Warren gains revenge against Lake Forest
Blue Devils take North Suburban match after tourney loss
By Patrick Z. McGavin
GURNEE -- The start of games are so adrenalized and hyped, a player’s every heartbeat and nerve ending is primed for action. The feeling is spontaneous, immediate and sometimes hard to fully grasp. Skylar Reilly had the sensation a week ago.
In the sixth minute of a PepsiCo Showdown quarterfinal against Lake Forest, Reilly -- Warren’s terrific senior keeper -- allowed impulse and feeling to take over as a pair of Lake Forest players mounted a 2-on-1 attack. She sprinted out of the box and sought to take away the advantage.
“They were both fast and coming at me,” she said. “They touched it away from me at the last second, and there was contact.”
After consulting with with his nearest colleague, the center referee issued a red card. The Blue Devils have a very capable backup with Lydia Sundberg. The greater difficulty was playing with just nine position players for more than 73 minutes.
Lake Forest senior forward Delaney Williams drilled a hard ball in the 37th minute for the 1-0 victory. The Scouts parlayed that stunning victory into a championship appearance in the top bracket against no. 4 St. Charles North on Sunday at DePaul.
At the time, a week ago, the red card seemed unduly harsh and subjective. To her credit, Reilly owned up to her role.
“We looked at the film and reviewed the play, and it was the right call,” Reilly said. “It was a red card.”
In the rematch -- this time a conference game between the two best teams of the North Suburban -- Reilly was again in the center of an early unorthodox action that gave Lake Forest the early advantage.
Reilly redeemed herself with five superb saves and the no. 10 Blue Devils found their groove and their devastating offensive attack with two late second half goals for a thrilling 2-1 comeback victory over the ninth-ranked Scouts here Thursday night.
Warren senior forward Alliyah Parker scored the game-winner in the 70th minute and earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match distinction for her efforts. The goal was her team-best 11th of the year.
The game had many intriguing looks and contours.
In the third minute, the Blue Devils attempted to play the ball back to Reilly for a goalie kick. Lake Forest freshman forward Julia Loeger got a deflection and the ball took a berserk bounce for a stunning goal and dramatic shift in the early momentum.
“It was a really fast goal,” Loeger said. “It traveled from the back and somebody kicked it, and I touched it and it went right through the keeper’s legs, under her foot.”
The Scouts knew Warren was primed to come out hard and edgy after last week’s result, and they were ready.
“The goal really pumped us up and motivated us, and we were trying right away to get another one,” Loeger said. “Something in the second half kind of changed, but I thought we played very well overall.”
Lake Forest (5-2-0, 1-1-0) saw its five-game winning streak snapped. The Scouts had allowed just one goal in that span -- it came when the Scouts stunned then no. 12 Metea Valley 2-1 in a PepsiCo Showdown semifinal on April 15. Metea Valley coach Chris Whaley paid the Scouts the ultimate compliment.
“When you play Lake Forest, you have to match how hard they play, because they play very hard,” he said.
The dominant narrative for the Scouts has been their extraordinary youth, a jolt of talent and young exuberance as coach Ty Stuckslager has started as many as seven freshmen. Loeger, who also scored against Metea Valley, represents the wave of bright and aggressive talent.
The cornerstones of Lake Forest’s attack have been three elite seniors: Delaney Williams, the team’s top offensive threat; Gwen Walker, a DePaul recruit and the team's best all-around player as a physical and devastating sweeper; and Morgan Asmussen, a Miami (Florida) recruit in her first year playing high school after three years of performing at the high club level.
“They go for every ball, and they will not stop until they get it,” Warren coach Ryan McCabe said. “Those young players are already very good. Ty has done a great job of coaching them. They have some excellent senior leaders. Their passion for the game is definitely showing, and already rubbing off on the younger players.
“They are a great team.”
In the game a week ago, Walker and rangy Hannah Bell, a skilled midfielder, neutralized a Warren attack that came into the game averaging nearly five goals.
