Wheaton N. gets motivated
late, dispatches Lane Tech
Falcons come out firing in 2nd half at PepsiCo Showdown
By Steve Millar
SCHAUMBURG -- Wheaton North spent virtually the entire first half Saturday on the attack, firing eight shots, including five on goal, in the opening 40 minutes.
So nobody on the Falcons’ sideline was satisfied with the slim 1-0 lead that they took into the break.
“We probably should have scored three or four goals in the first half,” Wheaton North coach Tim McEvilly said. “We had some point-blank shots, but you have to give credit to Lane Tech’s keepers (Sam DeGryse and Maggie Grossman). They were very effective.”
The halftime message for McEvilly was simple: capitalize on chances. Message received.
“We were a little frustrated at halftime,” North’s Becca Kouwe said. “We just used it as motivation, though. It made us want to come out and get more goals. The key was just turning up the intensity in the second half.”
Kouwe and Kailee Sowers each scored in the second half to give the Falcons some breathing room, and they went on to a 3-0 win over Lane Tech in a PepsiCo Showdown Aquafina Bracket first-round game at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
Eleventh-seeded Wheaton North (4-0-2) will meet No. 6 seed Loyola, a 2-1 overtime winner over Downers Grove North, in the second round Tuesday.
“We’re very excited, always, to play in the (PepsiCo Showdown),” McEvilly said. “We were fortunate enough to win it the first year they had it on the girls' side (in 2008), and we always look forward to it and always want to play well in it. It’s good to start with a win.”
It was a win that the powerful leg of Kouwe, Chicagoland Soccer’s MVP of the Match, helped assure.
The junior was just steps from the midfield line when she stepped up to take a free kick with 18 minutes remaining and crushed a shot that went over Grossman’s head and just under the crossbar to make it 2-0.
“(McEvilly) was talking to me and telling me to lean back, because I had a couple of free kicks that ended up on the ground,” Kouwe said. “I thought it was going over, but it went in. It was exciting. I’ve scored from that far out before, but not for a long time.”
McEvilly knows that Kouwe’s leg is a major weapon.
“She has that ability on those free kicks, not necessarily to score all that often, but to make something happen,” he said. “She can play a ball at the crossbar, and it’s very dangerous and gives us a lot of chances.”
Sowers, a reserve freshman defender, iced the win with the first goal of her high school career. She put in a rebound after Grossman saved the initial shot from Gwyneth Phillips.
Sowers, who called the goal “very exciting,” also contributed heavily to the shutout, along with fellow defenders Niamh Kane, Janelle Blackwell, Morghin Klein, Lauren Healy and Jaden Trometer.
Goalkeeper Zoe Welsh made two saves to record the shutout.
“We really had to watch out for (Lane Tech’s Detzi Rovales),” Sowers said. “She was really strong. We knew if we were just patient and we put enough pressure on her, we’d be OK.”
Blackwell said teamwork was the biggest key for the defense.
“We’ve been improving all year defensively,” she said. “Communication is so important to us, and we’re all communicating well and helping each other out back there.”
DeGryse kept Lane Tech (4-4) in the game with four big first-half saves.
“Our goalies are really strong,” Lane Tech coach Michelle Vale-Suarez said. “Sam (DeGryse) is a senior who started off on one of our lower levels as a freshman but played varsity the last two seasons and she’s improved a lot. Maggie (Grossman) is a freshman who is very talented. She’s spent some time playing in the Olympic Development Program and is a great keeper, too.”
The one Falcon who managed to get a shot by DeGryse was Lexi Pelafas, who was left open in the middle of the box, took a pass from Maggie Liechty and scored in the 16th minute.
“(Liechty) made a good pass, and I was open,” Pelafas said. “I just chested it down and volleyed it with my left into the right side of the net.”
Pelafas wreaked havoc throughout the first half and forced the Indians to double team her.
“She demands attention,” McEvilly said. “When she’s getting all that attention from at least two defenders, it gives other girls chances.”
Lane Tech’s Nicole Vega created a pair of scoring chances for the Indians in the first half. In the 32nd minute, she made a nice run down the seam and passed to Andrea Cervantes, whose bouncing shot was handled by Welsh.
Vega had a shot of her own two minutes later that Welsh also stopped.
“We’re just looking for our girls to capitalize on their chances,” Vale-Suarez said. “We got a few chances, and we didn’t take advantage.
“Going forward in the tournament, I hope they can get themselves in the right mindset. We’re coming off spring break, and I think (Saturday) the girls’ minds were still on the beach a bit too much.”
The Indians will continue in the tournament with consolation play.
Wheaton North hopes to stay on the winners’ bracket for a long while.
“We have high expectations,” Blackwell said. “Last year, we didn’t so well (losing to Warren in the first round), but we have a much better team this year. We expect to go far.”
Starting lineups
Wheaton North
GK-Zoe Welsh
D-Niamh Kane
D-Morghin Klein
D-Janelle Blackwell
D-Lauren Haley
M-Gina Leone
M-Bailey Gates
M-Becca Kouwe
M-Gwyneth Phillips
F-Hannah Atkinson
F-Lexi Pelafas
Lane Tech
GK-Sam DeGryse
D-Maeve McMahon
D-Julia Burbano
D-Margarita Mercado
D-Quintessa Wright
M-Andrea Cervantes
M-Larissa Seibt
M-Detzi Reveles
M-Jazzmin Jordan
F-Nicole Vega
F-Isabella Oganovich
MVP of the Match: Becca Kouwe, MF, Wheaton North
Officials: Constantin Malacili, Alin Popescu, George Zlate
late, dispatches Lane Tech
Falcons come out firing in 2nd half at PepsiCo Showdown
By Steve Millar
SCHAUMBURG -- Wheaton North spent virtually the entire first half Saturday on the attack, firing eight shots, including five on goal, in the opening 40 minutes.
