Latin maintains historic hold over Jones
Edwards’ goal punches ticket to Air Pepsi bracket championship
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- Devin Barry had a familiarity with many of the opposing Latin players. The star junior Jones keeper thought that knowledge conferred a telling advantage. She played brilliantly throughout, making two diving stops in the first half and nullifying each Latin foray.
“I’ve been playing with most of these Latin girls since I was little,” she said. “I know a lot of them very well, and I ready ready to play today. I knew who could take shots from far, and I knew who I had to stand on my toes for because they are really good.”
With Jones struggling to match the Romans’ attacking and possessive style, time favored Latin.
In the 47th minute, senior forward Jade Edwards made a quick dash to the back post and blasted home a beautiful cross from freshman midfielder Malia Brandt that carried undefeated seventh-seeded Latin to the 1-0 victory over the third-seeded Eagles in a PepsiCo Showdown semifinal at Lincoln Park South Turf Field on Thursday.
Latin (7-0-0) advances to the championship game of the Air Force bracket against fourth-seed Marist on April 22.
“That was kind of an unfortunate goal to concede,” Barry said. “We were really looking to get the clean sheet and work really hard. That was a tough one to give up. I was able to get a touch on the cross but not enough to clear it or misdirect it.”
The game-winner marked the culmination of some standout and consistent pressure the Romans created against the Eagles’ backline. Even if the first half play did not result in a score, Latin created a highly favorable template of how to attack.
“In the beginning of the game, we were a little nervous,” Edwards said. “We knew this was a semifinal match. Once we got to the halftime, we knew we had to pick it up and get the possession up a little bit. On the goal, I saw Malia on the wing, and I just sprinted to the goalpost, and I knew the ball would be there.”
Edwards scored her team-best eighth goal. She also earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor.
Latin's fast start is not surprising. The team features seven seniors, five of whom played on a team that reached the Class A state championship game in 2015. Six other players were part of the team that narrowly lost to Deerfield in the Class AA supersectional two years ago.
Charlotte Cronister, a fantastic athlete, played on the supersectional team as a freshman. Her older sister Catie was the starting keeper on the state runner-up team. She established the tone for the Romans’ play in the first half, nearly volleying home one ball and delivering a howitzer from about 16 yards that Barry made a spectacular diving stop on.
“We have a good group from that (supersectional) game,” Cronister said. “A lot of people on our team are very intense, and they want to win. We work really hard to play how we play, especially today. I’d say we are fierce, and we like to compete. We also like to have fun. We like to play chill and not push everything too much but play our game.
“I also think it helps to have (Tom) Bower as our coach, because he knows the game so well, especially with our forwards running to the corner balls and crossing it. That is a big game plan we have.”
As a small private school, Latin’s players tend to be multisport athletes. Edwards is a star basketball player, and Cronister is playing volleyball in college.
Bower is a legendary figure, one of a handful of coaches who has won a state title in both girls (2006) and boys (2016). He has won an astonishing 700 games combined with both programs.
“It ends up being a short season for girls soccer, so you have to teach a lot, and the kids have to really focus in,” Bower said. “We are pretty happy with the style we play. We have been doing it for a while. It worked out today.
“I think both coaches probably would not have liked the game to have been so sloppy. Both teams were playing hard. Over the years we have played Jones a lot, and they have made immense progress. It is always fun to play against city schools, and Jones in particular.”
Latin keeper Maggie Marrinson recorded four saves for the shutout. The bulk of them were shots taken from distance.
Uncharacteristically, Jones (8-2-1) never really got into a fluid rhythm. Star junior forward Avery Kaplan was ostensibly swallowed whole by the Romans’ five-player backline. The Eagles never really created a truly dangerous opportunity.
In the 70th minute, Kaplan got free on the left wing and the ball got punched toward the Romans’ goal. Cronister made a great alert play in running from behind and disrupting the play and achieving the clearance. Jones’ other top threat, junior forward Lauren Nichols, was also kept under wraps. Latin was repeatedly quicker to the ball.
