Niro, Szczesny share success
in Barrington's 3rd place state finish
Seniors combine for both goals in 2-1 win over Collinsville
By Matt Le Cren
NAPERVILLE – Barrington seniors Jenna Szczesny and Ann Marie Niro took different paths to earn Division I college scholarships but both ended their high school careers in the same place.
Szczesny starred for the Fillies for all four years, while Niro opted to play club soccer for her first three seasons before trying prep soccer this spring.
Their respective approaches didn’t affect their collegiate futures -- Szczesny is going to Loyola while Niro is bound for Notre Dame.
And they both went out winners Saturday and did so in a neat way as Szczesny assisted on both goals by Niro. That accounted for all of the Fillies' scoring in Barrington’s 2-1 win over Collinsville in the Class 3A third place match at North Central College.
“It’s always nice to win your last game of the season,” Niro said. “Only two teams get to do that, so even though we were disappointed about the loss yesterday we knew we had to bounce back really quickly because we did not want to get fourth.
“We did not want to get to state and then be the worst that you could possibly be, so we’re really happy with third. We thought we gave our best effort yesterday so we weren’t as disappointed by that and we came out and played our hardest today.”
That’s not always an easy task. Some teams tank the consolation game or substitute liberally, but the Fillies (22-2-4) were determined to win from the start.
“Less than 24 hours [later] and two bus rides, it was pretty hard but we had really good leadership from seniors that had been on the team since freshman year,” Niro said. “They did this at state two years ago so they kind of knew the ropes about how to do everything.”
After a scoreless first half, the Fillies nearly got on the board two minutes into the second half when Szczesny ran onto a long ball, headed it down to her feet and beat a defender into the Collinsville box. Her shot beat the Kahoks second half goalie Julie Scheiter but hit the left post.
But Szczesny continued to create havoc. She rolled a pass from the left side of the box in front to Niro, who finished a seven-yard shot with 30:33 remaining.
Collinsville (21-5-1) equalized at the 16:54 mark on Mikayla McCarthy’s second goal in as many games. Alyannah O’Leary started the play by sending a lead pass into the left side of the box to Lauren Zamarione, who pushed a short pass ahead to McCarthy for a short finish and her 16th goal of the season.
But the Szczesny-to-Niro connection worked again for the Fillies seven minutes later. Szczesny again centered a pass from the left wing to Niro, who had to work a little harder for the decisive goal as she put a great move on a defender to free herself for an 11-yard shot.
Just like that, Niro was halfway to matching her entire season output to that point.
“I was out most of the season because of medical issues, so I didn’t play in many games,” Niro said. “But I felt like that even though I didn’t have my best game today I had some really good balls from Jenna and was able to capitalize on them.”
No one was happier to see her do so than Barrington coach Ryan Stengren.
“It was a great game for her,” Stengren said. “She got the ball and you can tell the ball is like Velcro to her foot. She made some nice finishes today.”
Niro finished her lone high school season with six goals and seven assists.
“I think she only played in seven-to-nine games this year before the playoffs,” Stengren said. “I think [playing high school soccer] has been a very, very good experience for her.
“The only disappointment I had is that she got sick, and we didn’t get the full her for the whole year, but she made up for it today.”
Stengren knew Niro was committed to her club team but never gave up hope that she would one day join the Fillies.
“Two or three years ago I saw Ann Marie at the boys camp,” Stengren recalled. “She did really well, and I had a conversation with her. She was playing club ball but in the back of my mind I had a feeling she was going to play, I don’t know why.
“She told me no as a freshman or sophomore because she wanted to experience this club situation she was with. When she decided to come it just made my day because she is a soccer nut. She just loves the game, and I love being around people like that."
Rather than resent Niro for not playing for the Fillies her first three years, Stengren embraced her decision to play this year, welcoming a high-caliber player who set a good example for an otherwise young team.
