No doubt, Lane beats Young, gets city title
5-0 win gives Indians 8th-consecutive CPL Premier Division title
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- As her team’s free kick specialist, Sam Sorich plays a vital part in the success of the Lane offense. She has the angular and tall frame of a basketball or volleyball player. At 6-feet Sorich has the size and the ability to generate tremendous force.
Sorich is also a perfectionist. Her first free kick against Young came from the right edge about 50 yards out. She played a looping ball that midfielder Carlye Makuch timed for her run and smashed a header just over the crossbar. The second free kick was wide left. After that shot, Sorich started to question herself.
“I had a couple of those kicks I was not very confident with,” Sorich said. In the 18th minute, a foul against the Dolphins gave her another opportunity, this time just outside the box. “I was actually not going to take the kick,” she said. “I just told myself: Take one more and try it.”
Practice makes perfect.
Sorich drilled a curving ball that floated beyond the reach of Young keeper Sloane Kistinger and ignited a stellar team performance as the Indians, ranked 14th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, ripped rival Young 5-0 for an outright win of its eighth-consecutive Chicago Public League Premier Division title Wednesday at Lane Stadium on the North Side.
Sorich was also part of an air-tight defense that shut down lanes and closed off space repeatedly as the Indians (11-2-3, 6-0-1) registered their seventh-consecutive win and shutout. Lane has scored 38 goals in that span, which began after a 2-1 loss against no. 13 Nazareth on April 13.
Sorich earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match award for her superb all-around play. Lane seized a commanding 3-0 lead at the break. The sophomore's goal, her third of the season, changed the complexion of the match. It turned what had been a hotly contested contest into an increasingly one-sided affair.
“I think when we scored that goal, it just psyched them out,” Sorich said. “It proved that we are the defending champion of the city.
“The goal set our tone.”
Lane entered its final conference game with a one-point lead over Young. The Indians needed a draw or tie to win the division outright. They surpassed their expectations. Lane coach Michelle Vale masterfully played off the significance of the game. The Indians were looser and more relaxed.
“I just told them to focus on today’s game and treat it like any other game,” Vale said. “Lane and Young have a friendly rivalry. I wanted them to be ready to play and just enjoy the game, as they would any other game. Young is a very strong competitor, and we wanted to come out respectfully knowing they were going out with everything they had against us.”
Young (9-9-0, 5-2-0) looked sharp and commanding at the start. Senior Gabrielle Cattan, playing up-top, got behind the Lane defense and demonstrated agility and toughness in generating pressure against the Indians’ defense.
“The first 10 minutes was really good,” Young coach Spero Mandakas said. “We were getting some solid chances; we had the energy going out way. As soon as they got that first goal, the energy just went out of our sails. The girls came off at halftime and said they were nervous. Off of that we were timid. We can’t give up that early goal off that free kick.”
The psychological ramifications of the Sorich goal were profound. Lane was energized and confident. Young was reeling. Worst of all, said defender Kyra Sobel, the Dolphins were stuck in the past instead of anticipating the next movement.
“I think we definitely lost focus and our game (plan),” Sobel said. “I think we were more concerned with the goal already scored than the game being played. I think we were losing our marks and not focused on our game. We were more concerned about what they were doing.”
Lane quickly saw it had the upper hand and moved to consolidate its hold over the Dolphins. In the 21st minute, sophomore midfielder Johanna Bozic smashed a laser for the second goal. The Indians’ growth as a first-rate team is a function of its unselfishness and creativity with the ball.
“It keeps us going, and it hurts them at the same time,” sophomore midfielder Alana Coffman said. “It keeps our energy and motivation up as we keep scoring. As we keep breaking down their defense, I think it hurts them mentally and physically.”
Young struggled to generate a consistent first half attack after its early success. Freshman Mia Lisanti -- who scored a goal in each of the Dolphins’ three previous games -- had some strong combination play with junior midfielder Jessica O’Donnell, but the connective parts required to generate consistent offensive never quite materialized in the remainder of the first half.
“We were just trying to get over the hump, the [negative] mindset once we got down,” Sobel said. “That is definitely a habit of ours when we get down. We had to remember: we are girls; we all play soccer; and anybody can beat anybody on a given day.”
In the 32nd minute, Coffman slotted a ball down the left edge and Izzy Oganovich pushed down the line and made a quick inside turn and finished with authority inside the far post for the Indians’ 3-0 advantage. Oganovich is part of a defense that has now registered 10 shutouts. she has the versatility to play multiple positions.
“I think a lot of this [seven-game winning streak] we have to attribute to the defense, which has been rock solid,” Coffman said. “(Collectively) our defense has not changed from last year, and that has definitely helped because we have all played together. We know how to move and shift from side to side. We are all finishers on this team. Instead of relying on one or two people we all take responsibility of scoring.
“I think that is why we have been so successful on this team.”
