Fit to be tied
Barrington and Neuqua Valley battle to 1-1 draw
By Ken Keenan
BARRINGTON -- If ever a match seemed destined to end in a draw, Wednesday night's 1-1 tie between host Barrington and Neuqua Valley certainly fit the bill.
It didn't start out that way, however. The visitors jumped on top less than four minutes into the contest on a free kick by Anna Toersloev. The Wildcats' junior defender fired an arching left-footed shot that hit the crossbar and came straight down, landing barely over the goal line behind Fillies' goalkeeper Hannah Luedtke.
Barrington knotted the score with 32:24 remaining in the game on a free kick by senior forward Jenna Szczesny, who rifled in a waist-high shot to the right of Neuqua Valley senior keeper Hannah Parrish.
In between, much of the play took place in the midfield, and featured tight marking from both sides. Blocked shot attempts, deflected passes and a plethora of throw-ins dominated the action.
"It was a pretty intense early season game," said Neuqua Valley head coach Joe Moreau, whose squad played its season-opener. "There were times they had the better of play and times we had the better of play. Their back line held well. But I liked the fight we had, and we put some girls in we didn't know about."
One of those Wildcats was sophomore forward Haley Singer, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match. The varsity newcomer attacked with strong runs nearly every time she possessed the ball -- especially down the stretch. In the 59th minute, Singer's hardworking run resulted in a shot by Toersloev that was headed out in traffic; moments later, Singer displayed some nifty moves on a dribble before firing wide from 15 yards out.
With 19:50 remaining in the second half, Singer tumbled in tight quarters as she drove to the net following a nice run.
"She showed a lot of hustle and spark up front," Moreau said.
"She's good," said Barrington head coach Ryan Stengren. "She surprised me."
"I had to really work to get around their defense to get a shot off," Singer said. "I tried to draw the defender in to open up more space. We did get some good drives at the top."
Likewise, Szczesny -- a 30-goal scorer in 2014 -- did her best to split the Neuqua Valley defense. She utilized her blazing speed for a series of runs on the outside. Two minutes after the Wildcats scored, a 20-yard scamper by Szczesny led to a corner kick that was deflected off the side of the net.
With 34:30 to go in the match, Szczesny cranked a hard, low shot that narrowly missed the far post. Another hard-charging run by Szczesny ended with a 25-yard missile
that sailed over the crossbar, and soon after she nearly connected on a cross to sophomore defender Jackie Batliner in front of the Wildcats' cage.
"They had a really strong defense -- I was marked up pretty well," Szczesny said. "I was trying to find some time on the ball. It gets frustrating at times, but you have to be patient."
Senior defender Dannah Williams was a standout in the back end for Neuqua Valley, booting and heading balls out of harm's way from start to finish.
"We did a lot of talking about their outside runners," Williams said. "We tried to put a body on them at all times."
Sophomore Fillies' defender Kayla Keck was equal to the task in front of her goal as well, spoiling several chances for Singer and Co.
"They definitely had some speed, but I felt our back line fought it out, and we were able to keep it even in the back," Keck said.
Stengren was pleased with his team's effort. The Fillies improved to 1-0-1 following Monday's season-opening 1-0 win over Naperville North.
"We were on our heels in the first half," he said. "We needed to get organized, and then we got a bit of the game back. I think it shows a little bit of character -- down a goal and coming back like that. But we need to be more multi-dimensional. We're showing the ability to play the ball, but we need to open the ball more. That's an area where we need to get better -- and keep working and possessing."
In his assessment, Moreau said, "We need to work on everything, but mostly I'd like to finish more on scoring opportunities."
Williams thought the Wildcats were in line to finish with a victory.
"I felt we could have gotten the win," she said. "But I thought we played well for a first game of the season."
On the Barrington side, Szczesny was a tad more philosophical regarding the deadlock.
"I would have been more satisfied with a win, but it's better than a loss," she said. "I was pleased with the work rate -- we were out there for each other."
Added Keck: "A win would have been nice, but like Jenna said, a tie is better than a loss. We had the effort. we just need to clean up a bit tactical-wise to get more out of that effort."
Starting lineups:
Neuqua Valley
G: Hannah Parrish
D: Sophia Moreau
D: Dannah Williams
D: Anna Toersloev
M: Tatiana Espinoza
M: Nicole Mondi
M: Lauren Ciesla
M: Kiley Czerwinski
F: Haley Singer
F: Jamie Goralski
F: Alyssa Bombacino
Barrington
G: Hannah Luedtke
D: Jackie Batliner
D: Kayla Keck
D: Ellie Stodola
D: Haley Tausend
M: Annalise Avers
M: Megan Fox
M: Kelsey Muniz
F: Jenna Szczesny
F: Ann Marie Niro
F: Lauren Bulanda
MVP of the Match: Haley Singer, Neuqua Valley
Officials: Mike Valsamis, Zach Gaidar, Cesar Alfero
Barrington and Neuqua Valley battle to 1-1 draw
By Ken Keenan
BARRINGTON -- If ever a match seemed destined to end in a draw, Wednesday night's 1-1 tie between host Barrington and Neuqua Valley certainly fit the bill.