“What people don’t know about her is she’s got an incredible work ethic,” Stengren said. “We have a bunch of sophomores on our team, and it’s awesome for them to see how passionate about the sport is good.”
Szczesny also is passionate about soccer, though she leads more by example than voice. The imposing striker had 37 goals and 11 assists this season and finished her illustrious career with 102 goals.
But she was never one to focus on numbers and imparts a simple message to her teammates, especially the younger ones who will try to fill her shoes next spring.
“Keep the Fillies brand,” Szczesny said. “We try to keep our heads up. If we lose we come back and play harder the next game. I hope that they keep doing that.
“This was a great example of it. We lost yesterday. It was sad. We had our moment of dwelling on it, but we bounced right back. That’s what I hope they do next year.”
So Szczesny finished her prep career as a winner, though not the championship game she aspired to. She had mixed feelings after leaving the field for the last time in a Barrington uniform.
“I’m excited for college,” Szczesny said. “Honestly I can’t wait, but it’s going to be hard leaving this program. I’m going to miss it a lot.”
Not as much as Stengren will miss her.
“I’ve known Jenna since she was a baby,” Stengren said. “That’s what is the hard part here.
“I have a relationship with her older sister. I have a relationship with her family, and it goes beyond just the soccer part.
“I’m glad she got to go out with a win but it’s a very sad day for me. But, the plus is we’re always going to be friends, and I’m always going to be friends with her family. We are going to have a lot of goals to make up, though.”
That task will be handed mainly to a group of eight sophomores who got a big taste of success this year, including starters Kayla Keck, Jackie Batliner, Haley Tausend, Sophia Spinell and Kayla Schutter.
“There was a bunch of good things from them this year,” Stengren said. “I think they got a taste of what it’s like to be here and they still have a lot of work to do. But I know this group is very, very hungry to get past this point. That’s the goal for them.”
Collinsville also failed in its quest to win its first state championship, but in finishing fourth the Kahoks matched their 1988 team for the best finish in school history.
“Barrington is a tough team,” Collinsville coach Clay Smith said. "They are ranked high nationally (sixth) in the Top Drawer standings.
“They have some dangerous players. We knew that from watching the game last night.
“We came up with a solid game plan. They stuck to it as best they could and we battled them. I’m proud of them. There’s no reason for them to hang their head down.”
The Kahoks played without leading scorer and All-Stater Sophia Sharos, who broke her right leg in Friday’s 3-1 semifinal loss to Neuqua Valley. Sharos, a Tennessee-Martin recruit, underwent four hours of surgery Saturday to repair a broken tibia and fibula, according to several sources.
But her teammates made sure she had a presence at the third place match -- they held up her jersey during introductions and the trophy presentation. Neuqua Valley did its part to raise Sharos’ spirits. The Wildcats signed a get-well card that they delivered to her in the hospital.
Starting lineups
Barrington
GK: Hannah Luedtke
D: Jackie Batliner
D: Lauren Pircher
D: Kayla Keck
D: Haley Tausend
M: Megan Fox
M: Kelsey Muniz
M: Sophia Spinell
M: Ann Marie Niro
F: Jenna Szczesny
F: Kayla Schutter
Collinsville
GK: Morgan Lerch
D: Kitty Besserman
D: Caydren Jones
D: Dayle McEwen
D: Chayse Richardson
M: Tori Ford
M: Alyannah O’Leary
M: Andrea Frerker
M: Hannah Liljegren
F: Emily Holten
F: Mikayla McCarthy
MVP of the Match: Ann Marie Niro, M, Barrington.
Officials: Middle Steve Osborne, AR1 Doug Huey, AR2 Demetre Sasrikoudis, 4th Mark Kenar
Editor's note: Batavia, Fremd, Hinsdale Central, Neuqua Valley, Plainfield North, St. Charles East, Saint Viator and Wheaton Warrenville South high schools helped make Chicagoland Soccer's state finals coverage possible.
in Barrington's 3rd place state finish
Seniors combine for both goals in 2-1 win over Collinsville
By Matt Le Cren
NAPERVILLE – Barrington seniors Jenna Szczesny and Ann Marie Niro took different paths to earn Division I college scholarships but both ended their high school careers in the same place.