Coffman reiterated the point with her own play in the 56th minute. Sophomore forward Grace Dunaway drove down the left edge and hammered a ball that hit off the post. Coffman followed the play and alertly got to the ball first, smashing in her own shot from about 18 yards out.
Sophomore forward Kayla Dutton, who possesses a powerful leg, completed the scoring in the 64th minute by blasting in a short ball off a cross by freshman forward Camaron Niforos -- five goals by five different players.
“Our team has known each other for a long time, and we know how to play to each other’s strengths,” Dutton said. “The other players know I am not very fast, but I am strong on the ball, and I can shoot from pretty far away. Somebody like Grace is faster and much quicker. We all play differently, but somehow that works together, because we all want to make each other look good and be successful.
The team’s camaraderie is infectious. Junior keeper Maggie Grossman, who played the first half and a part of the second half, celebrated her birthday.
“As a team we are very close, and we feed off of each other’s energy,” Dutton said. “Once one person starts to be successful, we want more people to be successful. It was Maggie’s birthday, so we all wanted to win for her today.”
A Young victory would have given the Dolphins the Premier title. Instead they dropped into a third-place tie with Payton. The Dolphins are the fourth-seed in the city tournament that starts Monday. Payton beat Young in the regular season for the tiebreaker.
Young played more aggressively in the second half. Junior midfielder Sarah Heise blasted a shot that constituted one of its best scoring chances. A Sara Woods’ free kick produced a flurry of activity inside the box that left a second shot off the near post. Young was on the other side. The game provided a hard-earned lesson on where the team needs to go.
“We definitely did not give up, and that’s a positive,” Sobel said.
The two have played in six of the last seven city tournament finals. Young has won three of them.
“We got outworked,” Mandakas said. “Against a really good team, you have to bring the energy and just the grit of getting out there and competing. Even though they beat us 2-0 in the second half, the girls were competing. We were getting some solid possession.
“I was proud of that, but we have a lot of work to do if we want to compete with them again in a couple of weeks.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Sloane Kistinger
D: Kyra Sobel
D: Addie Schlensker
D: Mariah Helm
D: Carson Herman
MF: Keila Vega
MF: Jessica O’Donnell
MF: Mia Lisanti
F: Olivia Putrim
F: Gabrielle Cattan
F: Sarah Woods
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Sam Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Kinuko Mrozik
MF: Johanna Bozic
MF: Alana Coffman
MF: Carlye Makuch
MF: Jazzmin Jordan
F: Grace Dunaway
F: Lena Price-Johnson
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the match: Sam Sorich, so., D, Lane
5-0 win gives Indians 8th-consecutive CPL Premier Division title
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- As her team’s free kick specialist, Sam Sorich plays a vital part in the success of the Lane offense. She has the angular and tall frame of a basketball or volleyball player. At 6-feet Sorich has the size and the ability to generate tremendous force.
Sorich is also a perfectionist. Her first free kick against Young came from the right edge about 50 yards out. She played a looping ball that midfielder Carlye Makuch timed for her run and smashed a header just over the crossbar. The second free kick was wide left. After that shot, Sorich started to question herself.
“I had a couple of those kicks I was not very confident with,” Sorich said. In the 18th minute, a foul against the Dolphins gave her another opportunity, this time just outside the box. “I was actually not going to take the kick,” she said. “I just told myself: Take one more and try it.”
Practice makes perfect.
Sorich drilled a curving ball that floated beyond the reach of Young keeper Sloane Kistinger and ignited a stellar team performance as the Indians, ranked 14th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, ripped rival Young 5-0 for an outright win of its eighth-consecutive Chicago Public League Premier Division title Wednesday at Lane Stadium on the North Side.
Sorich was also part of an air-tight defense that shut down lanes and closed off space repeatedly as the Indians (11-2-3, 6-0-1) registered their seventh-consecutive win and shutout. Lane has scored 38 goals in that span, which began after a 2-1 loss against no. 13 Nazareth on April 13.
Sorich earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match award for her superb all-around play. Lane seized a commanding 3-0 lead at the break. The sophomore's goal, her third of the season, changed the complexion of the match. It turned what had been a hotly contested contest into an increasingly one-sided affair.
“I think when we scored that goal, it just psyched them out,” Sorich said. “It proved that we are the defending champion of the city.
“The goal set our tone.”
Lane entered its final conference game with a one-point lead over Young. The Indians needed a draw or tie to win the division outright. They surpassed their expectations. Lane coach Michelle Vale masterfully played off the significance of the game. The Indians were looser and more relaxed.
“I just told them to focus on today’s game and treat it like any other game,” Vale said. “Lane and Young have a friendly rivalry. I wanted them to be ready to play and just enjoy the game, as they would any other game. Young is a very strong competitor, and we wanted to come out respectfully knowing they were going out with everything they had against us.”
Young (9-9-0, 5-2-0) looked sharp and commanding at the start. Senior Gabrielle Cattan, playing up-top, got behind the Lane defense and demonstrated agility and toughness in generating pressure against the Indians’ defense.
