Deerfield warms up, rolls past Palatine
Warriors forget cold start with 5-goal burst for road win
By Mike Garofola
PALATINE -- Riley Schimanski and Emily Fox starred as 21st-ranked Deerfield cruised to a 5-1 nonconference road victory at a frigid Chic Anderson Stadium.
The Warriors duo both registered doubles: Schimanski in the first half; and Fox after the intermission. Ally Linn getting into the scoring act when the visitors attack erupted for three goals within four minutes in the second half that ended the Deerfield scoring and gave the Warriors their fourth victory in as many games.
After a less-than-impressive opening that lasted into the quarter hour, the visitors got themselves on their collective front foot when Schimanski steered in her one-timer from in close. After Pirates keeper Kate Latek's initial save on Ryane Emory was allowed to spill free, the freshman delivered the ball to the opportunistic Schimanski, who bagged her fifth of the year in the 17th minute.
"We were coming off spring break (and) not training for nearly a week," said Schimanski, whose team-leading 20 goals earned her a spot on the Chicagoland Soccer All-State team last season. “I think that was the reason for the start we had tonight and why scoring the first goal was so important for us.
"Ryane gave me a great ball, and I was in the right spot to put it into the back of the net. After that goal, I felt like the game kind of opened up for us, and we began to play the way we all know we can."
"We can say coming off of spring break was an excuse for our slow start. It likely was,” said Warriors manager Rich Grady. “Nonetheless, we were not very sharp early on, didn't go hard into our tackles or really move much away from the ball.
“When we finally began to play, we put together some very good soccer, especially in our attack."
Grady has led the Warriors well since he took over in 2007. Deerfield has a Class AA runnerup trophy from 2016 and six regional titles in that span.
Grady's Monday counterpart Willie Filian will retire following this school year with close to 700 victories between the Palatine girls and boys programs. During a memorable four-year stretch beginning in 1993-94 school year, the Pirates qualified for the state tourney each season and carried away three top-four state trophies, including the title hardware in 1995.
The boys won the title in the fall of 1994 for a clean-sweep for Palatine.
"The years have really flown by, it's like you don't really know where they have all gone," said Filian, who will pass the managers' baton to former player Aaron Morris.
Filian was inducted into the IHSSCA Hall of Fame in 2010. He has coached all five of his children: Megan; Willie Jr.; Mackenzie; Kevin: and Kacie, who is finishing up her collegiate career at St. Bonaventure.
With the game still at 0-0, the two sides traded half-chances in the 16th minute from Mia Ramirez for the Pirates, and Emory moments later. Then Schimanski finished what Fox and Emory started.
"We just didn't play well at all in the first 10-12 minutes, but scoring first, with Riley putting it in was really big for us," said Fox, who shared Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors with Schimanski.
The two Warriors earned their post-match accolades not solely based on their scoring prowess. In the case of Schimanski, it was her constant movement, ability to collect the ball and attack with speed, and purpose and awareness in the final third that earned her share of the honor.
Fox, just a sophomore, handled the number 9 spot like a veteran with her exquisite two-footed touch, meaningful distribution, and composure on the ball that allowed her to use her trickery to beat one, two, or sometimes three opponents when going forward.
"We're fortunate to have both Riley and Emily, who are key figures in our attack, and who make a very talented group of players that much better," Grady said.
Fox, Jessie Fisher and Avery Kingsepp provided a dynamic partnership in the Warriors 3-5-2 formation during the first half. Ally Linn and Holly Deutsch, who led the club in assists a year ago with 23, added pace and quality service from the outside.
"Their speed on the outside, especially in the second half from no. 15 (Deutsch) gave us so much trouble,” said Filian. “She beat a couple of our players before sending in some great balls, two of which led to goals."
“(Holly) can do a lot of things for us on the outside, which you saw tonight,” said Grady. “And with her effort off the bench, Ryane Emory impressed, as did Jessie (Fisher) in the midfield."
Linn, Fox, and Schimanski enjoyed a strong connection after the opening goal which led to one shot from Fox and two from Schimanski going close before the half hour.
Palatine slowly came into this contest when the ball found junior midfielder Paige Millstone. She formed the heart of the Pirates attack with center back Allie Henning and senior Madi Stark, who is a classic target player up-top because of her size, strength, and ability to hold the ball.