“I think we lacked effort, which is not like us,” Jones coach Derek Bylsma said. “Against Joliet West and Northside, we just outworked them. For some reason, we have some girls who don’t always know how to do that. Part of it is that we are young, but we still have some people who don’t know how to get up for every game.
“We tried to help them with that. I don’t know how you cannot get up to play for a berth in the championship game. As a former player it’s a no-brainer how you are excited to play this game. Somehow that doesn’t translate to working hard on the field. There were little things, like we had girls running into each other and not talking. All of these things we constantly work at, and then we got in here, and we did not do it.”
It was a disappointing end because playing well is part of Bylsma’s longer-term strategic plan of elevating the reputation and name of the program. Latin is the model for what Jones is trying to become, an elite program known for its competitive style.
“In years past they were a much better team than us,” Bylsma said. “They’re a good team. They are always a good team. They are organized, and they play well. It’s a great program. He’s a Hall of Fame coach. They always have good players and you know it is going to be a good game.
“I think this is the year we should beat them. I’m disappointed by that. If we gave them what we can, then I am okay with losing. I don’t like it when we walked off the field, and we cannot say we worked harder than the other team.”
Starting lineups
Jones
GK: Devin Barry
D: Gabriela Baxtrom
D: Izzy Kamba
D: Catherine Lorden
M: Natalie Loos
M: Audrey Bruce
M: Martina Bianchi
M: Rachel Sohn
M: Laura Rios
F: Avery Kaplan
F: Lauren Nichols
Latin
GK: Maggie Marrinson
D: Kay Burg
D: McKenna Lahti
D: Emma Weiss
D: Keely Lovette
D: Maya Edwards
M: Eleanor Pontikes
M: Charlotte Cronister
M: Lily Keiderling
M: Alessandra Kaerstner
F: Jade Edwards
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Jade Edwards, Latin, sr., F
Scoring summary
First half
None
Second half
Latin: Jade Edwards (Malia Brandt), 47th minute
Edwards’ goal punches ticket to Air Pepsi bracket championship
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- Devin Barry had a familiarity with many of the opposing Latin players. The star junior Jones keeper thought that knowledge conferred a telling advantage. She played brilliantly throughout, making two diving stops in the first half and nullifying each Latin foray.
“I’ve been playing with most of these Latin girls since I was little,” she said. “I know a lot of them very well, and I ready ready to play today. I knew who could take shots from far, and I knew who I had to stand on my toes for because they are really good.”
With Jones struggling to match the Romans’ attacking and possessive style, time favored Latin.
In the 47th minute, senior forward Jade Edwards made a quick dash to the back post and blasted home a beautiful cross from freshman midfielder Malia Brandt that carried undefeated seventh-seeded Latin to the 1-0 victory over the third-seeded Eagles in a PepsiCo Showdown semifinal at Lincoln Park South Turf Field on Thursday.
Latin (7-0-0) advances to the championship game of the Air Force bracket against fourth-seed Marist on April 22.
“That was kind of an unfortunate goal to concede,” Barry said. “We were really looking to get the clean sheet and work really hard. That was a tough one to give up. I was able to get a touch on the cross but not enough to clear it or misdirect it.”
The game-winner marked the culmination of some standout and consistent pressure the Romans created against the Eagles’ backline. Even if the first half play did not result in a score, Latin created a highly favorable template of how to attack.
“In the beginning of the game, we were a little nervous,” Edwards said. “We knew this was a semifinal match. Once we got to the halftime, we knew we had to pick it up and get the possession up a little bit. On the goal, I saw Malia on the wing, and I just sprinted to the goalpost, and I knew the ball would be there.”
Edwards scored her team-best eighth goal. She also earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor.
Latin's fast start is not surprising. The team features seven seniors, five of whom played on a team that reached the Class A state championship game in 2015. Six other players were part of the team that narrowly lost to Deerfield in the Class AA supersectional two years ago.