Szczesny starred for the Fillies for all four years, while Niro opted to play club soccer for her first three seasons before trying prep soccer this spring.
Their respective approaches didn’t affect their collegiate futures -- Szczesny is going to Loyola while Niro is bound for Notre Dame.
And they both went out winners Saturday and did so in a neat way as Szczesny assisted on both goals by Niro. That accounted for all of the Fillies' scoring in Barrington’s 2-1 win over Collinsville in the Class 3A third place match at North Central College.
“It’s always nice to win your last game of the season,” Niro said. “Only two teams get to do that, so even though we were disappointed about the loss yesterday we knew we had to bounce back really quickly because we did not want to get fourth.
“We did not want to get to state and then be the worst that you could possibly be, so we’re really happy with third. We thought we gave our best effort yesterday so we weren’t as disappointed by that and we came out and played our hardest today.”
That’s not always an easy task. Some teams tank the consolation game or substitute liberally, but the Fillies (22-2-4) were determined to win from the start.
“Less than 24 hours [later] and two bus rides, it was pretty hard but we had really good leadership from seniors that had been on the team since freshman year,” Niro said. “They did this at state two years ago so they kind of knew the ropes about how to do everything.”
After a scoreless first half, the Fillies nearly got on the board two minutes into the second half when Szczesny ran onto a long ball, headed it down to her feet and beat a defender into the Collinsville box. Her shot beat the Kahoks second half goalie Julie Scheiter but hit the left post.
But Szczesny continued to create havoc. She rolled a pass from the left side of the box in front to Niro, who finished a seven-yard shot with 30:33 remaining.
Collinsville (21-5-1) equalized at the 16:54 mark on Mikayla McCarthy’s second goal in as many games. Alyannah O’Leary started the play by sending a lead pass into the left side of the box to Lauren Zamarione, who pushed a short pass ahead to McCarthy for a short finish and her 16th goal of the season.
But the Szczesny-to-Niro connection worked again for the Fillies seven minutes later. Szczesny again centered a pass from the left wing to Niro, who had to work a little harder for the decisive goal as she put a great move on a defender to free herself for an 11-yard shot.
Just like that, Niro was halfway to matching her entire season output to that point.
“I was out most of the season because of medical issues, so I didn’t play in many games,” Niro said. “But I felt like that even though I didn’t have my best game today I had some really good balls from Jenna and was able to capitalize on them.”
No one was happier to see her do so than Barrington coach Ryan Stengren.
“It was a great game for her,” Stengren said. “She got the ball and you can tell the ball is like Velcro to her foot. She made some nice finishes today.”
Niro finished her lone high school season with six goals and seven assists.
“I think she only played in seven-to-nine games this year before the playoffs,” Stengren said. “I think [playing high school soccer] has been a very, very good experience for her.
“The only disappointment I had is that she got sick, and we didn’t get the full her for the whole year, but she made up for it today.”
Stengren knew Niro was committed to her club team but never gave up hope that she would one day join the Fillies.
“Two or three years ago I saw Ann Marie at the boys camp,” Stengren recalled. “She did really well, and I had a conversation with her. She was playing club ball but in the back of my mind I had a feeling she was going to play, I don’t know why.
“She told me no as a freshman or sophomore because she wanted to experience this club situation she was with. When she decided to come it just made my day because she is a soccer nut. She just loves the game, and I love being around people like that."
Rather than resent Niro for not playing for the Fillies her first three years, Stengren embraced her decision to play this year, welcoming a high-caliber player who set a good example for an otherwise young team.