"Deerfield is a really good team with a lot of good attacking players," offered Millstone, who will attend Kentucky in the fall to study sports communications. “We had trouble in the first part of the first half but ended up playing them pretty well even though we were down two goals at the break.”
The home side concede Schimanski's second of the evening at 31 minutes when Simone Criz, just brought on by Grady, slipped past her mark on the left side before playing across a lovely helper onto her teammates foot for a 12-yard blast.
Stark created the Pirates first corner of the night in the 36th minute with the help of Sofi Klein. The opportunity at the top of the box that was blocked on the way in.
The Warriors (4-0-0) hit top gear minutes after the intermission when they beautifully orchestrated three super-quick goals to insure victory before the hour.
Deutsch and Schimanski facilitated the first tally of the second half. Latek make a nice save on Fox's initial attempt, but the force of her blast was too much for the keeper to keep the ball from nestling into the back of the net.
Linn unloaded a wicked, angled cracker from the left side which ended in the far inside netting 60 seconds later. With the Warriors now brimming with confidence, the lead became 5-0 after a brilliant solo effort from Fox. She snaked her way into space and finished with a deadly 25-yard shot.
"That first 20 minutes of the second half showed just how much attacking talent we have on this team," said Schimanski, who is still sorting out her future and whether it will include playing collegiate soccer next fall. “Emily scored two great goals; she's just a sophomore. And we have a really nice blend of young and experienced players. If it all comes together, it should make us a very good team.”
Grady had five seniors and sophomores, per class, in his first 11. Freshman Aubrey Galvan rounded out the group. She is coming off an extraordinary rookie season for the Warriors basketball team, which lost in the supersectional to eventual 3A state champion Carmel.
In the first half, Grady stationed Galvan up-top alongside Schimanski. After the break he used the pair as part of a three-man forward line when the Warriors switched to a 3-4-3 after the break.
After the visitors took their five-goal advantage, Grady and his staff began to bring on their reserves to get valuable experience.
Palatine (0-3-0) continued to play hard and eventually pulled one back to dash the hopes of a fourth-consecutive clean-sheet for keeper Lauren Gottleib and her backline mates Emma Gassman, Katie Morgan and Madeline Stevens. The trio exhibited complete confidence in playing back to Gottleib when needed. She, in turn, connected with the trio to jump-start the attack.
"The lockdown defending of Morgan and Stevens allows us a lot of freedom to get forward with numbers thus far,” said Grady. “But we all know there's always room to improve in all parts of our game."
Palatine got on the board when Madison Adcock's looping shot from in-close went just over the gloves of Gottleib and under the bar in the 72nd minute.
"We didn't give up and played hard until the final whistle," said Henning. “That says a lot about this team.”
"(Henning) is the glue of our backline,” said Filian. “Paige (Millstone) is the player who gives our attack have some bite and purpose. We'll continue to work on putting two solid halves of soccer together as we continue to go forward this season."
"So far, so good for us,” said Grady. “I've been impressed by our speed of play and our ability to combine passes to get behind our opponents.
"We have scored 23 goals in our first four games and have had chances to score even more."
"We have quality attacking options, who are not in our starting lineup. So our depth, and the return of 14 players from last year, should give us a good chance each time out."
Starting lineups
Deerfield (3-5-2)
G- Lauren Gottleib
D- Madeline Stevens
D- Katie Morgan
D- Emma Gassman
M- Ally Linn
M- Emily Fox
M- Avery Kingsepp
M- Jessie Fisher
M- Holly Deutsch
F- Aubrey Galvan
F- Riley Schimanski
Palatine
G- Kate Latek
D-Gretchen Kiesler
D- Allie Henning
D- Maya Virgen
D- Vanessa DelReal
M- Mia Ramirez
M- Paige Millstone
M- Madison Adcock
M- Sofi Klein
F- Olivia Marion
F- Madi Stark
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Emily Fox, so., MF, Deerfield; Riley Schimanski, sr., F, Deerfield
Referee: Marek Zacios
Scoring summary
First half
Deerfield: Schimanski (Emory) 17'
Deerfield: Schimanski (Criz) 31'
Second half
Deerfield: Fox (Deutsch, Schimanski) 50'
Deerfield: Linn (Deutsch, Fisher) 52'
Deerfield: Fox (U/A) 53'
Palatine: Adcock (Riley) 72'
Warriors forget cold start with 5-goal burst for road win
By Mike Garofola
PALATINE -- Riley Schimanski and Emily Fox starred as 21st-ranked Deerfield cruised to a 5-1 nonconference road victory at a frigid Chic Anderson Stadium.
