Swoboda finds stride, Teevans in win
Swoboda-to-Teevans combo yields hat-trick, 6-0 win over Fenton
By Matt Le Cren
WEST CHICAGO – Wheaton Academy senior Lizzy Swoboda has quickly and quietly made the adjustment to playing a new position this spring.
It’s clear that opponents will have to reckon with Swoboda’s two-way play, but they haven’t so far.
Wheaton Academy’s heavy graduation losses forced Swoboda to switch from outside back to center back, where she has adeptly anchored a defense that has given up just one goal in the Warriors’ first four matches.
But that’s not all she’s done or can do.
Star senior forward Erin Teevans recorded a hat-trick Thursday night to pace the Warriors to a 6-0 victory over visiting Fenton in a Metro Suburban Conference Blue Division game played in near-freezing temperatures and sporadic snow showers.
All three of Teevans’ goals came of brilliant assists from Swoboda, who adroitly found the seams in Fenton’s flatback defense.
“They were amazing,” Teevans said. “(The Bison) were playing a high line, so me and ‘Swo’ kind of talked in a moment, and I just told her to play the big ball, and she did it. She did amazing.”
The Warriors (4-0-0, 3-0-0) missed the net on their first two shots but then scored on their next three and four of five in one stretch.
Maggie Bailey provided Wheaton Academy with the only offense it would need when she converted a six-yard shot from in-front after Rebecca Steininger had raced around the left side of the defense and slotted her a pass from the end line at the 35:33 mark of the first half.
The Swoboda-to-Teevans connection added much more to the fun, beginning with 31:02 remaining. Swoboda launched a long pass from just shy of midfield that split the defense up the right wing and found Teevans in space.
The speedy Teevans did the rest, racing into the box and dribbling the goalkeeper to make it 2-0.
The Warriors struck again just 44 seconds later. This time freshman Amy Alexander beat the offsides trap thanks to a release from Sophia Lundquist and scored on a breakaway.
Teevans and Swoboda hooked up again to increase the lead to 4-0 at the 16:15 mark. A similar long ball was perfectly timed to spring Teevans, who cut back to her right to shake a defender and then fired a hard shot off Fenton goalie Gabriela Diaz.
“We saw a high line, and we know we have fast attackers,” said Swoboda, who earned Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors. “I know that if I put a ball that kind of floats up there, Erin can track it, get it and take the space and score.
“That’s so comforting as a defender to know that I can send that ball, and she’ll get there.”
Playing an offsides trap is a high-risk, high-reward proposition for any defense. It is difficult to beat, but teams that have great distributors and fleet forwards can shred it with a little practice, which is what the Warriors eventually did.
“It takes a few tries,” Teevans said. “They got us a few times on the offsides so that was kind of difficult to get used to, but as soon as you get in a rhythm you get used to it.”
The two teams also had to adjust to the tough conditions. The Bison (0-3-0, 0-1-0) could never gain any traction because the Warriors held most of the possession in the midfield and earned a 21-0 shot advantage. Wheaton Academy goalie Marta Oster, who like Teevans will continue her soccer career at Taylor University, did not have to make a save to record the team’s third shutout.
“(Adjusting to the conditions) was really hard,” Teevans said. “In the beginning you’re trying to get used to your touch, because it’s so slippery.
“But you eventually get a feel for how slippery it is, and we got in a rhythm. I thought we did really well.”
Indeed, the Warriors never took their foot off the gas pedal. Teevans completed her hat trick with 31:26 to go in the second half. Swoboda sprung her on yet another breakaway which ended with Teevans firing a hard shot off the fingers of diving Fenton backup keeper Cindy Osorio.
Lindquist capped the scoring four minutes later with a great individual effort, carrying the ball up the left wing and around the defense before dribbling to the edge of the 6 and tucking a shot inside the far post.
That was the 20th goal of the season for the Warriors, the 2017 Class AA state runnerup.
“We graduated that big group,” Wheaton Academy coach Jeff Brooke said. “We had a lot of girls who kind of watched and waited and learned, so it’s fun to see them get a chance to execute.
“I think right now we’re trying to keep building the possession and have that tie into the attack. I thought we had some balance in how we attacked tonight, which was good.”
