Evanston, Fenwick do pre-playoff work
Wildkits tip Friars 3-2 in action-packed battle
By Ken Keenan
EVANSTON -- With nothing on the line besides tuning up for postseason play, the regular season finale between Fenwick and Evanston could have been a Thursday afternoon stroll down Easy Street for both teams. But just the opposite occurred in an action-packed thriller that ended with the host Wildkits posting a 3-2 victory.
After the Friars grabbed a 1-0 lead on a goal by senior defender Sarah Ehrhardt in the eighth minute, Evanston charged back on consecutive tallies by junior midfielder Kat Sehgal, sophomore mid Callista O'Connor and junior mid Keara Kerr. Fenwick cut the margin to 3-2 when sophomore defender Alyssa Ruiz scored with 11 minutes left in the second half, but the Wildkits bolted the door and held on for the win.
"This was not the most important game, but it's good to get the win to move forward with more confidence," Sehgal said.
O'Connor, who added an assist and earned Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors, said, "This sets the tone for the playoffs. Down 1-0, we wanted to come back and play well. And we did."
Wildkits head coach Stacy Salgado was happy with the result -- and her team's approach.
"I am pleased," she said. "We had a couple of lapses in focus, but I am encouraged by what I saw. It was a great (postseason) tune-up against a solid school."
Fenwick had the better of the play early on. The Friars nearly scored in the fifth minute on a long free kick by senior midfielder Lauren Stibich. It was juggled at the goal line by Evanston sophomore goalkeeper Sylvi Imrem before the Wildkits' defense cleared the ball at the left post. Less than three minutes later, Ehrhardt accepted a perfect lead pass from shifty junior mid Anissa Nourse and finished inside the right post to open the scoring.
Evanston knotted the score with 14:31 to go in the first half when Sehgal rifled in a low shot from in front after taking an equally beautiful feed from junior forward Hadley Bushala on the right side.
"When (Fenwick) scored, that was our wake-up call," Sehgal said. "Once we scored, we really wanted to keep our momentum going."
Added O'Connor: "Once Fenwick scored, we got a little angry. That goal sparked our comeback."
In the 32nd minute, O'Connor unleashed a hard strike from 25 yards that Friars senior keeper McKenzie Blaze stopped. Less than a minute later, Blaze fiercely batted away a close-in try by Sehgal, and then made a terrific save at the far post on a left-footed shot by Sehgal with 5:15 to go before the break.
"After we scored, we laid back a little," Nourse said. "We should have attacked more."
Picking up where they left off, the Wildkits stormed to the lead in the 44th minute when O'Connor headed in a perfectly placed corner by Bushala. Just over two minutes later, O'Connor set up Kerr for a left-footed boot that slipped past Blaze inside the right post to make it 3-1.
"(O'Connor) did a really nice job anticipating and getting in dangerous positions," said Evanston head coach Stacy Salgado. "She reads the game well and has a nice touch."
Exactly one minute after Kerr's goal, O'Connor banged a shot off the crossbar, followed soon after by a 35-yard free kick from Evanston senior mid Avery Ackman that Blaze punched out of harm's way. Fifty seconds later, Kerr uncorked a tricky left foot shot that Blaze denied with a jumping save.
"Obviously, it feels awesome to score," O'Connor said. "But the whole team's energy picked up in the second half. There was no let-up."
Fenwick stopped the bleeding when Ruiz buried the rebound of her own shot from the right side, with the ball nipping the left post before denting the twine. Seeking the equalizer, Friars sophomore forward Lily Reardon charged ahead on a partial breakaway with about 4 minutes left, but Imrem made a diving stop to preserve the lead.
Evanston sealed the deal in the 79th minute when Imrem snuffed a right-side try Ehrhardt.
"I'd like another five minutes. W e were digging ourselves back in it," said Fenwick head coach Rob Watson. "But give Evanston a lot of credit. The two goals in the second half put us on our heels. Then the game winds down, and there was not enough time to get that third goal."
