Confident Carmel beats
Lemont, 1 win from title
Corsairs hold on late for 2-1 win
By Dave Owen
NAPERVILLE- The longest run in Carmel girls soccer history keeps getting better.
Megan Runyan’s goal 6:18 into Friday’s Class 2A state quarterfinal match with Lemont put the Corsairs (20-3-1) up 1-0.
Runyan later assisted on Angela Salvi’s goal with 13:38 left that wrapped up an eventual 2-1 win and a Saturday match with Glenwood for the state championship at North Central College.
“When we started practicing we knew we worked well as a team, so we knew this was a possibility from the beginning,” said Runyan, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “We worked hard every day in practices, and when we started to get our wins we knew we could be here today.”
Runyan and fellow senior midfielder Amanda Lasso were valuable all-around players Friday. It was Lasso’s pass that freed Runyan for a high 32-yard shot that she tucked just inside the right post for a 1-0 lead.
“Mandy hit a great ball to me,” Runyan said. “There was no one in front of me to pressure the ball and I was close enough to the net, so I figured I might as well shoot it. It felt great to get a shot on and fortunately it went in on target.”
Runyan and Lasso were solid all game in another key role: limiting the chances for Lemont star striker Aleksandra Mihailovic (28 goals, eight assists this season).
Mihailovic would eventually bring Lemont (18-5-3) within 2-1 on a nicely struck 30-yarder inside the right post with 12:07 left. But she had only one other shot on goal the entire game, that from a distance.
“Me and our holding midfielder Megan were just trying to stay on her and make sure that we got across the line,” Lasso said. “We make sure one of us always holds and stays back, so that’s what we tried to do.”
Jumping ahead 1-0 early also provided some breathing room.
“It’s nice to go up early,” Carmel coach John Halloran said. “Megan did a great job hitting that shot, and I thought we did a nice job between Megan and Mandy controlling the middle of the field and knocking the ball around to create chances.”
Said Lasso: “We just tried to stay calm the whole time, especially in the beginning. We really did a good job of possessing the ball - that’s definitely one of our strengths.
“We really tried to do that well in the beginning, and that’s how we got our first goal,” Lasso added. “It was a great shot.”
Carmel had a 10-4 edge in overall shots on goal, including a two-minute span midway through the first half in which McKenzie Runyan had two shots on frame and Erin Johnston a 19-yard try as well.
Lemont just missed its great chance to tie. With 14:15 to go until the half, a foul set up a 30-yard free kick that Lemont’s Mairead Ruane lined high towards a spot just under the crossbar.
But Carmel goalkeeper Christina O’Block leaped to deflect the ball off the crossbar and over the net to keep the score 1-0 Corsairs.
“We came out strong and did a nice job controlling the game for the most part,” Halloran said. “And Tina came up huge in the first half - that one she put off the bar on the free kick kept us in it.”
Just 2:45 before halftime, a McKenzie Runyan 5-yard header try off a Johnston cross was stopped by Lemont goalkeeper Michelle Jerantowski.
“Michelle Jerantowski had a great game - she was spot on brilliant,” Lemont coach Rick Prangen said. “I thought Sarah Knoepfle did a great job on 14 (McKenzie Runyan) who’s one of their better players, and I thought Carli Bermele had a strong outing for us.
“It was a 50-50 game for much of it,” Prangen added. “They controlled the tempo many times, but I think there were 10-15 minutes of hard play where we started to dictate a little bit.”
Part of that stretch came with 32:20 left, when a 60-yard Lemont direct kick caused havoc. Only a strong defensive play by Carmel’s Mary Murphy to fend off a Lemont player racing into the box off a Bermele send prevented a great chance.
Megan Runyan’s 15-yard low liner with 26:50 left was nabbed by Jerantowski. Then after Halloran inserted seven substitutes at once with 20:45 to go, the seven starters returned five minutes later rested and ready to strike.
It didn’t take long. A Lemont foul of McKenzie Runyan set up a 21-yard direct kick by Megan Runyan, whose high send to the box produced an extra-effort 23rd goal of the season by Salvi and a 2-0 lead with 13:38 to go.
Salvi had the direct kick hit off her chest, then she volleyed the ball out of midair from 6 yards out and into the net.