Teevans will be the first to tell you that attack starts with the back four of Swoboda, Danielle Bessey, Emma Goebel and Kat Sezonov.
“We couldn’t do it without our backline,” Teevans said. “We need them.
“It’s kind of where it starts, so having (Swoboda) at center back this year is new, and she’s been doing amazing with it. It’s nice having someone tall because she wins all the balls in the air for us.”
If you combined Teevans’ speed with Swoboda’s muscle, you’d have an unstoppable soccer player. As it is, the Warriors are blessed to have one up-top and the other in back.
Teevans, a four-year starter, was a known commodity coming into this year, but Swoboda’s play at her new position has been a revelation.
“Swoboda has got the leadership component in the back,” Brooke said. “She keeps us controlled, she keeps us in shape and then her technique has been great so far. She’s really played well technically.”
And she’s getting comfortable.
“I felt like I was seeing things well (tonight),” Swoboda said. “I’m starting to see things in that central defending position. We’ve been working on those balls in practice so it’s starting to click.”
Starting lineups
Fenton
GK Gabriela Diaz
D Mia Clavelli
D Angela Casas
D Lesly Mora
D Andrea Acuna
D Cynthia Mendoza
D Jacqueline Nogueda
M Natalie Diaz
M Maria Lara
M Sofia Gonzalez
F Yuliana Ibarez
Wheaton Academy
GK Marta Oster
D Danielle Bessey
D Emma Goebel
D Kat Sezonov
D Lizzy Swoboda
M Rebecca Steininger
M AC Hardy
M Sophia Lindquist
M Amy Alexander
F Maggie Bailey
F Erin Teevans
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Lizzy Swoboda, sr., D, Wheaton Academy
Scoring summary
1st half
Wheaton Academy – Maggie Bailey (Rebecca Steininger) 35:33
Wheaton Academy – Erin Teevans (Lizzy Swoboda) 31:02
Wheaton Academy – Amy Alexander (Sophia Lindquist) 30:18
Wheaton Academy – Teevans (Swoboda) 16:15
2nd half
Wheaton Academy – Teevans (Swoboda) 31:26
Wheaton Academy – Lindquist 27:38
Swoboda-to-Teevans combo yields hat-trick, 6-0 win over Fenton
By Matt Le Cren
WEST CHICAGO – Wheaton Academy senior Lizzy Swoboda has quickly and quietly made the adjustment to playing a new position this spring.
It’s clear that opponents will have to reckon with Swoboda’s two-way play, but they haven’t so far.
Wheaton Academy’s heavy graduation losses forced Swoboda to switch from outside back to center back, where she has adeptly anchored a defense that has given up just one goal in the Warriors’ first four matches.
But that’s not all she’s done or can do.
Star senior forward Erin Teevans recorded a hat-trick Thursday night to pace the Warriors to a 6-0 victory over visiting Fenton in a Metro Suburban Conference Blue Division game played in near-freezing temperatures and sporadic snow showers.
All three of Teevans’ goals came of brilliant assists from Swoboda, who adroitly found the seams in Fenton’s flatback defense.
“They were amazing,” Teevans said. “(The Bison) were playing a high line, so me and ‘Swo’ kind of talked in a moment, and I just told her to play the big ball, and she did it. She did amazing.”
The Warriors (4-0-0, 3-0-0) missed the net on their first two shots but then scored on their next three and four of five in one stretch.
Maggie Bailey provided Wheaton Academy with the only offense it would need when she converted a six-yard shot from in-front after Rebecca Steininger had raced around the left side of the defense and slotted her a pass from the end line at the 35:33 mark of the first half.
The Swoboda-to-Teevans connection added much more to the fun, beginning with 31:02 remaining. Swoboda launched a long pass from just shy of midfield that split the defense up the right wing and found Teevans in space.
The speedy Teevans did the rest, racing into the box and dribbling the goalkeeper to make it 2-0.
The Warriors struck again just 44 seconds later. This time freshman Amy Alexander beat the offsides trap thanks to a release from Sophia Lundquist and scored on a breakaway.
Teevans and Swoboda hooked up again to increase the lead to 4-0 at the 16:15 mark. A similar long ball was perfectly timed to spring Teevans, who cut back to her right to shake a defender and then fired a hard shot off Fenton goalie Gabriela Diaz.
