Lake Park drops heartbreaker to Manteno
Panthers topple Lancers 4-3 on PKs in PepsiCo play
By Ken Keenan
ROSELLE -- Emotions ran the gamut for Lake Park Thursday night in PepsiCo Showdown quarterfinal action against Manteno -- the Lancers forged a 1-1 tie on a late goal before falling 4-3 in the deciding round of penalty kicks.
The visiting Panthers, seeded 10th in the LJ's Healing Hearts bracket, threw their first dart to the heart, breaking a 0-0 deadlock with 19:08 remaining in the second half on a goal by senior forward Jordyn Shipp. Streaking ahead on a partial breakaway after tracking a perfect long ball from hustling senior midfielder Kailyn Mickulas, Shipp -- Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match -- beat charging Lake Park sophomore goalkeeper Sarah Yochem just inside the left post.
"We wanted to sit in and catch 'em on the counter," said Manteno head coach Justin Emerson. "We were gonna pop it on over and get it to Jordyn (Shipp)."
Mickulas said, "I saw the opening, and I kicked it as hard as I could, and Jordyn got it and scored."
Added Shipp: "I knew if I missed it, I'd hear an earful. I knew I had to finish."
The shifty forward was a consistent threat on the attack throughout the match for Manteno, a small school powerhouse that has advanced to the state finals four times and won a regional title every year in Class A since the 2009 season.
Shipp was stopped in-close by Yochem in the 8th minute, and was denied via a diving save by the Lake Park keeper on a 25-yard free kick a minute later. Shipp was also thwarted on a low, 25-yard rocket in the 14th minute.
Lake Park kept its pulse following Shipp's tally, and knotted the score with 6:43 to go. After a corner kick by junior defender Amber Sedwick resulted in a wild scramble, sophomore forward Selena Catalano tapped the ball past Panthers' freshman goalkeeper Madie O'Dell at the left post.
"It took their goal to get us to hit the gas pedal," Sedwick said.
"We were telling ourselves, we have to find our focus and play hard," added junior midfielder Bri McAloon.
Junior mid Lauren Tarchala said, "We knew we needed to push ourselves -- give 110 percent."
Lake Park head coach Sean Crosby said, "Our message at halftime was to go at their defensive line and try to back them down -- and at least get a corner."
The Lancers, seeded third in the bracket, collectively roared in delight after notching the equalizer. But the euphoric feeling didn't last long.
Per PepsiCo rules, matches ending in a draw skip overtime and head straight to PKs.
Tarchala had the first crack, but her try was stopped with a left-handed save by O'Dell at the left post. Shipp then converted to Yochem's left. Lancers' junior defender Amber Sedwick answered by scoring low left.
Panthers' senior defender Megan Schaeffer then missed high, and Lake Park junior defender Stephanie Zachemski gave her team a 2-1 edge with a left-footed strike past O'Dell. Mickulas scored over Yochem's head to make it 2-2, but junior defender Elizabeth Guenther regained the lead for Lake Park with a head-high strike to the right.
Sophomore mid Ryan Conway evened it at 3-3, scoring low-left off Yochem's hand. The score remained the same after McAloon fired high over the bar.
Manteno senior defender Mikaelah Hurley then brought tears to the home team's eyes when she converted her try with a hard shot into the right corner.
"We put our heart into this game," McAloon said. "It's unfortunate to go to PKs. We don't want to be in that position. We need to keep heads in the game and not get to that point."
Added Tarchala: "When you get to PKs, it's a 50/50 chance ... a guessing game."
Crosby said, "It's the worst way to lose, especially when you have the momentum. You want the result before PKs, but it didn't go our way today."
Sedwick said, "It's a hard way to lose ... really tough. It was a back-and-forth game. To lose in actual game play would hurt a little less."
A big box of cupcakes, delivered with a rendition of "Happy Birthday" for Sedwick, helped ease the pain -- and instantly restored spirits.
"We have a lot of character -- we don't have to coach that," said Crosby, whose squad fell to 1-7-0 overall with the loss. "You never have to worry about having a teammate right there. We're gonna learn and grow from this."
Meanwhile, the Panthers (8-2-0 overall) were all smiles as they headed to the bus for the 60-mile ride south to their home.
"To win this game is amazing -- a big accomplishment," Shipp said.
Added Emerson: "More than anything, I'm happy with our mentality and attitude after Lake Park tied it up. This is our fourth year in Pepsi, so we're used to coming up here and playing good competition. Anything goes with PKs, but we're happy with the result."
Manteno meets second-seeded Lakes in a 2:30 p.m. semifinal match at Olympic Park in Schaumburg. Lake Park will travel to Glenbard South for a 10 a.m. consolation pool game.
Starting lineups
Manteno
G: Madie O'Dell
D: Taylor Gilliam
D: Megan Schaeffer
D: Mikaelah Hurley
D: Nora Crockett
M: Emma Grunwald
M: Ryan Conway
M: Alyse Crowe
M: Kailyn Mickulas
F: Jordyn Shipp
F: Kendall Ridgley
Lake Park
G: Sarah Yokem
D: Elizabeth Guenther
D: Amber Sedwick
D: Stephanie Zachemski
D: Caterine Vitale
M: Francesca Ottolino
M: Jaclyn Lamz
M: Bri McAloon
M: Lauren Tarchala
M: Dana Skiera
F: Cynthia Martinez
MVP of the Match: Jordyn Shipp, F, Manteno
Officials: John Washo, John Jakobsze, Krzysztof Bajorek
Panthers topple Lancers 4-3 on PKs in PepsiCo play
By Ken Keenan
ROSELLE -- Emotions ran the gamut for Lake Park Thursday night in PepsiCo Showdown quarterfinal action against Manteno -- the Lancers forged a 1-1 tie on a late goal before falling 4-3 in the deciding round of penalty kicks.
