Plainfield South feels no alarm in SPC win
10 a.m. start no problem in Cougars 4th-straight win
By Dave Owen
ROMEOVILLE – Neither injuries nor early morning wake-up calls seem to slow down Plainfield South.
The Cougars (4-2-0) continued a sizzling four-game winning streak Saturday morning at Romeoville, rolling to an 8-0 win to improve their record to 2-0-0 in the Southwest Prairie Conference.
Having now outscored opponents 17-1 over the four-game stretch, Plainfield South showed no signs of sleepiness in the 10 a.m. road match.
By 10:16 a.m., the Cougars had already essentially tucked the win under their pillows with a 3-0 lead on goals by Gianna Dodaro, Miranda Nirchi and Taylor Metcalf.
“We’ve been getting a lot better at that (starting fast),” Cougars coach Alfonso Lopez said. “We started the season a little slow with a couple injuries, but they’ve been picking it up, and girls have been stepping in nicely.”
Nirchi and Metcalf finished the Cougars’ big offensive day with two goals each, and Dodaro had a goal and two assists (including a great right sideline drive and perfect cross to Emily DeVivo for the fifth goal).
“We were a little slow in the very beginning, but something clicked,” Nirchi said. “Our passing started to go really well, and it was just the motivation from everyone on the field to keep us moving that really helped as well.”
Romeoville (3-3-1) entered the match playing well, but faced waves of adversity from a fired-up Cougars side.
“They were the better team,” Spartans coach Phil Wicyk said, “but I’d say the biggest thing was they wanted it more. They outmuscled us, and my team – I don’t even think we could trap or pass the ball today. We were just completely off.
“All in all, it was an off day for us. I don’t think we’re an 8-0 loss – nothing taken away from them and how great they played, but if this is 8-0, what’s Plainfield North or Minooka?
“All I kept telling them is, hopefully this is the last time it happens and we can move on,” Wicyk added.
Plainfield South has moved on nicely from a 4-0 loss to Napervillle North on March 20, not letting injuries or opponents derail a nice roll into April.
“We’re still down three (players with injuries), and they’re all defenders,” Lopez said. “But girls have done a great job filling the void.
“Lindsey Bond has been playing out of this world, and our stability player from last year, Madison Ourada, always plays good defense. Those two defense-wise have definitely picked up a lot of the slack. We’ve had a lot of players contribute, but those two stand out.”
Among a galaxy of Plainfield South stars Saturday, senior Bond earned MVP of the Match honors for both her defensive excellence and her ability to spark effective counterattacks.
Of her many big plays, her best came with 26:43 left. A nice interception inside the 30 dulled a Romeoville threat. Bond then proceeded to dribble upfield and send a pass upfield to Nirchi, who lined a 15-yard rocket under the crossbar for a 6-0 lead.
To Bond, communication and endurance have been keys to the Cougars’ surge.
“Everybody gets tired during the game, but you have to push through it,” she said. “I try talking in the back and trying to help people with confidence, but we’re all a great team, and we all like to push each other. It’s not just the defense, it’s everybody, the whole group.”
The roster-wide contributions at Romeoville proved that.
After the early flurry of goals put the Cougars in command, the run resumed 9:03 before halftime. Off a nice send upfield by Bond, Giana Derka raced in on right wing and sent a cross to Alysa Goldman for a far post, open net score and a 4-0 lead.
Plainfield South did everything possible to add another score in the final minute of the half. A nice Bond steal at the defensive end set up an eventual Metcalf shot that Romeoville goalkeeper Macayla Dwyer denied on a diving save.
The Cougars’ offense broke through again in the fifth minute of the second half, as Dodaro’s wing attack and low cross was touched into the net from midair by DeVivo for a 5-0 lead.
“Offensively Dodaro has been leading the attack for us,” Lopez said, “and even though we play her in back Lindsey Bond has scored a few. Nirchi has scored a few, so we have a nice balanced attack. We can score from all over – that’s been nice.”
The Cougars’ onslaught continued through the first 10 minutes of the second half, with quality chances for Ourada (20-yarder denied on a diving save by Dwyer), DeVivo (Dwyer catch of a high 10-yard shot), and a huge chance with 31:10 left.
Off a Dodaro corner kick, DeVivo lined a shot off the far post, and a rebound try by senior Shelby Bishop (who had a first half assist) was deflected wide.
A Nirchi goal made it 5-0 at 26:43. Isabel Cerda then assisted on Metcalf’s second goal of the morning with 14:10 left, and Cerda finished the scoring with a goal off an Adanelly Escamilla pass with 1:09 to go.
“We don’t let up,” Nirchi said. “We’ve been having good games, but we just know that no matter who the (opposing) team is and what we’ve heard about them, we always have to play our game and not let anything else change the way we play.”
The Plainfield South defense has followed the same plan.
Goalkeeper Nicole Trenholm rose to the challenge late in the first half. She punched a Gabriella Chavez cross out of the crease with 4:15 left, then made the catch save on Allison Vitel’s 15-yard rebound try.
Then two minutes later, Trenholm again made the stop on Olivia DeLaRosa’s 10-yard shot.