“We did not let their midfielders and forwards turn,” Walker said. “If they can’t turn, they cannot create space and get shots off.”
The rematch changed irrevocably in the 23rd minute. Lake Forest appeared on the verge of a two-goal advantage as sophomore forward Kate Reinhardt broke free off a beautiful through-ball on the left edge for a direct approach to the goal and had only Reilly to contend with.
Reilly again aggressively sought to take away Reinhardt’s angle and made a spectacular kick save that thwarted Lake Forest’s best scoring chance.
“That was awful,” Reilly said of her early mistake. “I was frozen for a minute. Then I got the kick save in, and I started to build my confidence back. I definitely needed to get my confidence back.”
After serving a one-game suspension against Evanston for the red card, Reilly returned with a vengeance, administering three saves in the Blue Devils’ 2-0 shutout of a very solid Libertyville team.
“Sky’s been playing very well,” McCabe said. “She made some great saves. She was impressive back there, making the right moves and the right calls, and she knows the defense has her back.”
Warren (10-1-0, 2-1-0) also played with greater concision, clarity and purpose in the second half. “We had great possession in the second half, and I thought we did a better job of holding the ball,” McCabe said.
Holding the lead, Lake Forest pushed numbers back to cut off passing angles and scoring windows. Warren also admirably maintained its poise as the clock wound down. Senior midfielder Kayla Malaker nearly finished a cross from Kaitlyn Chomko in the 51st minute.
Senior forward Alliyah Parker played a ball off the ground on a one touch, her eagerness obvious as she blasted it over the top.
“Our last game against them was a little rough, so we wanted to come out strong against them and get the win,” Parker said. “We were kind of unlucky to get that red card in the first couple of minutes the last game, and we wanted to come out stronger.”
Warren pressed almost too hard.
“I definitely wanted that shot back,” Parker said, “because I shanked it.”
Warren’s build-up and pressure broke through in the 64th minute. Senior forward Ellen Szostak blasted a ball from the right wing from about 22 yards that hit off the near post. The ball jutted back to defender Jamie Kwon. She booted home the rebound inside the near post for the equalizer.
“I hit it one time with my right inside foot,” Kwon said of her second goal of the year. “I took a hard enough shot, and it went in.”
After trailing a combined 107 minutes in the two games against the Scouts, there was a palpable sense of relief.
“In the end, I always knew we're going to be in the game, no matter if we were down,” Kwon said. “The goal just made it more real. With our team, once we score that momentum just pushes us. They are a great team, and we knew it was going to be difficult to play them once again.”
Lake Forest freshman keeper Sophia DiVagno, another of the Scouts' precocious talents, showed great presence and heightened instincts against the Blue Devils. She had six saves.
Very few keepers would have had a chance against the left-footed laser that Parker got off for the game-winner.
“We played well, but we just got tired in the middle 20 minutes of the second half there,” Stuckslager said. “That’s when they took it to us. Today we adjusted from the last time we played.
“At times, you saw the difference between 14-year-olds playing against 18-year-olds. Our freshmen are still getting used to the speed of play and the size of the players.
“The last 10 minutes I thought we responded well, and we put them under pressure. We are very happy with where we are. They might be frustrated with the result, but we can learn from this.”
Starting lineups
Lake Forest
GK: Sophia DiVagno
D: Ella Marquart
D: Nicole Duocette
D: Morgan Asmussen
D: Gwen Walker
M: Alyssa Marquis
M: Hannah Bell
M: Leland Keller
M: Ingrid Falls
F: Delaney Williams
F: Julia Loeger
Warren
GK: Skylar Reilly
D: Lindsay Ditmars
D: Jamie Kwon
D: Natalie McNally
D: Maddie Gryzik
MF: Courtney Chomko
MF: Kaitlyn Chomko
MF: Lindsey Hardiman
MF: Alissa Ramsden
MF: Kayla Malaker
F: Alliyah Parker
Chicagoland soccer MVP of the match: Alliyah Parker, sr., F, Warren
Blue Devils take North Suburban match after tourney loss
By Patrick Z. McGavin
GURNEE -- The start of games are so adrenalized and hyped, a player’s every heartbeat and nerve ending is primed for action. The feeling is spontaneous, immediate and sometimes hard to fully grasp. Skylar Reilly had the sensation a week ago.