“Angie taking that ball in the box,” Halloran said, “who decides to chest it down at the six? I saw her crouch underneath it and I’m expecting her to jump up and head it, and as soon I see her chest it I’m like ‘What are you thinking?’ And then of course she gets a toe to it.”
Nothing to it for Carmel’s top goal scorer.
“I had some chances that I missed previous to that, so I was really hungry for a goal,” Salvi said. “When I saw Meg’s ball coming to me I said ‘I know I have this.’ I saw the ball come down and hit it as hard as I could.”
That goal appeared to be the clincher, considering Carmel hadn’t allowed a goal in its previous 467 minutes of postseason soccer over five-plus games.
But Mihailovic had other ideas. With 12:07 to go, Savannah Brija intercepted a goal kick and passed to the senior striker, whose one-timer cut the Carmel lead to 2-1.
“We wanted to come out and give it our best effort in our last two days ever together,” Mihailovic said. “Those two (Carmel) goals were our fault and brought our confidence down, but we wanted to keep pushing. Moments like that define a team, whether you stick with it or just go through the motions.”
Lemont chose the latter, briefly turning Carmel’s expected celebration into a scare.
“I thought Alex’s goal is a nice finish,” Prangen said. “I think they (the Corsairs) took that play off - they scored that second goal and relaxed a little bit and gave her a little space, and credit to her that she finished it.”
Carmel regrouped and was back on the offensive. McKenzie Runyan’s 15-yard drive in on right wing was denied on a diving save by Jerantowski with 2:30 left, the best chance by either side down the stretch.
Senior Kayla Handel is a four-year varsity senior for Carmel, and fittingly her nice block of a Mihailovic pass upfield with 20 seconds left thwarted Lemont’s final bid to generate an attack.
“I would have liked to see us be more urgent in the last 12 minutes,” Prangen said, “but part of that might be our youngness.
“It was a back-and-forth game. We did well for as young as we are with six freshmen out there at one point, and against a team that was more physical than us. I thought that physicality showed in the center part of the midfield.”
Carmel’s strong senior nucleus was determined to produce big things on the team’s first trip to state since 2008, and the Corsairs delivered.
“It’s awesome,” Lasso said. “I can’t describe the feeling. We have really good chemistry and have worked really hard together. We put a lot of effort in the whole season, and we took it game by game.
“That was one thing we tried to do, to not look too far ahead and take it one game at a time. And now we’re here.”
For Megan Runyan, sharing the run to finals with her sister has been extra special.
“We’ve been playing together since we were little kids, so it’s great to be here playing in high school and getting this,” she said.
A focus on details made the semifinal effort a winning one.
“We knew we had to get our touches right and be more consistent with how we play,” Megan Runyan said. A mistake can lead to a goal for the other team.
“It’s hot and you don’t want to run much, so we wanted to keep possession and find the simple passes. I thought we did that really well, and we found the back of the net.”
And with it, a chance to face Glenwood (a 4-1 semifinal winner over Notre Dame of Peoria) for the 2A title.
“It’s kind of surreal right now,” Halloran said. “We’re just enjoying the moment.
“We have a quick turnaround, but we’re in a good place. They (Glenwood) obviously look strong, but we’ll hope to create some matchup problems for them.”
While the ultimate goal is at the doorstep for Carmel, Lemont reached lofty goals of its own and plays for third place Saturday morning.
“We’re really young, and we didn’t think we would make it this far,” Mihailovic said. “But 96 training sessions later, we’re here at state. Starting with February and conditioning, and now in June this is our last time together and we wanted to come out and play like we were meant to be here.”
Starting lineups
Lemont
GK: Michelle Jerantowski
D: Ashley Mathews
D: Lauren Devlin
D: Sarah Knoepfle
D: Savannah Brija
M: Carli Bermele
M: Joy Drassler
M: Mairead Ruane
M: Lindsay Mazur
F: Aleksandra Mihailovic
F: Madelyn Bermele
Carmel
GK: Christina O'Block
D: Emma Kobitter
D: Mary Murphy
D: Haley Miller
D: Mackenzie Sheehan
M: Amanda Lasso
M: Megan Runyan
M: Angela Salvi
M: Kayla Handel
F: McKenzie Runyan
F: Erin Johnston
MVP of the Match: Megan Runyan, Carmel
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.
