Tigers and Bulldogs look
ragged in scoreless tie
Wheaton Warrenville South, Batavia come away unsatisfied
By Matt Le Cren
WHEATON -- The atmosphere Saturday morning was dreary, and the play on the field even more so.
Wheaton Warrenville South and Batavia came into the nonconference match nursing several injuries and got into a physical, ragged match that ended in a 0-0 tie at Red Grange Field.
Not surprisingly, the goalkeepers played a big role in the lack of offense. Wheaton Warrenville South junior Nell Rosenthal played one of her best games, recording eight saves to post her seventh shutout, three of which have come in the last four games.
Batavia sophomore Jenny Scara wasn’t tested as often but still made five saves, including two tough ones, both of which came in the second half, to register her 11th clean sheet.
“I feel like I was really playing at the top of my game today,” said Rosenthal, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “I’m really happy about it.”
Rosenthal made her first save in the fourth minute when she jumped to tip a shot over the crossbar. Though Batavia dominated the first half with a 9-2 edge in shots, Rosenthal didn’t face another difficult situation until the second half.
“It was a lot of pressure on me, but I try to keep in the game,” Rosenthal said. “I’m always following the ball around, always trying to get my teammates up and get them to block the shots so that I have to save as little as possible. I always keep on my toes and hope that I can save it when it comes to it.”
That time came with 26:30 left in the second half when the Bulldogs (12-3-4) were awarded a free kick just outside the top of the box. Alexis Bryl sent a roller past the defensive wall to Rachel Reinecke, who dribbled around the left end and fired from in close, only to see Rosenthal make a kick save.
Eight minutes later, Rosenthal made the play of the game, lunging to her left to make a great diving save on a 22-yard shot from Tori Renfus.
Batavia had one last chance with 6:50 to go on a partial breakaway, but Carly Simonian had the ball knocked away from her by Rosenthal just inside the top of the box.
“I think she’s gaining confidence,” Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said. “We’ve seen eye-to-eye on allowing her to commit and make mistakes. I’d rather have that and (have her) be commitable than second guess and try to rethink in the process.
“I thought she played with an open mind and a clear mind today, saw the ball well. Case in point was where she tipped that over (in the first half). Her feet were right, her timing was perfect. and she did exactly what she had to do with that.”
But little else went right for either side. The injury-plagued Tigers (9-7-1) were without the services of seven players and didn’t get much going until the second half.
That’s when the hosts started controlling the play and forcing Scara to get in on the action. Scara came off her line to deflect a shot by Tori Adomshick wide of the left post with 31:45 remaining. She then made her toughest save with 15:30 to go when she sprawled to her right to stop a shot from Morgan Schwerin.
Adomshick got to the rebound of that shot but her attempt was blocked over the end line by a defender.
“I thought their goalie came out with abandonment, and they carried all the play (in the first half), given that they were more assertive around the ball, willing to get a foot in, get a head in, get a body in and then being composed,” Callipari said. “But we kept everything in front of us and we just had to weather the long shots.
“Then in the second half we tried to explain to (the Tigers) that we’re going to be on our heels unless you get on your toes and you start deciding that we’re going to go forward instead of backtracking in all our tackles. I thought we took the game over, and we created a lot of opportunities because of that assertiveness. You want them to play with that type of intensity and tenacity. I think we demonstrated that.”
The Tigers fwere outshot 15-9 overall, but that didn’t mean the Bulldogs were pleased.
“It was an ugly game,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “We just didn’t want to get anybody hurt. I thought poor officiating didn’t help. That was the worst-officiated game all year for us.
“We’ve got people who were resting and who are injured. They weren’t getting significant minutes today, especially how the officiating was. I’m not putting them out there in that mess.
“I thought we linked some passes up better in the first half, created more, but as it progressed it got very sloppy. We’re just happy for the game to be over with.”
Batavia senior midfielder Olivia Callipari, who is the rival coach's daughter, wasn’t thrilled either.
“I think this was one of our weaker games,” she said. “We haven’t practiced in three days, but that shouldn’t be an excuse. We still got some touches on the ball, and I think our next game, our Senior Night on Tuesday (against East Aurora), we’re going to come out a lot stronger and go harder.”
The Calliparis provided an interesting subplot. It was the second – and final – time that Guy would coach against his daughter’s team. Olivia had one chance to put her team in front when she took a 40-yard free kick, but her attempt bounced wide of the left post with 24:30 remaining.
Afterward, Olivia Callipari received the Sportsmanship Award the Tigers present to an opposing player after every game.
“It just goes to whoever they thought played a good game and had good sportsmanship throughout the game, and I think for this game it was much needed, with all the yelling and arguing,” Olivia Callipari said. “I needed to stay calm and keep my team focused and not worrying about the silly calls.
“It’s always interesting (playing against her dad). It’s not the result we wanted, but we’re still happy with it.”
Starting lineups
Batavia
GK: Jenny Scara
D: Alison Grimm
D: Kayla Stolfa
D: Rachel Reinecke
M: Olivia Callipari
M: Alexis Bryl
M: Karina Rosales
F: Tori Renfus
F: Lexi Stone
F: Mackenzie Foster
F: Keegan Maris
Wheaton Warrenville South
GK: Nell Rosenthal
D: Maya Giaquinta
D: Rachel Conrady
D: Shannon Erhardt
D: Ava Fickle
D: Julia Hildebrand
M: Julia Martz
M: Rachel Deeman
M: Tori Adomshick
M: Nikki Molino
F: Anna Fank
MVP of the Match: Nell Rosenthal, GK, Wheaton Warrenville South
ragged in scoreless tie
Wheaton Warrenville South, Batavia come away unsatisfied
By Matt Le Cren
WHEATON -- The atmosphere Saturday morning was dreary, and the play on the field even more so.