Ehrhardt said, "We were fighting back, still working hard in the end. We tried to tie but came up short."
Still, Watson was not overly disappointed after all was said and done.
"I scheduled this game as a playoff warm-up, and both teams were really going for it," he said.
Added Nourse: "We knew we had to get ready for the playoffs, and this was a great test for us."
The Friars (11-3-4) will open the postseason against Steinmetz in the Class AA Fenton Regional at 4:30 p.m. May 15.
Meanwhile, Evanston (12-7-3) will open play in its own IHSA Class 3A regional against Lincoln Park at 5 p.m. May 16.
"It's nice to have that opportunity," Salgado said. "It's always an advantage to play at home. But you still have to go the full 80 minutes, especially in the playoffs."
Starting lineups
Fenwick
G: McKenzie Blaze
D: Rosie Smith
D: Shannon Ehrhardt
D: Lauren Miller
D: Tess Shannon
M: Kaylie Fredian
M: Regan Hultquist
M: Anissa Nourse
M: Lauren Stibich
M: Anna Waring
F: Morgan Hosty
Evanston
G: Sylvi Imrem
D: Ruby Rogers
D: Ryann Lucas
D: Katie Peterson
D: Katy Donati
M: Avery Ackman
M: Callista O'Connor
M: Kat Sehgal
M: Keara Kerr
F: Alexa Michel
F: Hadley Bushala
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Callista O'Connor, so., M, Evanston
Officials: Dan Gilbert, Albert Khouri, Rafel Zielinski
Scoring summary
First half
1. Fenwick: Shannon Ehrhardt (assisted by Anissa Nourse) in 8th minute
2. Evanston: Kat Sehgal (assisted by Hadley Bushala) in 26th minute
Second half
3. Evanston: Callista O'Connor (assisted by Bushala) in 44th minute
4. Evanston: Keara Kerr (assisted by O'Connor) in 47th minute
5. Fenwick: Alyssa Ruiz (assisted by Anna Waring) in 69th minute
Wildkits tip Friars 3-2 in action-packed battle
By Ken Keenan
EVANSTON -- With nothing on the line besides tuning up for postseason play, the regular season finale between Fenwick and Evanston could have been a Thursday afternoon stroll down Easy Street for both teams. But just the opposite occurred in an action-packed thriller that ended with the host Wildkits posting a 3-2 victory.
After the Friars grabbed a 1-0 lead on a goal by senior defender Sarah Ehrhardt in the eighth minute, Evanston charged back on consecutive tallies by junior midfielder Kat Sehgal, sophomore mid Callista O'Connor and junior mid Keara Kerr. Fenwick cut the margin to 3-2 when sophomore defender Alyssa Ruiz scored with 11 minutes left in the second half, but the Wildkits bolted the door and held on for the win.
"This was not the most important game, but it's good to get the win to move forward with more confidence," Sehgal said.
O'Connor, who added an assist and earned Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors, said, "This sets the tone for the playoffs. Down 1-0, we wanted to come back and play well. And we did."
Wildkits head coach Stacy Salgado was happy with the result -- and her team's approach.
"I am pleased," she said. "We had a couple of lapses in focus, but I am encouraged by what I saw. It was a great (postseason) tune-up against a solid school."
Fenwick had the better of the play early on. The Friars nearly scored in the fifth minute on a long free kick by senior midfielder Lauren Stibich. It was juggled at the goal line by Evanston sophomore goalkeeper Sylvi Imrem before the Wildkits' defense cleared the ball at the left post. Less than three minutes later, Ehrhardt accepted a perfect lead pass from shifty junior mid Anissa Nourse and finished inside the right post to open the scoring.
Evanston knotted the score with 14:31 to go in the first half when Sehgal rifled in a low shot from in front after taking an equally beautiful feed from junior forward Hadley Bushala on the right side.
"When (Fenwick) scored, that was our wake-up call," Sehgal said. "Once we scored, we really wanted to keep our momentum going."
