OT pays off for Naperville N. against Fremd
Alyssa Siebers 1st game-winner puts Huskies in the final
By Matt LeCren
NAPERVILLE -- Naperville North junior defender Alyssa Siebers was jokingly asked Friday night if she was going to demand that the team’s forwards and midfielders buy her lunch or dinner.
“I should,” Siebers said with a laugh.
Indeed, the Huskies owe Siebers something considering they would be eating lunch at noon Saturday – and not playing in the Naperville Invitational championship game – if it hadn’t been for the brilliant goal she scored.
Siebers tallied her second goal of the season and first game-winning goal of her career to propel top-ranked Naperville North to a 1-0 double-overtime victory over
no. 9 Fremd in the semifinals at Naperville Central's Memorial Stadium.
The Huskies (15-0-2) will take on Barrington, which beat New Trier 1-0 in the nightcap, in the title game.
“We all got so excited for her because she deserves it so much,” Naperville North senior defender Emily Wilhelm said. “She works so hard, and she’s had a few chances every game, so it’s awesome that she finally put it away.
“It was amazing, against a good keeper.”
Indeed, Fremd goalie Kelsie Stone had kept the Vikings (11-2-1) in the game by making seven saves against a team that held an 18-3 edge in shots.
But Stone had no chance on Siebers’ 25-yard blast from the left wing. The liner went under the crossbar at the 6:09 mark of the first overtime and proved to be the penultimate shot of the match.
“Morgan Krause was dribbling, had pressure on her, switched it to ‘Bish’ (Katelynn Buescher) in the middle,” Siebers said. “Bish was tight with pressure and found me open. I saw there was no one on me and just took the shot.”
In one of the rare mistakes by the Vikings, Siebers had leaked out of the back and was unguarded just outside the box. She immediately teed up a right-footed blast.
“(Naperville North coach Steve) Goletz kept saying outside backs are wide open, find them if you can,’” Siebers said. “So I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to push up and just go for it.’ I found a wide-open shot so I took it.
“It doesn’t happen often so you’ve got to take your opportunities when you get them. It’s almost like in slow motion when you see it going in over the goalie’s head. It’s just an awesome feeling.”
Goletz was thrilled to see one of his prize defenders contribute to the offense.
“It’s always great when you see a kid who sometimes doesn’t get the attention and the recognition that she deserves, for as good as she’s been this year, to score a goal,” Goletz said. “As a coach you can’t help but smile, because she’s done everything we’ve asked her to do and then some this year.
“To be rewarded that way on the big stage is fun for her.”
But Siebers had the presence of mind to settle down in a hurry, reminding her teammates the game wasn’t over.
“There was confidence, but there was also time left,” Siebers said. “I was like, ‘We still have 10 minutes left; we need to focus.’ That’s all I was focusing on.”
The Huskies remained focused and rock solid defensively. The backline of Siebers and her twin sister Jessica, Wilhelm and senior Morgan Lockridge allowed just one shot the rest of the way, a 25-yarder by Julia Leonard that was well wide of the left post.
Fremd had just one corner kick and rarely penetrated the box. Naperville North goalie Elizabeth Cablk had to make only save.
That’s par for the course for the Huskies, who have given up just three goals and now have 12 shutouts, including five straight.
“The only person subbing in (from last year) is my sister Jess, and we’ve been playing together since forever,” Siebers said. “We all just get along so well.
“We always make sure we’re talking and communicating. We have a good time back there. It’s that bond that keeps us strong.”
Fremd’s defense isn’t too shabby, either. Siebers’ strike was just the fifth goal conceded by the Vikings.
“Last night and today we did a really nice job defensively,” Fremd coach Steve Keller said. “The girls have stepped up and really made a point to focus on the things we’ve been talking about. Hopefully they will realize that good things will result when you do that.”
The one time the Vikings lost their focus proved costly, denying them a shot at winning their first Naperville Invitational title.
“We've got to close it down and not allow that,” Keller said. “The little things, one mental mistake or one little break here or there, and that’s the game.
“But we responded well. We forced some opportunities in the end, and it was good.”
Despite the loss, Keller remains happy with the performance of his team. The Vikings continue to have success despite losing two offensive standouts – seniors Emilijia Peleckas and Katie Kiolbassa – to season-ending injuries.
Fremd also lost midfielder Marty Cholewa to a knee injury when she collided with Krause at the 9:38 mark of the first half. Her absence forced a few lineup changes, but Keller is optimistic the injury is not serious.
“I’m very pleased,” Keller said. “I thought Marta before she went out injured played well and Stone in goal did a nice job of eating up most of their corners and really had a solid game.
“(Julia) Leonard and (Julia (Szylke) in the back (were solid) and Missy Adrian played in the middle and up-top. She’s done a heckuva job for us all season, but she’s stepped up her game lately.
“Hopefully they believe in themselves. They realize we can play with anybody. It’s a matter of executing what we’re trying to do, and if we do that we can hopefully make a run.”
Starting lineups
Naperville North
GK Elizabeth Cablk
D Emily Wilhelm
D Alyssa Siebers
D Jessica Siebers
D Morgan Lockridge
M Ashley Santos
M Katelynn Buescher
M Morgan Krause
M Jeanine Valera
F Megan Benmore
F Chloe Kotrba
Fremd
GK Kelsey Stone
D Jennifer Josten
D Julia Szylke
D Lauren Burk
D Marissa Wade
M Layla Dib
M Marta Cholewa
M Julia Leonard
M Angie Zara
F Missy Adrian
F MacKenzie Stein
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Alyssa Siebers, jr., D, Naperville North
Alyssa Siebers 1st game-winner puts Huskies in the final
By Matt LeCren
NAPERVILLE -- Naperville North junior defender Alyssa Siebers was jokingly asked Friday night if she was going to demand that the team’s forwards and midfielders buy her lunch or dinner.