Lemont, 1 win from title
Corsairs hold on late for 2-1 win
By Dave Owen
NAPERVILLE- The longest run in Carmel girls soccer history keeps getting better.
Megan Runyan’s goal 6:18 into Friday’s Class 2A state quarterfinal match with Lemont put the Corsairs (20-3-1) up 1-0.
Runyan later assisted on Angela Salvi’s goal with 13:38 left that wrapped up an eventual 2-1 win and a Saturday match with Glenwood for the state championship at North Central College.
“When we started practicing we knew we worked well as a team, so we knew this was a possibility from the beginning,” said Runyan, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “We worked hard every day in practices, and when we started to get our wins we knew we could be here today.”
Runyan and fellow senior midfielder Amanda Lasso were valuable all-around players Friday. It was Lasso’s pass that freed Runyan for a high 32-yard shot that she tucked just inside the right post for a 1-0 lead.
“Mandy hit a great ball to me,” Runyan said. “There was no one in front of me to pressure the ball and I was close enough to the net, so I figured I might as well shoot it. It felt great to get a shot on and fortunately it went in on target.”
Runyan and Lasso were solid all game in another key role: limiting the chances for Lemont star striker Aleksandra Mihailovic (28 goals, eight assists this season).
Mihailovic would eventually bring Lemont (18-5-3) within 2-1 on a nicely struck 30-yarder inside the right post with 12:07 left. But she had only one other shot on goal the entire game, that from a distance.
“Me and our holding midfielder Megan were just trying to stay on her and make sure that we got across the line,” Lasso said. “We make sure one of us always holds and stays back, so that’s what we tried to do.”
Jumping ahead 1-0 early also provided some breathing room.
“It’s nice to go up early,” Carmel coach John Halloran said. “Megan did a great job hitting that shot, and I thought we did a nice job between Megan and Mandy controlling the middle of the field and knocking the ball around to create chances.”
Said Lasso: “We just tried to stay calm the whole time, especially in the beginning. We really did a good job of possessing the ball - that’s definitely one of our strengths.
“We really tried to do that well in the beginning, and that’s how we got our first goal,” Lasso added. “It was a great shot.”
Carmel had a 10-4 edge in overall shots on goal, including a two-minute span midway through the first half in which McKenzie Runyan had two shots on frame and Erin Johnston a 19-yard try as well.
Lemont just missed its great chance to tie. With 14:15 to go until the half, a foul set up a 30-yard free kick that Lemont’s Mairead Ruane lined high towards a spot just under the crossbar.
But Carmel goalkeeper Christina O’Block leaped to deflect the ball off the crossbar and over the net to keep the score 1-0 Corsairs.
“We came out strong and did a nice job controlling the game for the most part,” Halloran said. “And Tina came up huge in the first half - that one she put off the bar on the free kick kept us in it.”
Just 2:45 before halftime, a McKenzie Runyan 5-yard header try off a Johnston cross was stopped by Lemont goalkeeper Michelle Jerantowski.
“Michelle Jerantowski had a great game - she was spot on brilliant,” Lemont coach Rick Prangen said. “I thought Sarah Knoepfle did a great job on 14 (McKenzie Runyan) who’s one of their better players, and I thought Carli Bermele had a strong outing for us.
“It was a 50-50 game for much of it,” Prangen added. “They controlled the tempo many times, but I think there were 10-15 minutes of hard play where we started to dictate a little bit.”
Part of that stretch came with 32:20 left, when a 60-yard Lemont direct kick caused havoc. Only a strong defensive play by Carmel’s Mary Murphy to fend off a Lemont player racing into the box off a Bermele send prevented a great chance.
Megan Runyan’s 15-yard low liner with 26:50 left was nabbed by Jerantowski. Then after Halloran inserted seven substitutes at once with 20:45 to go, the seven starters returned five minutes later rested and ready to strike.
It didn’t take long. A Lemont foul of McKenzie Runyan set up a 21-yard direct kick by Megan Runyan, whose high send to the box produced an extra-effort 23rd goal of the season by Salvi and a 2-0 lead with 13:38 to go.
Salvi had the direct kick hit off her chest, then she volleyed the ball out of midair from 6 yards out and into the net.