The Warriors duo both registered doubles: Schimanski in the first half; and Fox after the intermission. Ally Linn getting into the scoring act when the visitors attack erupted for three goals within four minutes in the second half that ended the Deerfield scoring and gave the Warriors their fourth victory in as many games.
After a less-than-impressive opening that lasted into the quarter hour, the visitors got themselves on their collective front foot when Schimanski steered in her one-timer from in close. After Pirates keeper Kate Latek's initial save on Ryane Emory was allowed to spill free, the freshman delivered the ball to the opportunistic Schimanski, who bagged her fifth of the year in the 17th minute.
"We were coming off spring break (and) not training for nearly a week," said Schimanski, whose team-leading 20 goals earned her a spot on the Chicagoland Soccer All-State team last season. “I think that was the reason for the start we had tonight and why scoring the first goal was so important for us.
"Ryane gave me a great ball, and I was in the right spot to put it into the back of the net. After that goal, I felt like the game kind of opened up for us, and we began to play the way we all know we can."
"We can say coming off of spring break was an excuse for our slow start. It likely was,” said Warriors manager Rich Grady. “Nonetheless, we were not very sharp early on, didn't go hard into our tackles or really move much away from the ball.
“When we finally began to play, we put together some very good soccer, especially in our attack."
Grady has led the Warriors well since he took over in 2007. Deerfield has a Class AA runnerup trophy from 2016 and six regional titles in that span.
Grady's Monday counterpart Willie Filian will retire following this school year with close to 700 victories between the Palatine girls and boys programs. During a memorable four-year stretch beginning in 1993-94 school year, the Pirates qualified for the state tourney each season and carried away three top-four state trophies, including the title hardware in 1995.
The boys won the title in the fall of 1994 for a clean-sweep for Palatine.
"The years have really flown by, it's like you don't really know where they have all gone," said Filian, who will pass the managers' baton to former player Aaron Morris.
Filian was inducted into the IHSSCA Hall of Fame in 2010. He has coached all five of his children: Megan; Willie Jr.; Mackenzie; Kevin: and Kacie, who is finishing up her collegiate career at St. Bonaventure.
With the game still at 0-0, the two sides traded half-chances in the 16th minute from Mia Ramirez for the Pirates, and Emory moments later. Then Schimanski finished what Fox and Emory started.
"We just didn't play well at all in the first 10-12 minutes, but scoring first, with Riley putting it in was really big for us," said Fox, who shared Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors with Schimanski.
The two Warriors earned their post-match accolades not solely based on their scoring prowess. In the case of Schimanski, it was her constant movement, ability to collect the ball and attack with speed, and purpose and awareness in the final third that earned her share of the honor.
Fox, just a sophomore, handled the number 9 spot like a veteran with her exquisite two-footed touch, meaningful distribution, and composure on the ball that allowed her to use her trickery to beat one, two, or sometimes three opponents when going forward.
"We're fortunate to have both Riley and Emily, who are key figures in our attack, and who make a very talented group of players that much better," Grady said.
Fox, Jessie Fisher and Avery Kingsepp provided a dynamic partnership in the Warriors 3-5-2 formation during the first half. Ally Linn and Holly Deutsch, who led the club in assists a year ago with 23, added pace and quality service from the outside.
"Their speed on the outside, especially in the second half from no. 15 (Deutsch) gave us so much trouble,” said Filian. “She beat a couple of our players before sending in some great balls, two of which led to goals."
“(Holly) can do a lot of things for us on the outside, which you saw tonight,” said Grady. “And with her effort off the bench, Ryane Emory impressed, as did Jessie (Fisher) in the midfield."
Linn, Fox, and Schimanski enjoyed a strong connection after the opening goal which led to one shot from Fox and two from Schimanski going close before the half hour.
Palatine slowly came into this contest when the ball found junior midfielder Paige Millstone. She formed the heart of the Pirates attack with center back Allie Henning and senior Madi Stark, who is a classic target player up-top because of her size, strength, and ability to hold the ball.
