Naperville N. makes lone goal
hold up against Plainfield N.
Baenziger posts 7th shutout to help Huskies advance
By Patrick Z. McGavin
NAPERVILLE — Abbie Boswell has been a gilded player. She won state championships in her first two years at Naperville North. In her sophomore year, she put together one of the great individual performances when she scored 28 goals and added 11 assists for the Huskies, taking center stage after Zoe Swift was knocked out of action for much of the first month with a severe ankle injury.
Her junior year was one of setbacks and recoveries. She suffered a serious knee injury at a national club tournament in the summer of 2013. She underwent knee surgery that August and endured a grueling recovery. Getting back to her elite status was tough. Her great talent was fusing a power game with her blinding athleticism. The surgery took some getting used to.
"I wasn't as fast last year," she said.
Now the grind and difficulties are a memory.
"I'm completely healthy," she said. "The knee doesn't hurt at all."
Boswell registered her 10th goal of the year by converting a penalty kick in the 32nd minute, which the Huskies maintained for a 1-0 home victory over Plainfield North in the quarterfinals of the Naperville Invitational on Thursday night.
Naperville North (10-1) advances to face defending Class 3A state champion New Trier in the second semifinal Friday at Naperville Central.
"She's so quick and skilled, and when she makes that turn, she's so dangerous," Plainfield North coach Jane Crowe said. "When you play against her, you cannot let her face you, because when she turns and faces you, she's going to do some damage."
Plainfield North (12-2-2) generated the stronger play at the start. The Tigers' dangerous and highly skilled junior midfielder Sam Elster blasted a looping ball from about 24 yards out that broke hard. Huskies senior star keeper Fiona Baenziger appeared to get a partial touch that smashed off the crossbar. Plainfield North freshman Renae Blevins was positioned for the rebound, but the ball sailed high.
"I think in the first 10 minutes we had the better play, but then we allowed them to pressure us more, and we got off-balance," Elster said. "Then they got the penalty kick and we knew from there, it was going to be hard to get the equalizer."
Plainfield North's defense is physical and skilled, keyed by the lanky and ferocious 5-foot-10 Emily DeVaux.
"Their two center backs were the two best kids we've seen this year in the back," Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. "The first seven or eight minutes, they kind of had us on the ropes, and then we started to figure out how they were playing us, how they were dropping more players in the middle. We started to make adjustments and push forward and start to put together our own chances.
"They're a great team, very physical and talented, but after that early opportunity, I thought our defense did a very good job of taking away what they wanted, and we didn't give them any real opportunities until the header there at the very end. "
If Plainfield North set the early tone, Naperville North stepped up its effort and concentration to take that role for the rest of the match.
"I thought they played with more intensity than we did," Crowe said.
In soccer, Crowe explained, the aggressor gets the benefit of the calls. From her point of view, she had a tough angle on the foul call that yielded the penalty kick.
On the play leading up to the Boswell penalty kick, the center official told Crowe a Plainfield North defender tackled Boswell from behind, necessitating the penalty kick.
"The fact of the matter is if you get the ball in the box. you're going to have the opportunities," Crowe said. "They did that enough to be dangerous."
Boswell drilled the ball into the low left corner.
"I'm not sure I want to reveal my strategy," she said. "The big thing is, I take a deep breath. I don't go right away. And then I just hit it."
The dynamics of the game fundamentally shifted.
"Once we got the goal, it gave us the motivation to play harder," Baenziger said.
The team had been winning, she said, but Naperville North's players were not always happy with their performance.
The Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match recorded four saves in posting her seventh shutout of the year.
"The games have been good, but we haven't always played to our liking, and we wanted to change that," Baenziger said. "When we got the goal late in the first half, we knew we had to continue playing harder and not let them score."
After the opening Plainfield North flurry, Naperville North enjoyed superior possession time.
The Huskies pushed the ball wide and also found pockets in the middle of the field to exploit. What made for challenging soccer is how the teams' two strengths, Plainfield North's disruptive defense and Naperville North's propulsive forward attack, converged as opposing factions.
Plainfield North's talented sophomore forward Megan Breier almost broke through with a dramatic equalizer in the 80th minute, but her header sailed wide and high.
Tiger keeper Emma Veselsky was strong, blocking a hard ball by junior Alexis Dandridge and denying a left-footed blast by Maddie Krecji.
Naperville North shaped the game to its end and denied the Tigers from making the necessary counter.
"They were more physical, and they won more balls in the air, and when you do that, when you're winning balls, that means the other team is playing defense or playing from behind," Crowe said.
The result sets up a Naperville Invitatitional semifinal between the two teams that many consider the best in Illinois.
"We're pumped about playing New Trier," Baenziger said. "We're going to be ready to play. This is a close-knit group. We all get along, and we love playing together, and we're just excited about going out there and seeing what we can do."
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
GK: Emma Veselsky
D: Brooke Polonus
D: Emily Devaux
D: Abby Gustafson
D: Karsyn Stirrett
M: Reyse Stirrett
M: Jessica Christmas
M: Sam Elster
M: Megan Breier
M: Natalie Auble
F: Erin Chynoweth
Naperville North
GK: Fiona Baenziger
D: Ashley Santos
D: Morgan Krause
D: Jen Fortman
D: Emily Wilhelm
M: Maddie Krecji
M: Olivia Stapleton
M: Shaina Dudas
M: Morgan Lockridge
M: Allison Svoboda
F: Abbie Boswell
MVP of the Match: Fiona Baenziger, GK, Naperville North
hold up against Plainfield N.
