid support from the administration and our parents. Bigger crowds have been coming out to see us, so that is always a plus.”
Over the last three games the Spartans have given up 11 goals and will look to be more organized at the back. Ward said things are still a work in progress and attributed some of the results to the rigorous schedule his side has chosen to play early this season, particularly against tough 3A opponents.
Still, St. Francis has had success at points this year, with draws against Lake Park and Wheaton North to add to the resume.
Bartlett comes into the match looking to continue some of its recent momentum.
After starting the season 0-4, the Hawks have won two of their last three.
Coach Ben Beary said there have been a variety of factors to the recent turnaround, namely moving players around after losing a center back early in the first match of the year against Batavia.
“This caused a domino effect of moving players around to a non-strength position,” Beary said. “It took us two games to really find our rhythm and build confidence defensively, and the results of the West Aurora and Naperville Central games are in part a testament to those defensive growing pains. Since then, our defense has had three straight matches of consistent quality. Now we need our attacking side to catch up.”
Beary said he expects St. Francis to provide a challenge and pointed to their tough early season schedule.
Finishing opportunities will be key to Bartlett’s offensive outlook against the Spartans.
“We have struggled to find consistency with our attack this season,” Beary said. “We have no trouble creating scoring opportunities, but we have struggled to finish, to time our runs effectively and to intentionally seek out rebound opportunities throughout our matches. We take nothing for granted when it comes to our opponent. We have creative attacking players who have underperformed in the early going of this season.”
The Hawks will be on short rest after dropping a 1-0 decision against Glenbard North on Thursday, while the Spartans played last on Tuesday in a road 4-2 defeat against Lake Forest Academy.
Bartlett won the meeting between the two teams last season in convincing fashion, 4-0.
to find footing in early goings
By Derek Wolff
With the first few weeks of the 2014 season behind them, Bartlett and St. Francis are off to slow starts. They both hope to reverse that trend when they square off at 2 p.m. Saturday on St. Francis' home field in Wheaton.
The Spartans have found some success at home, with a 1-1 record including a 9-0 drubbing of Joliet Catholic Academy on home soil.
Coming off three losses in a row, St. Francis coach Kevin Ward said home-field advantage couldn’t hurt his side as it looks to find its form.
“It sure does not hurt,” Ward said. “We have a renewed sense of pride with our team this year, solid support from the administration and our parents. Bigger crowds have been coming out to see us, so that is always a plus.”
Over the last three games the Spartans have given up 11 goals and will look to be more organized at the back. Ward said things are still a work in progress and attributed some of the results to the rigorous schedule his side has chosen to play early this season, particularly against tough 3A opponents.
Still, St. Francis has had success at points this year, with draws against Lake Park and Wheaton North to add to the resume.
Bartlett comes into the match looking to continue some of its recent momentum.
After starting the season 0-4, the Hawks have won two of their last three.
Coach Ben Beary said there have been a variety of factors to the recent turnaround, namely moving players around after losing a center back early in the first match of the year against Batavia.
“This caused a domino effect of moving players around to a non-strength position,” Beary said. “It took us two games to really find our rhythm and build confidence defensively, and the results of the West Aurora and Naperville Central games are in part a testament to those defensive growing pains. Since then, our defense has had three straight matches of consistent quality. Now we need our attacking side to catch up.”
Beary said he expects St. Francis to provide a challenge and pointed to their tough early season schedule.
Finishing opportunities will be key to Bartlett’s offensive outlook against the Spartans.
“We have struggled to find consistency with our attack this season,” Beary said. “We have no trouble creating scoring opportunities, but we have struggled to finish, to time our runs effectively and to intentionally seek out rebound opportunities throughout our matches. We take nothing for granted when it comes to our opponent. We have creative attacking players who have underperformed in the early going of this season.”
The Hawks will be on short rest after dropping a 1-0 decision against Glenbard North on Thursday, while the Spartans played last on Tuesday in a road 4-2 defeat against Lake Forest Academy.
Bartlett won the meeting between the two teams last season in convincing fashion, 4-0.