“The first 10 minutes was really good,” Young coach Spero Mandakas said. “We were getting some solid chances; we had the energy going out way. As soon as they got that first goal, the energy just went out of our sails. The girls came off at halftime and said they were nervous. Off of that we were timid. We can’t give up that early goal off that free kick.”
The psychological ramifications of the Sorich goal were profound. Lane was energized and confident. Young was reeling. Worst of all, said defender Kyra Sobel, the Dolphins were stuck in the past instead of anticipating the next movement.
“I think we definitely lost focus and our game (plan),” Sobel said. “I think we were more concerned with the goal already scored than the game being played. I think we were losing our marks and not focused on our game. We were more concerned about what they were doing.”
Lane quickly saw it had the upper hand and moved to consolidate its hold over the Dolphins. In the 21st minute, sophomore midfielder Johanna Bozic smashed a laser for the second goal. The Indians’ growth as a first-rate team is a function of its unselfishness and creativity with the ball.
“It keeps us going, and it hurts them at the same time,” sophomore midfielder Alana Coffman said. “It keeps our energy and motivation up as we keep scoring. As we keep breaking down their defense, I think it hurts them mentally and physically.”
Young struggled to generate a consistent first half attack after its early success. Freshman Mia Lisanti -- who scored a goal in each of the Dolphins’ three previous games -- had some strong combination play with junior midfielder Jessica O’Donnell, but the connective parts required to generate consistent offensive never quite materialized in the remainder of the first half.
“We were just trying to get over the hump, the [negative] mindset once we got down,” Sobel said. “That is definitely a habit of ours when we get down. We had to remember: we are girls; we all play soccer; and anybody can beat anybody on a given day.”
In the 32nd minute, Coffman slotted a ball down the left edge and Izzy Oganovich pushed down the line and made a quick inside turn and finished with authority inside the far post for the Indians’ 3-0 advantage. Oganovich is part of a defense that has now registered 10 shutouts. she has the versatility to play multiple positions.
“I think a lot of this [seven-game winning streak] we have to attribute to the defense, which has been rock solid,” Coffman said. “(Collectively) our defense has not changed from last year, and that has definitely helped because we have all played together. We know how to move and shift from side to side. We are all finishers on this team. Instead of relying on one or two people we all take responsibility of scoring.
“I think that is why we have been so successful on this team.”
Coffman reiterated the point with her own play in the 56th minute. Sophomore forward Grace Dunaway drove down the left edge and hammered a ball that hit off the post. Coffman followed the play and alertly got to the ball first, smashing in her own shot from about 18 yards out.
Sophomore forward Kayla Dutton, who possesses a powerful leg, completed the scoring in the 64th minute by blasting in a short ball off a cross by freshman forward Camaron Niforos -- five goals by five different players.
“Our team has known each other for a long time, and we know how to play to each other’s strengths,” Dutton said. “The other players know I am not very fast, but I am strong on the ball, and I can shoot from pretty far away. Somebody like Grace is faster and much quicker. We all play differently, but somehow that works together, because we all want to make each other look good and be successful.
The team’s camaraderie is infectious. Junior keeper Maggie Grossman, who played the first half and a part of the second half, celebrated her birthday.
“As a team we are very close, and we feed off of each other’s energy,” Dutton said. “Once one person starts to be successful, we want more people to be successful. It was Maggie’s birthday, so we all wanted to win for her today.”
A Young victory would have given the Dolphins the Premier title. Instead they dropped into a third-place tie with Payton. The Dolphins are the fourth-seed in the city tournament that starts Monday. Payton beat Young in the regular season for the tiebreaker.
Young played more aggressively in the second half. Junior midfielder Sarah Heise blasted a shot that constituted one of its best scoring chances. A Sara Woods’ free kick produced a flurry of activity inside the box that left a second shot off the near post. Young was on the other side. The game provided a hard-earned lesson on where the team needs to go.
“We definitely did not give up, and that’s a positive,” Sobel said.
The two have played in six of the last seven city tournament finals. Young has won three of them.
“We got outworked,” Mandakas said. “Against a really good team, you have to bring the energy and just the grit of getting out there and competing. Even though they beat us 2-0 in the second half, the girls were competing. We were getting some solid possession.
“I was proud of that, but we have a lot of work to do if we want to compete with them again in a couple of weeks.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Sloane Kistinger
D: Kyra Sobel
D: Addie Schlensker
D: Mariah Helm
D: Carson Herman
MF: Keila Vega
MF: Jessica O’Donnell
MF: Mia Lisanti
F: Olivia Putrim
F: Gabrielle Cattan
F: Sarah Woods
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Sam Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Kinuko Mrozik
MF: Johanna Bozic
MF: Alana Coffman
MF: Carlye Makuch
MF: Jazzmin Jordan
F: Grace Dunaway
F: Lena Price-Johnson
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the match: Sam Sorich, so., D, Lane