Jami Maloney took over in goal for the second half, and sealed the shutout with 2:10 to play. A nice sliding block by Romeoville’s Dominique Martinez set up an open field opportunity for DeLaRosa, but her low 20-yard drive was smothered by Maloney.
Romeoville’s other big chance with 16:30 left had been denied by Bond. Off a scramble left of the net 8 yards out, Jennifer Rodriguez’s cross to the open far post was intercepted by Bond and cleared upfield.
But those defensive moments aside, it was a day for the Cougars’ offense and relentless drive.
“We all gave 100 percent the whole game,” Dodaro said. “It was a great team effort.”
First-year coach Lopez has adjusted well to his move up from an assistant role last spring.
“It’s been great,” Lopez said. “Coach (Dave) Brown led them last year and left a great program (15 returning varsity players), so it was easy to step in. I knew a lot of the girls (as Brown’s assistant last year), so it’s been easy.
“I just try to keep them aggressive and hungry.”
A drive for higher endurance has paid off.
“In practices he pushes us, which is really great, because we all need it,” Bond said. “That’ll benefit us during a game when we’re tired.
“We run a lot during practices,” Bond added. “It’s great because we worked hard last year too, and I feel like this is a better year.”
Said Nirchi: “How hard we work in practice really shows. You can really see it in a game.”
The next task will be hosting Oswego East on Tuesday.
“They (Oswego East) have some talented players,” Lopez said, “so we’re going to have to work collectively as a team to slow them down a little bit. We know it’s going to be a tough 80 minutes, but the biggest thing is trying to contain them.
“We want to go for a conference championship. We know what’s at stake, and they’re fighting.”
For Romeoville, the great effort by the Cougars on Saturday was a learning experience.
“We’re going to start some new formations and restructure our defense – Kalie (Rice) played well in back (moving to sweeper in the second half), and Vitel always plays well. If we start stringing some passes together and some shots, we can compete. But today was not the day.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield South
GK Nicole Trenholm
D Christina Schade
D Lindsey Bond
D Madison Ourada
D Adanelly Escamilla
M Miranda Nirchi
M Gianna Dodaro
M Emily DeVivo
M Shelby Bishop
F Taylor Metcalf
F Isabel Cerda
Romeoville
GK Macayla Dwyer
D Gabriella Chavez
D Alison Vitel
D Maria Romo
D Rilie Spiecker
M Kalie Rice
M Jennifer Rodriguez
M Dominique Martinez
M Jannet De Loera
F Azucena Gomez
F Olivia De La Rosa
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Lindsey Bond, sr., D, Plainfield South
10 a.m. start no problem in Cougars 4th-straight win
By Dave Owen
ROMEOVILLE – Neither injuries nor early morning wake-up calls seem to slow down Plainfield South.
The Cougars (4-2-0) continued a sizzling four-game winning streak Saturday morning at Romeoville, rolling to an 8-0 win to improve their record to 2-0-0 in the Southwest Prairie Conference.
Having now outscored opponents 17-1 over the four-game stretch, Plainfield South showed no signs of sleepiness in the 10 a.m. road match.
By 10:16 a.m., the Cougars had already essentially tucked the win under their pillows with a 3-0 lead on goals by Gianna Dodaro, Miranda Nirchi and Taylor Metcalf.
“We’ve been getting a lot better at that (starting fast),” Cougars coach Alfonso Lopez said. “We started the season a little slow with a couple injuries, but they’ve been picking it up, and girls have been stepping in nicely.”
Nirchi and Metcalf finished the Cougars’ big offensive day with two goals each, and Dodaro had a goal and two assists (including a great right sideline drive and perfect cross to Emily DeVivo for the fifth goal).
“We were a little slow in the very beginning, but something clicked,” Nirchi said. “Our passing started to go really well, and it was just the motivation from everyone on the field to keep us moving that really helped as well.”
Romeoville (3-3-1) entered the match playing well, but faced waves of adversity from a fired-up Cougars side.
“They were the better team,” Spartans coach Phil Wicyk said, “but I’d say the biggest thing was they wanted it more. They outmuscled us, and my team – I don’t even think we could trap or pass the ball today. We were just completely off.
“All in all, it was an off day for us. I don’t think we’re an 8-0 loss – nothing taken away from them and how great they played, but if this is 8-0, what’s Plainfield North or Minooka?
“All I kept telling them is, hopefully this is the last time it happens and we can move on,” Wicyk added.
Plainfield South has moved on nicely from a 4-0 loss to Napervillle North on March 20, not letting injuries or opponents derail a nice roll into April.
“We’re still down three (players with injuries), and they’re all defenders,” Lopez said. “But girls have done a great job filling the void.
“Lindsey Bond has been playing out of this world, and our stability player from last year, Madison Ourada, always plays good defense. Those two defense-wise have definitely picked up a lot of the slack. We’ve had a lot of players contribute, but those two stand out.”
Among a galaxy of Plainfield South stars Saturday, senior Bond earned MVP of the Match honors for both her defensive excellence and her ability to spark effective counterattacks.