“We saw a high line, and we know we have fast attackers,” said Swoboda, who earned Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors. “I know that if I put a ball that kind of floats up there, Erin can track it, get it and take the space and score.
“That’s so comforting as a defender to know that I can send that ball, and she’ll get there.”
Playing an offsides trap is a high-risk, high-reward proposition for any defense. It is difficult to beat, but teams that have great distributors and fleet forwards can shred it with a little practice, which is what the Warriors eventually did.
“It takes a few tries,” Teevans said. “They got us a few times on the offsides so that was kind of difficult to get used to, but as soon as you get in a rhythm you get used to it.”
The two teams also had to adjust to the tough conditions. The Bison (0-3-0, 0-1-0) could never gain any traction because the Warriors held most of the possession in the midfield and earned a 21-0 shot advantage. Wheaton Academy goalie Marta Oster, who like Teevans will continue her soccer career at Taylor University, did not have to make a save to record the team’s third shutout.
“(Adjusting to the conditions) was really hard,” Teevans said. “In the beginning you’re trying to get used to your touch, because it’s so slippery.
“But you eventually get a feel for how slippery it is, and we got in a rhythm. I thought we did really well.”
Indeed, the Warriors never took their foot off the gas pedal. Teevans completed her hat trick with 31:26 to go in the second half. Swoboda sprung her on yet another breakaway which ended with Teevans firing a hard shot off the fingers of diving Fenton backup keeper Cindy Osorio.
Lindquist capped the scoring four minutes later with a great individual effort, carrying the ball up the left wing and around the defense before dribbling to the edge of the 6 and tucking a shot inside the far post.
That was the 20th goal of the season for the Warriors, the 2017 Class AA state runnerup.
“We graduated that big group,” Wheaton Academy coach Jeff Brooke said. “We had a lot of girls who kind of watched and waited and learned, so it’s fun to see them get a chance to execute.
“I think right now we’re trying to keep building the possession and have that tie into the attack. I thought we had some balance in how we attacked tonight, which was good.”
Teevans will be the first to tell you that attack starts with the back four of Swoboda, Danielle Bessey, Emma Goebel and Kat Sezonov.
“We couldn’t do it without our backline,” Teevans said. “We need them.
“It’s kind of where it starts, so having (Swoboda) at center back this year is new, and she’s been doing amazing with it. It’s nice having someone tall because she wins all the balls in the air for us.”
If you combined Teevans’ speed with Swoboda’s muscle, you’d have an unstoppable soccer player. As it is, the Warriors are blessed to have one up-top and the other in back.
Teevans, a four-year starter, was a known commodity coming into this year, but Swoboda’s play at her new position has been a revelation.
“Swoboda has got the leadership component in the back,” Brooke said. “She keeps us controlled, she keeps us in shape and then her technique has been great so far. She’s really played well technically.”
And she’s getting comfortable.
“I felt like I was seeing things well (tonight),” Swoboda said. “I’m starting to see things in that central defending position. We’ve been working on those balls in practice so it’s starting to click.”
Starting lineups
Fenton
GK Gabriela Diaz
D Mia Clavelli
D Angela Casas
D Lesly Mora
D Andrea Acuna
D Cynthia Mendoza
D Jacqueline Nogueda
M Natalie Diaz
M Maria Lara
M Sofia Gonzalez
F Yuliana Ibarez
Wheaton Academy
GK Marta Oster
D Danielle Bessey
D Emma Goebel
D Kat Sezonov
D Lizzy Swoboda
M Rebecca Steininger
M AC Hardy
M Sophia Lindquist
M Amy Alexander
F Maggie Bailey
F Erin Teevans
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match – Lizzy Swoboda, sr., D, Wheaton Academy
Scoring summary
1st half
Wheaton Academy – Maggie Bailey (Rebecca Steininger) 35:33
Wheaton Academy – Erin Teevans (Lizzy Swoboda) 31:02
Wheaton Academy – Amy Alexander (Sophia Lindquist) 30:18
Wheaton Academy – Teevans (Swoboda) 16:15
2nd half
Wheaton Academy – Teevans (Swoboda) 31:26
Wheaton Academy – Lindquist 27:38