The visiting Panthers, seeded 10th in the LJ's Healing Hearts bracket, threw their first dart to the heart, breaking a 0-0 deadlock with 19:08 remaining in the second half on a goal by senior forward Jordyn Shipp. Streaking ahead on a partial breakaway after tracking a perfect long ball from hustling senior midfielder Kailyn Mickulas, Shipp -- Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match -- beat charging Lake Park sophomore goalkeeper Sarah Yochem just inside the left post.
"We wanted to sit in and catch 'em on the counter," said Manteno head coach Justin Emerson. "We were gonna pop it on over and get it to Jordyn (Shipp)."
Mickulas said, "I saw the opening, and I kicked it as hard as I could, and Jordyn got it and scored."
Added Shipp: "I knew if I missed it, I'd hear an earful. I knew I had to finish."
The shifty forward was a consistent threat on the attack throughout the match for Manteno, a small school powerhouse that has advanced to the state finals four times and won a regional title every year in Class A since the 2009 season.
Shipp was stopped in-close by Yochem in the 8th minute, and was denied via a diving save by the Lake Park keeper on a 25-yard free kick a minute later. Shipp was also thwarted on a low, 25-yard rocket in the 14th minute.
Lake Park kept its pulse following Shipp's tally, and knotted the score with 6:43 to go. After a corner kick by junior defender Amber Sedwick resulted in a wild scramble, sophomore forward Selena Catalano tapped the ball past Panthers' freshman goalkeeper Madie O'Dell at the left post.
"It took their goal to get us to hit the gas pedal," Sedwick said.
"We were telling ourselves, we have to find our focus and play hard," added junior midfielder Bri McAloon.
Junior mid Lauren Tarchala said, "We knew we needed to push ourselves -- give 110 percent."
Lake Park head coach Sean Crosby said, "Our message at halftime was to go at their defensive line and try to back them down -- and at least get a corner."
The Lancers, seeded third in the bracket, collectively roared in delight after notching the equalizer. But the euphoric feeling didn't last long.
Per PepsiCo rules, matches ending in a draw skip overtime and head straight to PKs.
Tarchala had the first crack, but her try was stopped with a left-handed save by O'Dell at the left post. Shipp then converted to Yochem's left. Lancers' junior defender Amber Sedwick answered by scoring low left.
Panthers' senior defender Megan Schaeffer then missed high, and Lake Park junior defender Stephanie Zachemski gave her team a 2-1 edge with a left-footed strike past O'Dell. Mickulas scored over Yochem's head to make it 2-2, but junior defender Elizabeth Guenther regained the lead for Lake Park with a head-high strike to the right.
Sophomore mid Ryan Conway evened it at 3-3, scoring low-left off Yochem's hand. The score remained the same after McAloon fired high over the bar.
Manteno senior defender Mikaelah Hurley then brought tears to the home team's eyes when she converted her try with a hard shot into the right corner.
"We put our heart into this game," McAloon said. "It's unfortunate to go to PKs. We don't want to be in that position. We need to keep heads in the game and not get to that point."
Added Tarchala: "When you get to PKs, it's a 50/50 chance ... a guessing game."
Crosby said, "It's the worst way to lose, especially when you have the momentum. You want the result before PKs, but it didn't go our way today."
Sedwick said, "It's a hard way to lose ... really tough. It was a back-and-forth game. To lose in actual game play would hurt a little less."
A big box of cupcakes, delivered with a rendition of "Happy Birthday" for Sedwick, helped ease the pain -- and instantly restored spirits.
"We have a lot of character -- we don't have to coach that," said Crosby, whose squad fell to 1-7-0 overall with the loss. "You never have to worry about having a teammate right there. We're gonna learn and grow from this."
Meanwhile, the Panthers (8-2-0 overall) were all smiles as they headed to the bus for the 60-mile ride south to their home.
"To win this game is amazing -- a big accomplishment," Shipp said.
Added Emerson: "More than anything, I'm happy with our mentality and attitude after Lake Park tied it up. This is our fourth year in Pepsi, so we're used to coming up here and playing good competition. Anything goes with PKs, but we're happy with the result."
Manteno meets second-seeded Lakes in a 2:30 p.m. semifinal match at Olympic Park in Schaumburg. Lake Park will travel to Glenbard South for a 10 a.m. consolation pool game.
Starting lineups
Manteno
G: Madie O'Dell
D: Taylor Gilliam
D: Megan Schaeffer
D: Mikaelah Hurley
D: Nora Crockett
M: Emma Grunwald
M: Ryan Conway
M: Alyse Crowe
M: Kailyn Mickulas
F: Jordyn Shipp
F: Kendall Ridgley
Lake Park
G: Sarah Yokem
D: Elizabeth Guenther
D: Amber Sedwick
D: Stephanie Zachemski
D: Caterine Vitale
M: Francesca Ottolino
M: Jaclyn Lamz
M: Bri McAloon
M: Lauren Tarchala
M: Dana Skiera
F: Cynthia Martinez
MVP of the Match: Jordyn Shipp, F, Manteno
Officials: John Washo, John Jakobsze, Krzysztof Bajorek