“I should,” Siebers said with a laugh.
Indeed, the Huskies owe Siebers something considering they would be eating lunch at noon Saturday – and not playing in the Naperville Invitational championship game – if it hadn’t been for the brilliant goal she scored.
Siebers tallied her second goal of the season and first game-winning goal of her career to propel top-ranked Naperville North to a 1-0 double-overtime victory over
no. 9 Fremd in the semifinals at Naperville Central's Memorial Stadium.
The Huskies (15-0-2) will take on Barrington, which beat New Trier 1-0 in the nightcap, in the title game.
“We all got so excited for her because she deserves it so much,” Naperville North senior defender Emily Wilhelm said. “She works so hard, and she’s had a few chances every game, so it’s awesome that she finally put it away.
“It was amazing, against a good keeper.”
Indeed, Fremd goalie Kelsie Stone had kept the Vikings (11-2-1) in the game by making seven saves against a team that held an 18-3 edge in shots.
But Stone had no chance on Siebers’ 25-yard blast from the left wing. The liner went under the crossbar at the 6:09 mark of the first overtime and proved to be the penultimate shot of the match.
“Morgan Krause was dribbling, had pressure on her, switched it to ‘Bish’ (Katelynn Buescher) in the middle,” Siebers said. “Bish was tight with pressure and found me open. I saw there was no one on me and just took the shot.”
In one of the rare mistakes by the Vikings, Siebers had leaked out of the back and was unguarded just outside the box. She immediately teed up a right-footed blast.
“(Naperville North coach Steve) Goletz kept saying outside backs are wide open, find them if you can,’” Siebers said. “So I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to push up and just go for it.’ I found a wide-open shot so I took it.
“It doesn’t happen often so you’ve got to take your opportunities when you get them. It’s almost like in slow motion when you see it going in over the goalie’s head. It’s just an awesome feeling.”
Goletz was thrilled to see one of his prize defenders contribute to the offense.
“It’s always great when you see a kid who sometimes doesn’t get the attention and the recognition that she deserves, for as good as she’s been this year, to score a goal,” Goletz said. “As a coach you can’t help but smile, because she’s done everything we’ve asked her to do and then some this year.
“To be rewarded that way on the big stage is fun for her.”
But Siebers had the presence of mind to settle down in a hurry, reminding her teammates the game wasn’t over.
“There was confidence, but there was also time left,” Siebers said. “I was like, ‘We still have 10 minutes left; we need to focus.’ That’s all I was focusing on.”
The Huskies remained focused and rock solid defensively. The backline of Siebers and her twin sister Jessica, Wilhelm and senior Morgan Lockridge allowed just one shot the rest of the way, a 25-yarder by Julia Leonard that was well wide of the left post.
Fremd had just one corner kick and rarely penetrated the box. Naperville North goalie Elizabeth Cablk had to make only save.
That’s par for the course for the Huskies, who have given up just three goals and now have 12 shutouts, including five straight.
“The only person subbing in (from last year) is my sister Jess, and we’ve been playing together since forever,” Siebers said. “We all just get along so well.
“We always make sure we’re talking and communicating. We have a good time back there. It’s that bond that keeps us strong.”
Fremd’s defense isn’t too shabby, either. Siebers’ strike was just the fifth goal conceded by the Vikings.
“Last night and today we did a really nice job defensively,” Fremd coach Steve Keller said. “The girls have stepped up and really made a point to focus on the things we’ve been talking about. Hopefully they will realize that good things will result when you do that.”
The one time the Vikings lost their focus proved costly, denying them a shot at winning their first Naperville Invitational title.
“We've got to close it down and not allow that,” Keller said. “The little things, one mental mistake or one little break here or there, and that’s the game.
“But we responded well. We forced some opportunities in the end, and it was good.”
Despite the loss, Keller remains happy with the performance of his team. The Vikings continue to have success despite losing two offensive standouts – seniors Emilijia Peleckas and Katie Kiolbassa – to season-ending injuries.
Fremd also lost midfielder Marty Cholewa to a knee injury when she collided with Krause at the 9:38 mark of the first half. Her absence forced a few lineup changes, but Keller is optimistic the injury is not serious.
“I’m very pleased,” Keller said. “I thought Marta before she went out injured played well and Stone in goal did a nice job of eating up most of their corners and really had a solid game.
“(Julia) Leonard and (Julia (Szylke) in the back (were solid) and Missy Adrian played in the middle and up-top. She’s done a heckuva job for us all season, but she’s stepped up her game lately.
“Hopefully they believe in themselves. They realize we can play with anybody. It’s a matter of executing what we’re trying to do, and if we do that we can hopefully make a run.”
Starting lineups
Naperville North
GK Elizabeth Cablk
D Emily Wilhelm
D Alyssa Siebers
D Jessica Siebers
D Morgan Lockridge
M Ashley Santos
M Katelynn Buescher
M Morgan Krause
M Jeanine Valera
F Megan Benmore
F Chloe Kotrba
Fremd
GK Kelsey Stone
D Jennifer Josten
D Julia Szylke
D Lauren Burk
D Marissa Wade
M Layla Dib
M Marta Cholewa
M Julia Leonard
M Angie Zara
F Missy Adrian
F MacKenzie Stein
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Alyssa Siebers, jr., D, Naperville North