In the sixth minute of a PepsiCo Showdown quarterfinal against Lake Forest, Reilly -- Warren’s terrific senior keeper -- allowed impulse and feeling to take over as a pair of Lake Forest players mounted a 2-on-1 attack. She sprinted out of the box and sought to take away the advantage.
“They were both fast and coming at me,” she said. “They touched it away from me at the last second, and there was contact.”
After consulting with with his nearest colleague, the center referee issued a red card. The Blue Devils have a very capable backup with Lydia Sundberg. The greater difficulty was playing with just nine position players for more than 73 minutes.
Lake Forest senior forward Delaney Williams drilled a hard ball in the 37th minute for the 1-0 victory. The Scouts parlayed that stunning victory into a championship appearance in the top bracket against no. 4 St. Charles North on Sunday at DePaul.
At the time, a week ago, the red card seemed unduly harsh and subjective. To her credit, Reilly owned up to her role.
“We looked at the film and reviewed the play, and it was the right call,” Reilly said. “It was a red card.”
In the rematch -- this time a conference game between the two best teams of the North Suburban -- Reilly was again in the center of an early unorthodox action that gave Lake Forest the early advantage.
Reilly redeemed herself with five superb saves and the no. 10 Blue Devils found their groove and their devastating offensive attack with two late second half goals for a thrilling 2-1 comeback victory over the ninth-ranked Scouts here Thursday night.
Warren senior forward Alliyah Parker scored the game-winner in the 70th minute and earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match distinction for her efforts. The goal was her team-best 11th of the year.
The game had many intriguing looks and contours.
In the third minute, the Blue Devils attempted to play the ball back to Reilly for a goalie kick. Lake Forest freshman forward Julia Loeger got a deflection and the ball took a berserk bounce for a stunning goal and dramatic shift in the early momentum.
“It was a really fast goal,” Loeger said. “It traveled from the back and somebody kicked it, and I touched it and it went right through the keeper’s legs, under her foot.”
The Scouts knew Warren was primed to come out hard and edgy after last week’s result, and they were ready.
“The goal really pumped us up and motivated us, and we were trying right away to get another one,” Loeger said. “Something in the second half kind of changed, but I thought we played very well overall.”
Lake Forest (5-2-0, 1-1-0) saw its five-game winning streak snapped. The Scouts had allowed just one goal in that span -- it came when the Scouts stunned then no. 12 Metea Valley 2-1 in a PepsiCo Showdown semifinal on April 15. Metea Valley coach Chris Whaley paid the Scouts the ultimate compliment.
“When you play Lake Forest, you have to match how hard they play, because they play very hard,” he said.
The dominant narrative for the Scouts has been their extraordinary youth, a jolt of talent and young exuberance as coach Ty Stuckslager has started as many as seven freshmen. Loeger, who also scored against Metea Valley, represents the wave of bright and aggressive talent.
The cornerstones of Lake Forest’s attack have been three elite seniors: Delaney Williams, the team’s top offensive threat; Gwen Walker, a DePaul recruit and the team's best all-around player as a physical and devastating sweeper; and Morgan Asmussen, a Miami (Florida) recruit in her first year playing high school after three years of performing at the high club level.
“They go for every ball, and they will not stop until they get it,” Warren coach Ryan McCabe said. “Those young players are already very good. Ty has done a great job of coaching them. They have some excellent senior leaders. Their passion for the game is definitely showing, and already rubbing off on the younger players.
“They are a great team.”
In the game a week ago, Walker and rangy Hannah Bell, a skilled midfielder, neutralized a Warren attack that came into the game averaging nearly five goals.