“Angie taking that ball in the box,” Halloran said, “who decides to chest it down at the six? I saw her crouch underneath it and I’m expecting her to jump up and head it, and as soon I see her chest it I’m like ‘What are you thinking?’ And then of course she gets a toe to it.”
Nothing to it for Carmel’s top goal scorer.
“I had some chances that I missed previous to that, so I was really hungry for a goal,” Salvi said. “When I saw Meg’s ball coming to me I said ‘I know I have this.’ I saw the ball come down and hit it as hard as I could.”
That goal appeared to be the clincher, considering Carmel hadn’t allowed a goal in its previous 467 minutes of postseason soccer over five-plus games.
But Mihailovic had other ideas. With 12:07 to go, Savannah Brija intercepted a goal kick and passed to the senior striker, whose one-timer cut the Carmel lead to 2-1.
“We wanted to come out and give it our best effort in our last two days ever together,” Mihailovic said. “Those two (Carmel) goals were our fault and brought our confidence down, but we wanted to keep pushing. Moments like that define a team, whether you stick with it or just go through the motions.”
Lemont chose the latter, briefly turning Carmel’s expected celebration into a scare.
“I thought Alex’s goal is a nice finish,” Prangen said. “I think they (the Corsairs) took that play off - they scored that second goal and relaxed a little bit and gave her a little space, and credit to her that she finished it.”
Carmel regrouped and was back on the offensive. McKenzie Runyan’s 15-yard drive in on right wing was denied on a diving save by Jerantowski with 2:30 left, the best chance by either side down the stretch.
Senior Kayla Handel is a four-year varsity senior for Carmel, and fittingly her nice block of a Mihailovic pass upfield with 20 seconds left thwarted Lemont’s final bid to generate an attack.
“I would have liked to see us be more urgent in the last 12 minutes,” Prangen said, “but part of that might be our youngness.
“It was a back-and-forth game. We did well for as young as we are with six freshmen out there at one point, and against a team that was more physical than us. I thought that physicality showed in the center part of the midfield.”
Carmel’s strong senior nucleus was determined to produce big things on the team’s first trip to state since 2008, and the Corsairs delivered.
“It’s awesome,” Lasso said. “I can’t describe the feeling. We have really good chemistry and have worked really hard together. We put a lot of effort in the whole season, and we took it game by game.
“That was one thing we tried to do, to not look too far ahead and take it one game at a time. And now we’re here.”
For Megan Runyan, sharing the run to finals with her sister has been extra special.
“We’ve been playing together since we were little kids, so it’s great to be here playing in high school and getting this,” she said.
A focus on details made the semifinal effort a winning one.
“We knew we had to get our touches right and be more consistent with how we play,” Megan Runyan said. A mistake can lead to a goal for the other team.
“It’s hot and you don’t want to run much, so we wanted to keep possession and find the simple passes. I thought we did that really well, and we found the back of the net.”
And with it, a chance to face Glenwood (a 4-1 semifinal winner over Notre Dame of Peoria) for the 2A title.
“It’s kind of surreal right now,” Halloran said. “We’re just enjoying the moment.
“We have a quick turnaround, but we’re in a good place. They (Glenwood) obviously look strong, but we’ll hope to create some matchup problems for them.”
While the ultimate goal is at the doorstep for Carmel, Lemont reached lofty goals of its own and plays for third place Saturday morning.
“We’re really young, and we didn’t think we would make it this far,” Mihailovic said. “But 96 training sessions later, we’re here at state. Starting with February and conditioning, and now in June this is our last time together and we wanted to come out and play like we were meant to be here.”
Starting lineups
Lemont
GK: Michelle Jerantowski
D: Ashley Mathews
D: Lauren Devlin
D: Sarah Knoepfle
D: Savannah Brija
M: Carli Bermele
M: Joy Drassler
M: Mairead Ruane
M: Lindsay Mazur
F: Aleksandra Mihailovic
F: Madelyn Bermele
Carmel
GK: Christina O'Block
D: Emma Kobitter
D: Mary Murphy
D: Haley Miller
D: Mackenzie Sheehan
M: Amanda Lasso
M: Megan Runyan
M: Angela Salvi
M: Kayla Handel
F: McKenzie Runyan
F: Erin Johnston
MVP of the Match: Megan Runyan, Carmel
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.