It didn't start out that way, however. The visitors jumped on top less than four minutes into the contest on a free kick by Anna Toersloev. The Wildcats' junior defender fired an arching left-footed shot that hit the crossbar and came straight down, landing barely over the goal line behind Fillies' goalkeeper Hannah Luedtke.
Barrington knotted the score with 32:24 remaining in the game on a free kick by senior forward Jenna Szczesny, who rifled in a waist-high shot to the right of Neuqua Valley senior keeper Hannah Parrish.
In between, much of the play took place in the midfield, and featured tight marking from both sides. Blocked shot attempts, deflected passes and a plethora of throw-ins dominated the action.
"It was a pretty intense early season game," said Neuqua Valley head coach Joe Moreau, whose squad played its season-opener. "There were times they had the better of play and times we had the better of play. Their back line held well. But I liked the fight we had, and we put some girls in we didn't know about."
One of those Wildcats was sophomore forward Haley Singer, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match. The varsity newcomer attacked with strong runs nearly every time she possessed the ball -- especially down the stretch. In the 59th minute, Singer's hardworking run resulted in a shot by Toersloev that was headed out in traffic; moments later, Singer displayed some nifty moves on a dribble before firing wide from 15 yards out.
With 19:50 remaining in the second half, Singer tumbled in tight quarters as she drove to the net following a nice run.
"She showed a lot of hustle and spark up front," Moreau said.
"She's good," said Barrington head coach Ryan Stengren. "She surprised me."
"I had to really work to get around their defense to get a shot off," Singer said. "I tried to draw the defender in to open up more space. We did get some good drives at the top."
Likewise, Szczesny -- a 30-goal scorer in 2014 -- did her best to split the Neuqua Valley defense. She utilized her blazing speed for a series of runs on the outside. Two minutes after the Wildcats scored, a 20-yard scamper by Szczesny led to a corner kick that was deflected off the side of the net.
With 34:30 to go in the match, Szczesny cranked a hard, low shot that narrowly missed the far post. Another hard-charging run by Szczesny ended with a 25-yard missile
that sailed over the crossbar, and soon after she nearly connected on a cross to sophomore defender Jackie Batliner in front of the Wildcats' cage.
"They had a really strong defense -- I was marked up pretty well," Szczesny said. "I was trying to find some time on the ball. It gets frustrating at times, but you have to be patient."
Senior defender Dannah Williams was a standout in the back end for Neuqua Valley, booting and heading balls out of harm's way from start to finish.
"We did a lot of talking about their outside runners," Williams said. "We tried to put a body on them at all times."
Sophomore Fillies' defender Kayla Keck was equal to the task in front of her goal as well, spoiling several chances for Singer and Co.
"They definitely had some speed, but I felt our back line fought it out, and we were able to keep it even in the back," Keck said.
Stengren was pleased with his team's effort. The Fillies improved to 1-0-1 following Monday's season-opening 1-0 win over Naperville North.
"We were on our heels in the first half," he said. "We needed to get organized, and then we got a bit of the game back. I think it shows a little bit of character -- down a goal and coming back like that. But we need to be more multi-dimensional. We're showing the ability to play the ball, but we need to open the ball more. That's an area where we need to get better -- and keep working and possessing."
In his assessment, Moreau said, "We need to work on everything, but mostly I'd like to finish more on scoring opportunities."
Williams thought the Wildcats were in line to finish with a victory.
"I felt we could have gotten the win," she said. "But I thought we played well for a first game of the season."
On the Barrington side, Szczesny was a tad more philosophical regarding the deadlock.
"I would have been more satisfied with a win, but it's better than a loss," she said. "I was pleased with the work rate -- we were out there for each other."
Added Keck: "A win would have been nice, but like Jenna said, a tie is better than a loss. We had the effort. we just need to clean up a bit tactical-wise to get more out of that effort."
Starting lineups:
Neuqua Valley
G: Hannah Parrish
D: Sophia Moreau
D: Dannah Williams
D: Anna Toersloev
M: Tatiana Espinoza
M: Nicole Mondi
M: Lauren Ciesla
M: Kiley Czerwinski
F: Haley Singer
F: Jamie Goralski
F: Alyssa Bombacino
Barrington
G: Hannah Luedtke
D: Jackie Batliner
D: Kayla Keck
D: Ellie Stodola
D: Haley Tausend
M: Annalise Avers
M: Megan Fox
M: Kelsey Muniz
F: Jenna Szczesny
F: Ann Marie Niro
F: Lauren Bulanda
MVP of the Match: Haley Singer, Neuqua Valley
Officials: Mike Valsamis, Zach Gaidar, Cesar Alfero