Geneva dominates battle, barely
wins war against Streamwood
Host Sabres hang tough despite being outshot 18-0
By Matt Le Cren
STREAMWOOD – Geneva has traditionally had an easy time beating Streamwood.
That wasn’t the case Monday.
The visiting Vikings completely dominated the Upstate Eight Conference River Division match and did not allow a shot, but were able to muster just one goal in the 1-0 victory at Millennium Field.
Senior Mary Landry broke a scoreless tie when she headed home Quincy Swanson’s corner kick with 30:03 remaining in the second half. That was all Geneva needed to snap a five-game winless streak that included four losses, two by shutout. Landry’s goal was Geneva’s first in three matches.
“It was a big relief, especially since our record lately hasn’t been showing how we’ve been playing,” Landry said. “So it was nice to get one in, finally.”
Like Streamwood, the Vikings (5-7-2, 3-2) have been beset with injuries and are working a lot of young players into the lineup. But they have played better than their record – and Monday’s score – indicates.
“We’re definitely looking to improve,” Landry said. “We’re not used to (having a losing record), but the atmosphere is definitely improving.
“We’ve had a lot of talks, saying we’ve got to pick up our game. It’s nice getting a win after all those cold games that haven’t really turned out how we thought they would.”
The Vikings were dominant in all phases of the game except finishing. They outshot the Sabres 18-0 and rarely let them past midfield for more than 10 seconds at a time.
Streamwood star Tawny Carroll, who has 18 goals this spring and was coming off a five-goal outing Saturday against Harvest Christian, was double-teamed and sometimes triple-teamed whenever the ball came near her. She touched the ball just a handful of times.
“We made sure to man-mark her because we’d heard of what she could do and we made sure to have a player on her at all times,” said Landry, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match. “I think they did a very good job of staying with her, making sure she didn’t have any space to go.”
Sophomore Leah Groven drew the assignment to shadow Carroll. She got plenty of help from teammates such as Swanson, Megan Newingham and Grace Stellick.
“I think Leah Groven did a great job shutting down Tawny Carroll,” Geneva coach Megan Owens said. “I think Meghan Newingham, a senior, has done a great job for us in the back. Also Quincy Swanson did a great job for us today.”
Streamwood coach Matt Polovin, whose team was shut out for the third time, gave kudos to the Vikings for stifling his star striker.
“Tawny knows she’s going to get double-teamed and tripled-teamed,” Polovin said. “She has been all season, and today every time she got near the ball they were chopping her and trying to deny her the opportunity.
“You can only keep her down so long. There’s not really a defender who speed-for-speed can stay with her, but they just used their physicality to knock her off the ball, so that’s a win for them. Not a lot of teams have been able to do that.”
Of course, it is impossible for anyone to score if they don’t get the ball, and that was the case for Carroll. She did what she could to get open only to see her teammates' efforts to pass to her consistently denied. The Sabres (7-8-0, 0-4-0) spent much of the match chasing the ball in vain.
“I’m pleased with how we possessed,” Owens said. “I think we dominated the game. I wish the scoreboard had reflected that more.
“We struggled to finish today. That happens, but we did what we had to do to get the ‘W.’ Obviously I’m pleased with that, and I’m pleased with how we switched the field and how quickly we played. I felt we did a very good job of playing with speed.”
Despite their dominance, the Vikings hard a hard time breaking down Streamwood’s stubborn defense.
“We’ve just got to finish,” Owens said. “Part of it is just being young, so excited to take a shot and forcing it from a distance or from a bad angle. But I’m very happy with how we played. We created a lot.”
The Sabres, who had a four-game winning streak snapped, had a lot to do with Geneva’s ineffectiveness. The back line, led by freshmen Esmerelda Navarro and Alexandra Bonilla, blocked a half-dozen shots, and sophomore goalkeeper Yasmine Resendiz made nine saves in what she termed one of her best efforts.
“We managed to talk, keep in our position, stay focused, keep on our mark,” Resendiz said. “We’re doing good. I’m proud of this team.”
So is Polovin.
“That’s what I told the girls – we should still be proud,” Polovin said. “We lost 7-1 to them last year, so to get a 1-0 result, that’s just a testament to these girls.
"We gave them all we could, and this was by far the best result, I think ever, against Geneva. We had a great weekend, and to come out against one of the top teams in the area, the girls just gave everything they could for 80 minutes. It wasn’t enough, but I can’t take anything away from them.”
Neither could the Vikings, who were suitably impressed with the Sabres.
“They work real hard,” Owens said. “They’re very well-coached. In the back they work really well together as a unit, so props to them.”
In the end, the Vikings got what they wanted.
“They definitely improved from last year,” Landry said. “I think we were hoping to get a few more (goals) in, but I’m happy with the outcome. We got the win. That’s all that matters.”
Starting lineups
Geneva
GK: Carrie Ostergard
D: Quincy Swanson
D: Grace Stellick
D: Megan Newingham
D: Leah Groven
M: Emily Hauser
M: Briar Schwardt
M: Allie Mikos
F: Mary Landry
F: Megan Fitz
F: Madeline Stellick
Streamwood
GK: Yasmine Resendiz
D: Esmerelda Navarro
D: Alexandra Bonilla
D: Rose Miranda
D: Stephanie Corona
M: Cassandra Adan
M: Vanessa Campos
F: Alondra Blanco
F: Kaila Ford
F: Shonali Pierce-Vazquez
F: Tawny Carroll
MVP of the Match: Mary Landry, F, Geneva
wins war against Streamwood
Host Sabres hang tough despite being outshot 18-0
By Matt Le Cren
STREAMWOOD – Geneva has traditionally had an easy time beating Streamwood.