So nobody on the Falcons’ sideline was satisfied with the slim 1-0 lead that they took into the break.
“We probably should have scored three or four goals in the first half,” Wheaton North coach Tim McEvilly said. “We had some point-blank shots, but you have to give credit to Lane Tech’s keepers (Sam DeGryse and Maggie Grossman). They were very effective.”
The halftime message for McEvilly was simple: capitalize on chances. Message received.
“We were a little frustrated at halftime,” North’s Becca Kouwe said. “We just used it as motivation, though. It made us want to come out and get more goals. The key was just turning up the intensity in the second half.”
Kouwe and Kailee Sowers each scored in the second half to give the Falcons some breathing room, and they went on to a 3-0 win over Lane Tech in a PepsiCo Showdown Aquafina Bracket first-round game at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
Eleventh-seeded Wheaton North (4-0-2) will meet No. 6 seed Loyola, a 2-1 overtime winner over Downers Grove North, in the second round Tuesday.
“We’re very excited, always, to play in the (PepsiCo Showdown),” McEvilly said. “We were fortunate enough to win it the first year they had it on the girls' side (in 2008), and we always look forward to it and always want to play well in it. It’s good to start with a win.”
It was a win that the powerful leg of Kouwe, Chicagoland Soccer’s MVP of the Match, helped assure.
The junior was just steps from the midfield line when she stepped up to take a free kick with 18 minutes remaining and crushed a shot that went over Grossman’s head and just under the crossbar to make it 2-0.
“(McEvilly) was talking to me and telling me to lean back, because I had a couple of free kicks that ended up on the ground,” Kouwe said. “I thought it was going over, but it went in. It was exciting. I’ve scored from that far out before, but not for a long time.”
McEvilly knows that Kouwe’s leg is a major weapon.
“She has that ability on those free kicks, not necessarily to score all that often, but to make something happen,” he said. “She can play a ball at the crossbar, and it’s very dangerous and gives us a lot of chances.”
Sowers, a reserve freshman defender, iced the win with the first goal of her high school career. She put in a rebound after Grossman saved the initial shot from Gwyneth Phillips.
Sowers, who called the goal “very exciting,” also contributed heavily to the shutout, along with fellow defenders Niamh Kane, Janelle Blackwell, Morghin Klein, Lauren Healy and Jaden Trometer.
Goalkeeper Zoe Welsh made two saves to record the shutout.
“We really had to watch out for (Lane Tech’s Detzi Rovales),” Sowers said. “She was really strong. We knew if we were just patient and we put enough pressure on her, we’d be OK.”
Blackwell said teamwork was the biggest key for the defense.
“We’ve been improving all year defensively,” she said. “Communication is so important to us, and we’re all communicating well and helping each other out back there.”
DeGryse kept Lane Tech (4-4) in the game with four big first-half saves.
“Our goalies are really strong,” Lane Tech coach Michelle Vale-Suarez said. “Sam (DeGryse) is a senior who started off on one of our lower levels as a freshman but played varsity the last two seasons and she’s improved a lot. Maggie (Grossman) is a freshman who is very talented. She’s spent some time playing in the Olympic Development Program and is a great keeper, too.”
The one Falcon who managed to get a shot by DeGryse was Lexi Pelafas, who was left open in the middle of the box, took a pass from Maggie Liechty and scored in the 16th minute.
“(Liechty) made a good pass, and I was open,” Pelafas said. “I just chested it down and volleyed it with my left into the right side of the net.”
Pelafas wreaked havoc throughout the first half and forced the Indians to double team her.
“She demands attention,” McEvilly said. “When she’s getting all that attention from at least two defenders, it gives other girls chances.”
Lane Tech’s Nicole Vega created a pair of scoring chances for the Indians in the first half. In the 32nd minute, she made a nice run down the seam and passed to Andrea Cervantes, whose bouncing shot was handled by Welsh.
Vega had a shot of her own two minutes later that Welsh also stopped.
“We’re just looking for our girls to capitalize on their chances,” Vale-Suarez said. “We got a few chances, and we didn’t take advantage.
“Going forward in the tournament, I hope they can get themselves in the right mindset. We’re coming off spring break, and I think (Saturday) the girls’ minds were still on the beach a bit too much.”
The Indians will continue in the tournament with consolation play.
Wheaton North hopes to stay on the winners’ bracket for a long while.
“We have high expectations,” Blackwell said. “Last year, we didn’t so well (losing to Warren in the first round), but we have a much better team this year. We expect to go far.”
Starting lineups
Wheaton North
GK-Zoe Welsh
D-Niamh Kane
D-Morghin Klein
D-Janelle Blackwell
D-Lauren Haley
M-Gina Leone
M-Bailey Gates
M-Becca Kouwe
M-Gwyneth Phillips
F-Hannah Atkinson
F-Lexi Pelafas
Lane Tech
GK-Sam DeGryse
D-Maeve McMahon
D-Julia Burbano
D-Margarita Mercado
D-Quintessa Wright
M-Andrea Cervantes
M-Larissa Seibt
M-Detzi Reveles
M-Jazzmin Jordan
F-Nicole Vega
F-Isabella Oganovich
MVP of the Match: Becca Kouwe, MF, Wheaton North
Officials: Constantin Malacili, Alin Popescu, George Zlate