"Deerfield is a really good team with a lot of good attacking players," offered Millstone, who will attend Kentucky in the fall to study sports communications. “We had trouble in the first part of the first half but ended up playing them pretty well even though we were down two goals at the break.”
The home side concede Schimanski's second of the evening at 31 minutes when Simone Criz, just brought on by Grady, slipped past her mark on the left side before playing across a lovely helper onto her teammates foot for a 12-yard blast.
Stark created the Pirates first corner of the night in the 36th minute with the help of Sofi Klein. The opportunity at the top of the box that was blocked on the way in.
The Warriors (4-0-0) hit top gear minutes after the intermission when they beautifully orchestrated three super-quick goals to insure victory before the hour.
Deutsch and Schimanski facilitated the first tally of the second half. Latek make a nice save on Fox's initial attempt, but the force of her blast was too much for the keeper to keep the ball from nestling into the back of the net.
Linn unloaded a wicked, angled cracker from the left side which ended in the far inside netting 60 seconds later. With the Warriors now brimming with confidence, the lead became 5-0 after a brilliant solo effort from Fox. She snaked her way into space and finished with a deadly 25-yard shot.
"That first 20 minutes of the second half showed just how much attacking talent we have on this team," said Schimanski, who is still sorting out her future and whether it will include playing collegiate soccer next fall. “Emily scored two great goals; she's just a sophomore. And we have a really nice blend of young and experienced players. If it all comes together, it should make us a very good team.”
Grady had five seniors and sophomores, per class, in his first 11. Freshman Aubrey Galvan rounded out the group. She is coming off an extraordinary rookie season for the Warriors basketball team, which lost in the supersectional to eventual 3A state champion Carmel.
In the first half, Grady stationed Galvan up-top alongside Schimanski. After the break he used the pair as part of a three-man forward line when the Warriors switched to a 3-4-3 after the break.
After the visitors took their five-goal advantage, Grady and his staff began to bring on their reserves to get valuable experience.
Palatine (0-3-0) continued to play hard and eventually pulled one back to dash the hopes of a fourth-consecutive clean-sheet for keeper Lauren Gottleib and her backline mates Emma Gassman, Katie Morgan and Madeline Stevens. The trio exhibited complete confidence in playing back to Gottleib when needed. She, in turn, connected with the trio to jump-start the attack.
"The lockdown defending of Morgan and Stevens allows us a lot of freedom to get forward with numbers thus far,” said Grady. “But we all know there's always room to improve in all parts of our game."
Palatine got on the board when Madison Adcock's looping shot from in-close went just over the gloves of Gottleib and under the bar in the 72nd minute.
"We didn't give up and played hard until the final whistle," said Henning. “That says a lot about this team.”
"(Henning) is the glue of our backline,” said Filian. “Paige (Millstone) is the player who gives our attack have some bite and purpose. We'll continue to work on putting two solid halves of soccer together as we continue to go forward this season."
"So far, so good for us,” said Grady. “I've been impressed by our speed of play and our ability to combine passes to get behind our opponents.
"We have scored 23 goals in our first four games and have had chances to score even more."
"We have quality attacking options, who are not in our starting lineup. So our depth, and the return of 14 players from last year, should give us a good chance each time out."
Starting lineups
Deerfield (3-5-2)
G- Lauren Gottleib
D- Madeline Stevens
D- Katie Morgan
D- Emma Gassman
M- Ally Linn
M- Emily Fox
M- Avery Kingsepp
M- Jessie Fisher
M- Holly Deutsch
F- Aubrey Galvan
F- Riley Schimanski
Palatine
G- Kate Latek
D-Gretchen Kiesler
D- Allie Henning
D- Maya Virgen
D- Vanessa DelReal
M- Mia Ramirez
M- Paige Millstone
M- Madison Adcock
M- Sofi Klein
F- Olivia Marion
F- Madi Stark
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Emily Fox, so., MF, Deerfield; Riley Schimanski, sr., F, Deerfield
Referee: Marek Zacios
Scoring summary
First half
Deerfield: Schimanski (Emory) 17'
Deerfield: Schimanski (Criz) 31'
Second half
Deerfield: Fox (Deutsch, Schimanski) 50'
Deerfield: Linn (Deutsch, Fisher) 52'
Deerfield: Fox (U/A) 53'
Palatine: Adcock (Riley) 72'