“We did not let their midfielders and forwards turn,” Walker said. “If they can’t turn, they cannot create space and get shots off.”
The rematch changed irrevocably in the 23rd minute. Lake Forest appeared on the verge of a two-goal advantage as sophomore forward Kate Reinhardt broke free off a beautiful through-ball on the left edge for a direct approach to the goal and had only Reilly to contend with.
Reilly again aggressively sought to take away Reinhardt’s angle and made a spectacular kick save that thwarted Lake Forest’s best scoring chance.
“That was awful,” Reilly said of her early mistake. “I was frozen for a minute. Then I got the kick save in, and I started to build my confidence back. I definitely needed to get my confidence back.”
After serving a one-game suspension against Evanston for the red card, Reilly returned with a vengeance, administering three saves in the Blue Devils’ 2-0 shutout of a very solid Libertyville team.
“Sky’s been playing very well,” McCabe said. “She made some great saves. She was impressive back there, making the right moves and the right calls, and she knows the defense has her back.”
Warren (10-1-0, 2-1-0) also played with greater concision, clarity and purpose in the second half. “We had great possession in the second half, and I thought we did a better job of holding the ball,” McCabe said.
Holding the lead, Lake Forest pushed numbers back to cut off passing angles and scoring windows. Warren also admirably maintained its poise as the clock wound down. Senior midfielder Kayla Malaker nearly finished a cross from Kaitlyn Chomko in the 51st minute.
Senior forward Alliyah Parker played a ball off the ground on a one touch, her eagerness obvious as she blasted it over the top.
“Our last game against them was a little rough, so we wanted to come out strong against them and get the win,” Parker said. “We were kind of unlucky to get that red card in the first couple of minutes the last game, and we wanted to come out stronger.”
Warren pressed almost too hard.
“I definitely wanted that shot back,” Parker said, “because I shanked it.”
Warren’s build-up and pressure broke through in the 64th minute. Senior forward Ellen Szostak blasted a ball from the right wing from about 22 yards that hit off the near post. The ball jutted back to defender Jamie Kwon. She booted home the rebound inside the near post for the equalizer.
“I hit it one time with my right inside foot,” Kwon said of her second goal of the year. “I took a hard enough shot, and it went in.”
After trailing a combined 107 minutes in the two games against the Scouts, there was a palpable sense of relief.
“In the end, I always knew we're going to be in the game, no matter if we were down,” Kwon said. “The goal just made it more real. With our team, once we score that momentum just pushes us. They are a great team, and we knew it was going to be difficult to play them once again.”
Lake Forest freshman keeper Sophia DiVagno, another of the Scouts' precocious talents, showed great presence and heightened instincts against the Blue Devils. She had six saves.
Very few keepers would have had a chance against the left-footed laser that Parker got off for the game-winner.
“We played well, but we just got tired in the middle 20 minutes of the second half there,” Stuckslager said. “That’s when they took it to us. Today we adjusted from the last time we played.
“At times, you saw the difference between 14-year-olds playing against 18-year-olds. Our freshmen are still getting used to the speed of play and the size of the players.
“The last 10 minutes I thought we responded well, and we put them under pressure. We are very happy with where we are. They might be frustrated with the result, but we can learn from this.”
Starting lineups
Lake Forest
GK: Sophia DiVagno
D: Ella Marquart
D: Nicole Duocette
D: Morgan Asmussen
D: Gwen Walker
M: Alyssa Marquis
M: Hannah Bell
M: Leland Keller
M: Ingrid Falls
F: Delaney Williams
F: Julia Loeger
Warren
GK: Skylar Reilly
D: Lindsay Ditmars
D: Jamie Kwon
D: Natalie McNally
D: Maddie Gryzik
MF: Courtney Chomko
MF: Kaitlyn Chomko
MF: Lindsey Hardiman
MF: Alissa Ramsden
MF: Kayla Malaker
F: Alliyah Parker
Chicagoland soccer MVP of the match: Alliyah Parker, sr., F, Warren