That wasn’t the case Monday.
The visiting Vikings completely dominated the Upstate Eight Conference River Division match and did not allow a shot, but were able to muster just one goal in the 1-0 victory at Millennium Field.
Senior Mary Landry broke a scoreless tie when she headed home Quincy Swanson’s corner kick with 30:03 remaining in the second half. That was all Geneva needed to snap a five-game winless streak that included four losses, two by shutout. Landry’s goal was Geneva’s first in three matches.
“It was a big relief, especially since our record lately hasn’t been showing how we’ve been playing,” Landry said. “So it was nice to get one in, finally.”
Like Streamwood, the Vikings (5-7-2, 3-2) have been beset with injuries and are working a lot of young players into the lineup. But they have played better than their record – and Monday’s score – indicates.
“We’re definitely looking to improve,” Landry said. “We’re not used to (having a losing record), but the atmosphere is definitely improving.
“We’ve had a lot of talks, saying we’ve got to pick up our game. It’s nice getting a win after all those cold games that haven’t really turned out how we thought they would.”
The Vikings were dominant in all phases of the game except finishing. They outshot the Sabres 18-0 and rarely let them past midfield for more than 10 seconds at a time.
Streamwood star Tawny Carroll, who has 18 goals this spring and was coming off a five-goal outing Saturday against Harvest Christian, was double-teamed and sometimes triple-teamed whenever the ball came near her. She touched the ball just a handful of times.
“We made sure to man-mark her because we’d heard of what she could do and we made sure to have a player on her at all times,” said Landry, Chicagoland Soccer's MVP of the Match. “I think they did a very good job of staying with her, making sure she didn’t have any space to go.”
Sophomore Leah Groven drew the assignment to shadow Carroll. She got plenty of help from teammates such as Swanson, Megan Newingham and Grace Stellick.
“I think Leah Groven did a great job shutting down Tawny Carroll,” Geneva coach Megan Owens said. “I think Meghan Newingham, a senior, has done a great job for us in the back. Also Quincy Swanson did a great job for us today.”
Streamwood coach Matt Polovin, whose team was shut out for the third time, gave kudos to the Vikings for stifling his star striker.
“Tawny knows she’s going to get double-teamed and tripled-teamed,” Polovin said. “She has been all season, and today every time she got near the ball they were chopping her and trying to deny her the opportunity.
“You can only keep her down so long. There’s not really a defender who speed-for-speed can stay with her, but they just used their physicality to knock her off the ball, so that’s a win for them. Not a lot of teams have been able to do that.”
Of course, it is impossible for anyone to score if they don’t get the ball, and that was the case for Carroll. She did what she could to get open only to see her teammates' efforts to pass to her consistently denied. The Sabres (7-8-0, 0-4-0) spent much of the match chasing the ball in vain.
“I’m pleased with how we possessed,” Owens said. “I think we dominated the game. I wish the scoreboard had reflected that more.
“We struggled to finish today. That happens, but we did what we had to do to get the ‘W.’ Obviously I’m pleased with that, and I’m pleased with how we switched the field and how quickly we played. I felt we did a very good job of playing with speed.”
Despite their dominance, the Vikings hard a hard time breaking down Streamwood’s stubborn defense.
“We’ve just got to finish,” Owens said. “Part of it is just being young, so excited to take a shot and forcing it from a distance or from a bad angle. But I’m very happy with how we played. We created a lot.”
The Sabres, who had a four-game winning streak snapped, had a lot to do with Geneva’s ineffectiveness. The back line, led by freshmen Esmerelda Navarro and Alexandra Bonilla, blocked a half-dozen shots, and sophomore goalkeeper Yasmine Resendiz made nine saves in what she termed one of her best efforts.
“We managed to talk, keep in our position, stay focused, keep on our mark,” Resendiz said. “We’re doing good. I’m proud of this team.”
So is Polovin.
“That’s what I told the girls – we should still be proud,” Polovin said. “We lost 7-1 to them last year, so to get a 1-0 result, that’s just a testament to these girls.
"We gave them all we could, and this was by far the best result, I think ever, against Geneva. We had a great weekend, and to come out against one of the top teams in the area, the girls just gave everything they could for 80 minutes. It wasn’t enough, but I can’t take anything away from them.”
Neither could the Vikings, who were suitably impressed with the Sabres.
“They work real hard,” Owens said. “They’re very well-coached. In the back they work really well together as a unit, so props to them.”
In the end, the Vikings got what they wanted.
“They definitely improved from last year,” Landry said. “I think we were hoping to get a few more (goals) in, but I’m happy with the outcome. We got the win. That’s all that matters.”
Starting lineups
Geneva
GK: Carrie Ostergard
D: Quincy Swanson
D: Grace Stellick
D: Megan Newingham
D: Leah Groven
M: Emily Hauser
M: Briar Schwardt
M: Allie Mikos
F: Mary Landry
F: Megan Fitz
F: Madeline Stellick
Streamwood
GK: Yasmine Resendiz
D: Esmerelda Navarro
D: Alexandra Bonilla
D: Rose Miranda
D: Stephanie Corona
M: Cassandra Adan
M: Vanessa Campos
F: Alondra Blanco
F: Kaila Ford
F: Shonali Pierce-Vazquez
F: Tawny Carroll
MVP of the Match: Mary Landry, F, Geneva