Late comeback puts
Saint Viator in sectional final
Stanley nets game-winner against Grayslake North
By Ken Keenan
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS -- A pair of goals in the last 15 minutes of the
second half turned a 1-0 deficit for host Saint Viator into a 2-1
victory over second-seeded Grayslake North in Class 2A sectional semifinal play at
Morris Field at Forest View Educational Center on Wednesday night.
The third-seeded Lions (16-3-1) will face no. 1 Carmel in the sectional final at 4 p.m. Friday. The Corsairs (17-3-1) advanced with a 2-0 win
over Lake Forest on Wednesday.
Following a defensive struggle in the first half, Grayslake North grabbed
a 1-0 lead on a beautiful goal by senior midfielder Samantha Villwock
with 24:01 remaining in regulation. Sophomore defender Morgan Lyon
earned the assist with a 20-yard free kick from the left side
that Villwock tipped -- while falling with her back to the net -- past
Lions freshman goalkeeper Anna Johnston.
Ten minutes later, Saint Viator evened the score on a 30-yard shot by
junior midfielder Lauren Kohn. Controlling a loose ball, Kohn sent her try past helpless Grayslake North senior keeper Megan Davis,
who was caught out of position. Senior defender Kayne Stanley then
tallied the game-winner, with 9:14 to go, pounding in the ball during
a traffic jam in front following a corner kick by senior defender Emma
Henry.
"I know (the corner kick) is gonna be somewhere in the area, and you
have to be ready for it," said Stanley, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of
the Match.
Henry was happy to help.
"I'm always looking for (teammates') heads (on corners) to put it
right to them so they can get it in the back of the net," she said.
Saint Viator's defense did the rest, limiting the Knights to few chances
down the stretch, including a deflection off the crossbar less than a
minute after Stanley's goal.
"After we got the lead, we just wanted to possess, hold it, and keep
possession as much as possible," Stanley said.
"Our coach (Mike Taylor) always says that defense wins championships,
so we just had to finish," added Henry.
Defense was the name of the game in the first half, which at times
resembled a giant ping pong game at midfield. A long shot by Grayslake
North junior forward Kelly O'Brien easily was nabbed by Johnston in
the eighth minute, and a wide-angle try by Saint Viator senior
midfielder Molly Murphy landed on the top of the net with 28:20
remaining until the break. Less than three minutes later, a wide-angle
strike by Villwock was no trouble for Johnston.
The Lions thought they notched the game's first goal in the 24th
minute, when Kohn tapped the ball in after Murphy rattled a blast off
the crossbar. But the play was ruled offside. Soon after action
resumed, Lions junior forward Ashley Anne Steadman rifled a 15-yarder
wide.
Otherwise, throw-ins and goal-kicks dominated the rest of the opening
40 minutes.
"We had our chances in the first half, but you have to put those
chances away," coach Taylor said. "The thing is, we stopped moving off the
ball, and got a little lazy and nonchalant. But I knew, sooner or
later, we'd put one away. In the second half, when we scored our first
goal, we were back in the game."
Stanley agreed with her coach's assessment regarding the Lions' play
in the first half. At the same time, she credited the Knights for
keeping things tight.
"We were kind of playing a little slow -- not going as hard as we
should have," she said. "But when we settled down and played our game,
we played a lot better. Coming in, we knew we'd have a lot of
competition ... knew it would be tough."
Grayslake North senior defender Kayla Hartigan was a standout,
battling toe-to-toe with the Lions' attackers to keep the ball on the
perimeter as often as possible.
"It was one of the hardest games we've played," Hartigan said. "It was
hard to stay mentally strong, but we kept fighting. Even with the
lead, you still have to think it's 0-0 -- you have to keep fighting,
no matter what. And when we're down, we have this mentality, 'What's
important right now?' So you have to keep at it and never give up.
"I'm proud of our team as a whole. We're a family, so it's
tear-jerking to lose, for sure, because we don't want to break that
up."
The Knights finished the 2015 campaign with a stellar 19-4-2 mark.
"We were able to get that first goal, but in the end we got caught on
the two decent looks we gave (the Lions)," said Grayslake North coach
Adam DeCaluwe. "Losing is hard to swallow, but it's nice to know we
gave everything we had. We had good leadership this year -- a great
team to coach -- and we were absolutely in the hunt.
"But at the end of the year, each (postseason) game there's only one
winner, and unfortunately, we weren't that team tonight."
Saint Viator will seek something besides the sectional plaque when it plays Carmel in the final -- revenge. The East Suburban Catholic Conference champion Corsairs walloped the Lions 6-1 in league play this season.
Starting lineups
Grayslake North
G: Megan Davis
D: Morgan Lyon
D: Kayla Hartigan
D: Rosie O'Malley
D: Ashleigh Hansen
M: Maggie Fish
M: Sydney Paez
M: Jocelyn Rodriguez
M: Samantha Villwock
F: Lauren Davis
F: Kelley O'Brien
Saint Viator
G: Anna Johnston
D: Emma Henry
D: Maureen McGrath
D: Felicia Moncada
D: Kayne Stanley
M: Lauren Kohn
M: Molly Murphy
M: Maggie Leazer
M: Brinley McVeigh
F: Michelle Trovato
F: Delia Douglas
MVP of the Match: Kayne Stanley, M, Saint Viator
Officials: Rick Geati, John Anderson, Christopher Weiland
Saint Viator in sectional final
Stanley nets game-winner against Grayslake North
By Ken Keenan
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS -- A pair of goals in the last 15 minutes of the
second half turned a 1-0 deficit for host Saint Viator into a 2-1
victory over second-seeded Grayslake North in Class 2A sectional semifinal play at
Morris Field at Forest View Educational Center on Wednesday night.