Baenziger posts 7th shutout to help Huskies advance
By Patrick Z. McGavin
NAPERVILLE — Abbie Boswell has been a gilded player. She won state championships in her first two years at Naperville North. In her sophomore year, she put together one of the great individual performances when she scored 28 goals and added 11 assists for the Huskies, taking center stage after Zoe Swift was knocked out of action for much of the first month with a severe ankle injury.
Her junior year was one of setbacks and recoveries. She suffered a serious knee injury at a national club tournament in the summer of 2013. She underwent knee surgery that August and endured a grueling recovery. Getting back to her elite status was tough. Her great talent was fusing a power game with her blinding athleticism. The surgery took some getting used to.
"I wasn't as fast last year," she said.
Now the grind and difficulties are a memory.
"I'm completely healthy," she said. "The knee doesn't hurt at all."
Boswell registered her 10th goal of the year by converting a penalty kick in the 32nd minute, which the Huskies maintained for a 1-0 home victory over Plainfield North in the quarterfinals of the Naperville Invitational on Thursday night.
Naperville North (10-1) advances to face defending Class 3A state champion New Trier in the second semifinal Friday at Naperville Central.
"She's so quick and skilled, and when she makes that turn, she's so dangerous," Plainfield North coach Jane Crowe said. "When you play against her, you cannot let her face you, because when she turns and faces you, she's going to do some damage."
Plainfield North (12-2-2) generated the stronger play at the start. The Tigers' dangerous and highly skilled junior midfielder Sam Elster blasted a looping ball from about 24 yards out that broke hard. Huskies senior star keeper Fiona Baenziger appeared to get a partial touch that smashed off the crossbar. Plainfield North freshman Renae Blevins was positioned for the rebound, but the ball sailed high.
"I think in the first 10 minutes we had the better play, but then we allowed them to pressure us more, and we got off-balance," Elster said. "Then they got the penalty kick and we knew from there, it was going to be hard to get the equalizer."
Plainfield North's defense is physical and skilled, keyed by the lanky and ferocious 5-foot-10 Emily DeVaux.
"Their two center backs were the two best kids we've seen this year in the back," Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. "The first seven or eight minutes, they kind of had us on the ropes, and then we started to figure out how they were playing us, how they were dropping more players in the middle. We started to make adjustments and push forward and start to put together our own chances.
"They're a great team, very physical and talented, but after that early opportunity, I thought our defense did a very good job of taking away what they wanted, and we didn't give them any real opportunities until the header there at the very end. "
If Plainfield North set the early tone, Naperville North stepped up its effort and concentration to take that role for the rest of the match.
"I thought they played with more intensity than we did," Crowe said.
In soccer, Crowe explained, the aggressor gets the benefit of the calls. From her point of view, she had a tough angle on the foul call that yielded the penalty kick.
On the play leading up to the Boswell penalty kick, the center official told Crowe a Plainfield North defender tackled Boswell from behind, necessitating the penalty kick.
"The fact of the matter is if you get the ball in the box. you're going to have the opportunities," Crowe said. "They did that enough to be dangerous."
Boswell drilled the ball into the low left corner.
"I'm not sure I want to reveal my strategy," she said. "The big thing is, I take a deep breath. I don't go right away. And then I just hit it."
The dynamics of the game fundamentally shifted.
"Once we got the goal, it gave us the motivation to play harder," Baenziger said.
The team had been winning, she said, but Naperville North's players were not always happy with their performance.
The Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match recorded four saves in posting her seventh shutout of the year.
"The games have been good, but we haven't always played to our liking, and we wanted to change that," Baenziger said. "When we got the goal late in the first half, we knew we had to continue playing harder and not let them score."
After the opening Plainfield North flurry, Naperville North enjoyed superior possession time.
The Huskies pushed the ball wide and also found pockets in the middle of the field to exploit. What made for challenging soccer is how the teams' two strengths, Plainfield North's disruptive defense and Naperville North's propulsive forward attack, converged as opposing factions.
Plainfield North's talented sophomore forward Megan Breier almost broke through with a dramatic equalizer in the 80th minute, but her header sailed wide and high.
Tiger keeper Emma Veselsky was strong, blocking a hard ball by junior Alexis Dandridge and denying a left-footed blast by Maddie Krecji.
Naperville North shaped the game to its end and denied the Tigers from making the necessary counter.
"They were more physical, and they won more balls in the air, and when you do that, when you're winning balls, that means the other team is playing defense or playing from behind," Crowe said.
The result sets up a Naperville Invitatitional semifinal between the two teams that many consider the best in Illinois.
"We're pumped about playing New Trier," Baenziger said. "We're going to be ready to play. This is a close-knit group. We all get along, and we love playing together, and we're just excited about going out there and seeing what we can do."
Starting lineups
Plainfield North
GK: Emma Veselsky
D: Brooke Polonus
D: Emily Devaux
D: Abby Gustafson
D: Karsyn Stirrett
M: Reyse Stirrett
M: Jessica Christmas
M: Sam Elster
M: Megan Breier
M: Natalie Auble
F: Erin Chynoweth
Naperville North
GK: Fiona Baenziger
D: Ashley Santos
D: Morgan Krause
D: Jen Fortman
D: Emily Wilhelm
M: Maddie Krecji
M: Olivia Stapleton
M: Shaina Dudas
M: Morgan Lockridge
M: Allison Svoboda
F: Abbie Boswell
MVP of the Match: Fiona Baenziger, GK, Naperville North