Of her many big plays, her best came with 26:43 left. A nice interception inside the 30 dulled a Romeoville threat. Bond then proceeded to dribble upfield and send a pass upfield to Nirchi, who lined a 15-yard rocket under the crossbar for a 6-0 lead.
To Bond, communication and endurance have been keys to the Cougars’ surge.
“Everybody gets tired during the game, but you have to push through it,” she said. “I try talking in the back and trying to help people with confidence, but we’re all a great team, and we all like to push each other. It’s not just the defense, it’s everybody, the whole group.”
The roster-wide contributions at Romeoville proved that.
After the early flurry of goals put the Cougars in command, the run resumed 9:03 before halftime. Off a nice send upfield by Bond, Giana Derka raced in on right wing and sent a cross to Alysa Goldman for a far post, open net score and a 4-0 lead.
Plainfield South did everything possible to add another score in the final minute of the half. A nice Bond steal at the defensive end set up an eventual Metcalf shot that Romeoville goalkeeper Macayla Dwyer denied on a diving save.
The Cougars’ offense broke through again in the fifth minute of the second half, as Dodaro’s wing attack and low cross was touched into the net from midair by DeVivo for a 5-0 lead.
“Offensively Dodaro has been leading the attack for us,” Lopez said, “and even though we play her in back Lindsey Bond has scored a few. Nirchi has scored a few, so we have a nice balanced attack. We can score from all over – that’s been nice.”
The Cougars’ onslaught continued through the first 10 minutes of the second half, with quality chances for Ourada (20-yarder denied on a diving save by Dwyer), DeVivo (Dwyer catch of a high 10-yard shot), and a huge chance with 31:10 left.
Off a Dodaro corner kick, DeVivo lined a shot off the far post, and a rebound try by senior Shelby Bishop (who had a first half assist) was deflected wide.
A Nirchi goal made it 5-0 at 26:43. Isabel Cerda then assisted on Metcalf’s second goal of the morning with 14:10 left, and Cerda finished the scoring with a goal off an Adanelly Escamilla pass with 1:09 to go.
“We don’t let up,” Nirchi said. “We’ve been having good games, but we just know that no matter who the (opposing) team is and what we’ve heard about them, we always have to play our game and not let anything else change the way we play.”
The Plainfield South defense has followed the same plan.
Goalkeeper Nicole Trenholm rose to the challenge late in the first half. She punched a Gabriella Chavez cross out of the crease with 4:15 left, then made the catch save on Allison Vitel’s 15-yard rebound try.
Then two minutes later, Trenholm again made the stop on Olivia DeLaRosa’s 10-yard shot.
Jami Maloney took over in goal for the second half, and sealed the shutout with 2:10 to play. A nice sliding block by Romeoville’s Dominique Martinez set up an open field opportunity for DeLaRosa, but her low 20-yard drive was smothered by Maloney.
Romeoville’s other big chance with 16:30 left had been denied by Bond. Off a scramble left of the net 8 yards out, Jennifer Rodriguez’s cross to the open far post was intercepted by Bond and cleared upfield.
But those defensive moments aside, it was a day for the Cougars’ offense and relentless drive.
“We all gave 100 percent the whole game,” Dodaro said. “It was a great team effort.”
First-year coach Lopez has adjusted well to his move up from an assistant role last spring.
“It’s been great,” Lopez said. “Coach (Dave) Brown led them last year and left a great program (15 returning varsity players), so it was easy to step in. I knew a lot of the girls (as Brown’s assistant last year), so it’s been easy.
“I just try to keep them aggressive and hungry.”
A drive for higher endurance has paid off.
“In practices he pushes us, which is really great, because we all need it,” Bond said. “That’ll benefit us during a game when we’re tired.
“We run a lot during practices,” Bond added. “It’s great because we worked hard last year too, and I feel like this is a better year.”
Said Nirchi: “How hard we work in practice really shows. You can really see it in a game.”
The next task will be hosting Oswego East on Tuesday.
“They (Oswego East) have some talented players,” Lopez said, “so we’re going to have to work collectively as a team to slow them down a little bit. We know it’s going to be a tough 80 minutes, but the biggest thing is trying to contain them.
“We want to go for a conference championship. We know what’s at stake, and they’re fighting.”
For Romeoville, the great effort by the Cougars on Saturday was a learning experience.
“We’re going to start some new formations and restructure our defense – Kalie (Rice) played well in back (moving to sweeper in the second half), and Vitel always plays well. If we start stringing some passes together and some shots, we can compete. But today was not the day.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield South
GK Nicole Trenholm
D Christina Schade
D Lindsey Bond
D Madison Ourada
D Adanelly Escamilla
M Miranda Nirchi
M Gianna Dodaro
M Emily DeVivo
M Shelby Bishop
F Taylor Metcalf
F Isabel Cerda
Romeoville
GK Macayla Dwyer
D Gabriella Chavez
D Alison Vitel
D Maria Romo
D Rilie Spiecker
M Kalie Rice
M Jennifer Rodriguez
M Dominique Martinez
M Jannet De Loera
F Azucena Gomez
F Olivia De La Rosa
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Lindsey Bond, sr., D, Plainfield South