Charlotte Cronister, a fantastic athlete, played on the supersectional team as a freshman. Her older sister Catie was the starting keeper on the state runner-up team. She established the tone for the Romans’ play in the first half, nearly volleying home one ball and delivering a howitzer from about 16 yards that Barry made a spectacular diving stop on.
“We have a good group from that (supersectional) game,” Cronister said. “A lot of people on our team are very intense, and they want to win. We work really hard to play how we play, especially today. I’d say we are fierce, and we like to compete. We also like to have fun. We like to play chill and not push everything too much but play our game.
“I also think it helps to have (Tom) Bower as our coach, because he knows the game so well, especially with our forwards running to the corner balls and crossing it. That is a big game plan we have.”
As a small private school, Latin’s players tend to be multisport athletes. Edwards is a star basketball player, and Cronister is playing volleyball in college.
Bower is a legendary figure, one of a handful of coaches who has won a state title in both girls (2006) and boys (2016). He has won an astonishing 700 games combined with both programs.
“It ends up being a short season for girls soccer, so you have to teach a lot, and the kids have to really focus in,” Bower said. “We are pretty happy with the style we play. We have been doing it for a while. It worked out today.
“I think both coaches probably would not have liked the game to have been so sloppy. Both teams were playing hard. Over the years we have played Jones a lot, and they have made immense progress. It is always fun to play against city schools, and Jones in particular.”
Latin keeper Maggie Marrinson recorded four saves for the shutout. The bulk of them were shots taken from distance.
Uncharacteristically, Jones (8-2-1) never really got into a fluid rhythm. Star junior forward Avery Kaplan was ostensibly swallowed whole by the Romans’ five-player backline. The Eagles never really created a truly dangerous opportunity.
In the 70th minute, Kaplan got free on the left wing and the ball got punched toward the Romans’ goal. Cronister made a great alert play in running from behind and disrupting the play and achieving the clearance. Jones’ other top threat, junior forward Lauren Nichols, was also kept under wraps. Latin was repeatedly quicker to the ball.
“I think we lacked effort, which is not like us,” Jones coach Derek Bylsma said. “Against Joliet West and Northside, we just outworked them. For some reason, we have some girls who don’t always know how to do that. Part of it is that we are young, but we still have some people who don’t know how to get up for every game.
“We tried to help them with that. I don’t know how you cannot get up to play for a berth in the championship game. As a former player it’s a no-brainer how you are excited to play this game. Somehow that doesn’t translate to working hard on the field. There were little things, like we had girls running into each other and not talking. All of these things we constantly work at, and then we got in here, and we did not do it.”
It was a disappointing end because playing well is part of Bylsma’s longer-term strategic plan of elevating the reputation and name of the program. Latin is the model for what Jones is trying to become, an elite program known for its competitive style.
“In years past they were a much better team than us,” Bylsma said. “They’re a good team. They are always a good team. They are organized, and they play well. It’s a great program. He’s a Hall of Fame coach. They always have good players and you know it is going to be a good game.
“I think this is the year we should beat them. I’m disappointed by that. If we gave them what we can, then I am okay with losing. I don’t like it when we walked off the field, and we cannot say we worked harder than the other team.”
Starting lineups
Jones
GK: Devin Barry
D: Gabriela Baxtrom
D: Izzy Kamba
D: Catherine Lorden
M: Natalie Loos
M: Audrey Bruce
M: Martina Bianchi
M: Rachel Sohn
M: Laura Rios
F: Avery Kaplan
F: Lauren Nichols
Latin
GK: Maggie Marrinson
D: Kay Burg
D: McKenna Lahti
D: Emma Weiss
D: Keely Lovette
D: Maya Edwards
M: Eleanor Pontikes
M: Charlotte Cronister
M: Lily Keiderling
M: Alessandra Kaerstner
F: Jade Edwards
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Jade Edwards, Latin, sr., F
Scoring summary
First half
None
Second half
Latin: Jade Edwards (Malia Brandt), 47th minute