Added O'Connor: "Once Fenwick scored, we got a little angry. That goal sparked our comeback."
In the 32nd minute, O'Connor unleashed a hard strike from 25 yards that Friars senior keeper McKenzie Blaze stopped. Less than a minute later, Blaze fiercely batted away a close-in try by Sehgal, and then made a terrific save at the far post on a left-footed shot by Sehgal with 5:15 to go before the break.
"After we scored, we laid back a little," Nourse said. "We should have attacked more."
Picking up where they left off, the Wildkits stormed to the lead in the 44th minute when O'Connor headed in a perfectly placed corner by Bushala. Just over two minutes later, O'Connor set up Kerr for a left-footed boot that slipped past Blaze inside the right post to make it 3-1.
"(O'Connor) did a really nice job anticipating and getting in dangerous positions," said Evanston head coach Stacy Salgado. "She reads the game well and has a nice touch."
Exactly one minute after Kerr's goal, O'Connor banged a shot off the crossbar, followed soon after by a 35-yard free kick from Evanston senior mid Avery Ackman that Blaze punched out of harm's way. Fifty seconds later, Kerr uncorked a tricky left foot shot that Blaze denied with a jumping save.
"Obviously, it feels awesome to score," O'Connor said. "But the whole team's energy picked up in the second half. There was no let-up."
Fenwick stopped the bleeding when Ruiz buried the rebound of her own shot from the right side, with the ball nipping the left post before denting the twine. Seeking the equalizer, Friars sophomore forward Lily Reardon charged ahead on a partial breakaway with about 4 minutes left, but Imrem made a diving stop to preserve the lead.
Evanston sealed the deal in the 79th minute when Imrem snuffed a right-side try Ehrhardt.
"I'd like another five minutes. W e were digging ourselves back in it," said Fenwick head coach Rob Watson. "But give Evanston a lot of credit. The two goals in the second half put us on our heels. Then the game winds down, and there was not enough time to get that third goal."
Ehrhardt said, "We were fighting back, still working hard in the end. We tried to tie but came up short."
Still, Watson was not overly disappointed after all was said and done.
"I scheduled this game as a playoff warm-up, and both teams were really going for it," he said.
Added Nourse: "We knew we had to get ready for the playoffs, and this was a great test for us."
The Friars (11-3-4) will open the postseason against Steinmetz in the Class AA Fenton Regional at 4:30 p.m. May 15.
Meanwhile, Evanston (12-7-3) will open play in its own IHSA Class 3A regional against Lincoln Park at 5 p.m. May 16.
"It's nice to have that opportunity," Salgado said. "It's always an advantage to play at home. But you still have to go the full 80 minutes, especially in the playoffs."
Starting lineups
Fenwick
G: McKenzie Blaze
D: Rosie Smith
D: Shannon Ehrhardt
D: Lauren Miller
D: Tess Shannon
M: Kaylie Fredian
M: Regan Hultquist
M: Anissa Nourse
M: Lauren Stibich
M: Anna Waring
F: Morgan Hosty
Evanston
G: Sylvi Imrem
D: Ruby Rogers
D: Ryann Lucas
D: Katie Peterson
D: Katy Donati
M: Avery Ackman
M: Callista O'Connor
M: Kat Sehgal
M: Keara Kerr
F: Alexa Michel
F: Hadley Bushala
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Callista O'Connor, so., M, Evanston
Officials: Dan Gilbert, Albert Khouri, Rafel Zielinski
Scoring summary
First half
1. Fenwick: Shannon Ehrhardt (assisted by Anissa Nourse) in 8th minute
2. Evanston: Kat Sehgal (assisted by Hadley Bushala) in 26th minute
Second half
3. Evanston: Callista O'Connor (assisted by Bushala) in 44th minute
4. Evanston: Keara Kerr (assisted by O'Connor) in 47th minute
5. Fenwick: Alyssa Ruiz (assisted by Anna Waring) in 69th minute