The third-seeded Lions (16-3-1) will face no. 1 Carmel in the sectional final at 4 p.m. Friday. The Corsairs (17-3-1) advanced with a 2-0 win
over Lake Forest on Wednesday.
Following a defensive struggle in the first half, Grayslake North grabbed
a 1-0 lead on a beautiful goal by senior midfielder Samantha Villwock
with 24:01 remaining in regulation. Sophomore defender Morgan Lyon
earned the assist with a 20-yard free kick from the left side
that Villwock tipped -- while falling with her back to the net -- past
Lions freshman goalkeeper Anna Johnston.
Ten minutes later, Saint Viator evened the score on a 30-yard shot by
junior midfielder Lauren Kohn. Controlling a loose ball, Kohn sent her try past helpless Grayslake North senior keeper Megan Davis,
who was caught out of position. Senior defender Kayne Stanley then
tallied the game-winner, with 9:14 to go, pounding in the ball during
a traffic jam in front following a corner kick by senior defender Emma
Henry.
"I know (the corner kick) is gonna be somewhere in the area, and you
have to be ready for it," said Stanley, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of
the Match.
Henry was happy to help.
"I'm always looking for (teammates') heads (on corners) to put it
right to them so they can get it in the back of the net," she said.
Saint Viator's defense did the rest, limiting the Knights to few chances
down the stretch, including a deflection off the crossbar less than a
minute after Stanley's goal.
"After we got the lead, we just wanted to possess, hold it, and keep
possession as much as possible," Stanley said.
"Our coach (Mike Taylor) always says that defense wins championships,
so we just had to finish," added Henry.
Defense was the name of the game in the first half, which at times
resembled a giant ping pong game at midfield. A long shot by Grayslake
North junior forward Kelly O'Brien easily was nabbed by Johnston in
the eighth minute, and a wide-angle try by Saint Viator senior
midfielder Molly Murphy landed on the top of the net with 28:20
remaining until the break. Less than three minutes later, a wide-angle
strike by Villwock was no trouble for Johnston.
The Lions thought they notched the game's first goal in the 24th
minute, when Kohn tapped the ball in after Murphy rattled a blast off
the crossbar. But the play was ruled offside. Soon after action
resumed, Lions junior forward Ashley Anne Steadman rifled a 15-yarder
wide.
Otherwise, throw-ins and goal-kicks dominated the rest of the opening
40 minutes.
"We had our chances in the first half, but you have to put those
chances away," coach Taylor said. "The thing is, we stopped moving off the
ball, and got a little lazy and nonchalant. But I knew, sooner or
later, we'd put one away. In the second half, when we scored our first
goal, we were back in the game."
Stanley agreed with her coach's assessment regarding the Lions' play
in the first half. At the same time, she credited the Knights for
keeping things tight.
"We were kind of playing a little slow -- not going as hard as we
should have," she said. "But when we settled down and played our game,
we played a lot better. Coming in, we knew we'd have a lot of
competition ... knew it would be tough."
Grayslake North senior defender Kayla Hartigan was a standout,
battling toe-to-toe with the Lions' attackers to keep the ball on the
perimeter as often as possible.
"It was one of the hardest games we've played," Hartigan said. "It was
hard to stay mentally strong, but we kept fighting. Even with the
lead, you still have to think it's 0-0 -- you have to keep fighting,
no matter what. And when we're down, we have this mentality, 'What's
important right now?' So you have to keep at it and never give up.
"I'm proud of our team as a whole. We're a family, so it's
tear-jerking to lose, for sure, because we don't want to break that
up."
The Knights finished the 2015 campaign with a stellar 19-4-2 mark.
"We were able to get that first goal, but in the end we got caught on
the two decent looks we gave (the Lions)," said Grayslake North coach
Adam DeCaluwe. "Losing is hard to swallow, but it's nice to know we
gave everything we had. We had good leadership this year -- a great
team to coach -- and we were absolutely in the hunt.
"But at the end of the year, each (postseason) game there's only one
winner, and unfortunately, we weren't that team tonight."
Saint Viator will seek something besides the sectional plaque when it plays Carmel in the final -- revenge. The East Suburban Catholic Conference champion Corsairs walloped the Lions 6-1 in league play this season.
Starting lineups
Grayslake North
G: Megan Davis
D: Morgan Lyon
D: Kayla Hartigan
D: Rosie O'Malley
D: Ashleigh Hansen
M: Maggie Fish
M: Sydney Paez
M: Jocelyn Rodriguez
M: Samantha Villwock
F: Lauren Davis
F: Kelley O'Brien
Saint Viator
G: Anna Johnston
D: Emma Henry
D: Maureen McGrath
D: Felicia Moncada
D: Kayne Stanley
M: Lauren Kohn
M: Molly Murphy
M: Maggie Leazer
M: Brinley McVeigh
F: Michelle Trovato
F: Delia Douglas
MVP of the Match: Kayne Stanley, M, Saint Viator
Officials: Rick Geati, John Anderson, Christopher Weiland