Wheaton Warrenville South and Batavia came into the nonconference match nursing several injuries and got into a physical, ragged match that ended in a 0-0 tie at Red Grange Field.
Not surprisingly, the goalkeepers played a big role in the lack of offense. Wheaton Warrenville South junior Nell Rosenthal played one of her best games, recording eight saves to post her seventh shutout, three of which have come in the last four games.
Batavia sophomore Jenny Scara wasn’t tested as often but still made five saves, including two tough ones, both of which came in the second half, to register her 11th clean sheet.
“I feel like I was really playing at the top of my game today,” said Rosenthal, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “I’m really happy about it.”
Rosenthal made her first save in the fourth minute when she jumped to tip a shot over the crossbar. Though Batavia dominated the first half with a 9-2 edge in shots, Rosenthal didn’t face another difficult situation until the second half.
“It was a lot of pressure on me, but I try to keep in the game,” Rosenthal said. “I’m always following the ball around, always trying to get my teammates up and get them to block the shots so that I have to save as little as possible. I always keep on my toes and hope that I can save it when it comes to it.”
That time came with 26:30 left in the second half when the Bulldogs (12-3-4) were awarded a free kick just outside the top of the box. Alexis Bryl sent a roller past the defensive wall to Rachel Reinecke, who dribbled around the left end and fired from in close, only to see Rosenthal make a kick save.
Eight minutes later, Rosenthal made the play of the game, lunging to her left to make a great diving save on a 22-yard shot from Tori Renfus.
Batavia had one last chance with 6:50 to go on a partial breakaway, but Carly Simonian had the ball knocked away from her by Rosenthal just inside the top of the box.
“I think she’s gaining confidence,” Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said. “We’ve seen eye-to-eye on allowing her to commit and make mistakes. I’d rather have that and (have her) be commitable than second guess and try to rethink in the process.
“I thought she played with an open mind and a clear mind today, saw the ball well. Case in point was where she tipped that over (in the first half). Her feet were right, her timing was perfect. and she did exactly what she had to do with that.”
But little else went right for either side. The injury-plagued Tigers (9-7-1) were without the services of seven players and didn’t get much going until the second half.
That’s when the hosts started controlling the play and forcing Scara to get in on the action. Scara came off her line to deflect a shot by Tori Adomshick wide of the left post with 31:45 remaining. She then made her toughest save with 15:30 to go when she sprawled to her right to stop a shot from Morgan Schwerin.
Adomshick got to the rebound of that shot but her attempt was blocked over the end line by a defender.
“I thought their goalie came out with abandonment, and they carried all the play (in the first half), given that they were more assertive around the ball, willing to get a foot in, get a head in, get a body in and then being composed,” Callipari said. “But we kept everything in front of us and we just had to weather the long shots.
“Then in the second half we tried to explain to (the Tigers) that we’re going to be on our heels unless you get on your toes and you start deciding that we’re going to go forward instead of backtracking in all our tackles. I thought we took the game over, and we created a lot of opportunities because of that assertiveness. You want them to play with that type of intensity and tenacity. I think we demonstrated that.”
The Tigers fwere outshot 15-9 overall, but that didn’t mean the Bulldogs were pleased.
“It was an ugly game,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “We just didn’t want to get anybody hurt. I thought poor officiating didn’t help. That was the worst-officiated game all year for us.
“We’ve got people who were resting and who are injured. They weren’t getting significant minutes today, especially how the officiating was. I’m not putting them out there in that mess.
“I thought we linked some passes up better in the first half, created more, but as it progressed it got very sloppy. We’re just happy for the game to be over with.”
Batavia senior midfielder Olivia Callipari, who is the rival coach's daughter, wasn’t thrilled either.
“I think this was one of our weaker games,” she said. “We haven’t practiced in three days, but that shouldn’t be an excuse. We still got some touches on the ball, and I think our next game, our Senior Night on Tuesday (against East Aurora), we’re going to come out a lot stronger and go harder.”
The Calliparis provided an interesting subplot. It was the second – and final – time that Guy would coach against his daughter’s team. Olivia had one chance to put her team in front when she took a 40-yard free kick, but her attempt bounced wide of the left post with 24:30 remaining.
Afterward, Olivia Callipari received the Sportsmanship Award the Tigers present to an opposing player after every game.
“It just goes to whoever they thought played a good game and had good sportsmanship throughout the game, and I think for this game it was much needed, with all the yelling and arguing,” Olivia Callipari said. “I needed to stay calm and keep my team focused and not worrying about the silly calls.
“It’s always interesting (playing against her dad). It’s not the result we wanted, but we’re still happy with it.”
Starting lineups
Batavia
GK: Jenny Scara
D: Alison Grimm
D: Kayla Stolfa
D: Rachel Reinecke
M: Olivia Callipari
M: Alexis Bryl
M: Karina Rosales
F: Tori Renfus
F: Lexi Stone
F: Mackenzie Foster
F: Keegan Maris
Wheaton Warrenville South
GK: Nell Rosenthal
D: Maya Giaquinta
D: Rachel Conrady
D: Shannon Erhardt
D: Ava Fickle
D: Julia Hildebrand
M: Julia Martz
M: Rachel Deeman
M: Tori Adomshick
M: Nikki Molino
F: Anna Fank
MVP of the Match: Nell Rosenthal, GK, Wheaton Warrenville South