“What people don’t know about her is she’s got an incredible work ethic,” Stengren said. “We have a bunch of sophomores on our team, and it’s awesome for them to see how passionate about the sport is good.”
Szczesny also is passionate about soccer, though she leads more by example than voice. The imposing striker had 37 goals and 11 assists this season and finished her illustrious career with 102 goals.
But she was never one to focus on numbers and imparts a simple message to her teammates, especially the younger ones who will try to fill her shoes next spring.
“Keep the Fillies brand,” Szczesny said. “We try to keep our heads up. If we lose we come back and play harder the next game. I hope that they keep doing that.
“This was a great example of it. We lost yesterday. It was sad. We had our moment of dwelling on it, but we bounced right back. That’s what I hope they do next year.”
So Szczesny finished her prep career as a winner, though not the championship game she aspired to. She had mixed feelings after leaving the field for the last time in a Barrington uniform.
“I’m excited for college,” Szczesny said. “Honestly I can’t wait, but it’s going to be hard leaving this program. I’m going to miss it a lot.”
Not as much as Stengren will miss her.
“I’ve known Jenna since she was a baby,” Stengren said. “That’s what is the hard part here.
“I have a relationship with her older sister. I have a relationship with her family, and it goes beyond just the soccer part.
“I’m glad she got to go out with a win but it’s a very sad day for me. But, the plus is we’re always going to be friends, and I’m always going to be friends with her family. We are going to have a lot of goals to make up, though.”
That task will be handed mainly to a group of eight sophomores who got a big taste of success this year, including starters Kayla Keck, Jackie Batliner, Haley Tausend, Sophia Spinell and Kayla Schutter.
“There was a bunch of good things from them this year,” Stengren said. “I think they got a taste of what it’s like to be here and they still have a lot of work to do. But I know this group is very, very hungry to get past this point. That’s the goal for them.”
Collinsville also failed in its quest to win its first state championship, but in finishing fourth the Kahoks matched their 1988 team for the best finish in school history.
“Barrington is a tough team,” Collinsville coach Clay Smith said. "They are ranked high nationally (sixth) in the Top Drawer standings.
“They have some dangerous players. We knew that from watching the game last night.
“We came up with a solid game plan. They stuck to it as best they could and we battled them. I’m proud of them. There’s no reason for them to hang their head down.”
The Kahoks played without leading scorer and All-Stater Sophia Sharos, who broke her right leg in Friday’s 3-1 semifinal loss to Neuqua Valley. Sharos, a Tennessee-Martin recruit, underwent four hours of surgery Saturday to repair a broken tibia and fibula, according to several sources.
But her teammates made sure she had a presence at the third place match -- they held up her jersey during introductions and the trophy presentation. Neuqua Valley did its part to raise Sharos’ spirits. The Wildcats signed a get-well card that they delivered to her in the hospital.
Starting lineups
Barrington
GK: Hannah Luedtke
D: Jackie Batliner
D: Lauren Pircher
D: Kayla Keck
D: Haley Tausend
M: Megan Fox
M: Kelsey Muniz
M: Sophia Spinell
M: Ann Marie Niro
F: Jenna Szczesny
F: Kayla Schutter
Collinsville
GK: Morgan Lerch
D: Kitty Besserman
D: Caydren Jones
D: Dayle McEwen
D: Chayse Richardson
M: Tori Ford
M: Alyannah O’Leary
M: Andrea Frerker
M: Hannah Liljegren
F: Emily Holten
F: Mikayla McCarthy
MVP of the Match: Ann Marie Niro, M, Barrington.
Officials: Middle Steve Osborne, AR1 Doug Huey, AR2 Demetre Sasrikoudis, 4th Mark Kenar
Editor's note: Batavia, Fremd, Hinsdale Central, Neuqua Valley, Plainfield North, St. Charles East, Saint Viator and Wheaton Warrenville South high schools helped make Chicagoland Soccer's state finals coverage possible.