Lyons’ long wait ends in win at Hinsdale C.
Lions win season-opener 1-0 on Lee-Caracci goal
By Gary Larsen
HINSDALE — After Lyons won its season-opening game against Hinsdale Central on Friday, Lions senior Elli Kosonovich addressed the long break since the last time she and her teammates had donned school colors and played soccer together.
“It’s been 692 days,” Kosonovich said.
“Not that she was counting,” joked Lyons coach Bill Lanspeary.
The Lions ended their long pandemic hiatus from high school soccer with a 1-0 win at Hinsdale Central thanks to a first half goal from Jordan Lee-Caracci, steady attacking pressure and some rock-solid defense.
Like many players throughout Illinois, Lee-Caracci is a senior playing in her first varsity season, after missing out on the chance to play varsity soccer as a junior last season.
“We’ve been waiting for this moment for a while,” Lee-Caracci said of her fellow seniors. “It was hard not playing. I live right across from our home field so being a part of the varsity has been my dream since, like, third grade. So it was like ‘Finally, after all these years.’"
Happy to release the pent-up energy built over 692 days, Lyons (1-0-0, 1-0-0) broke from the gate like a rodeo bronco against West Suburban Conference Silver Divison arch-rival Hinsdale Central (2-1-0, 1-1-0).
There’s never a shortage of energy when this pair lines up, and Friday’s game met the standard.
Lyons' Lilly Mattern headed a good scoring chance over the bar just three minutes into the game, and Lee-Caracci volleyed a second quality chance just high six minutes later. Free and corner kicks marked much of the game’s first 20 minutes.
Host Hinsdale Central answered Lyons energetic start with an Emma Elliot corner kick that curled to the near post and fell to the carpet before being cleared away. The Red Devils Sidney Turnbull sent a long free kick in that Lyons keeper Izzy Lee fielded on one hop shortly thereafter.
Kosonovich returned the favor with long free kick snared by Central keeper Rania Arain, and Lyons’ Eleanor Musgrove sent a free kick from 22 yards just wide of the far post.
Lyons’ first goal in 692 games came at 25 minutes, and it was a beauty.
Midfielder Avery Livingston sent a perfect through-ball ahead on the right side with Lee-Caracci running on. Lee-Caracci took one touch and blistered a shot from inside 10 yards that tore under the crossbar.
“That was a beautiful ball from Avery,” Lee-Caracci said. “I saw the keeper off the goal post a little, and I just put it right up there.”
Lyons defender Maddie McPartlin broke up a potentially dangerous run at 26 minutes, and Lee left her line and elevated to snare a serve to the post at 28 minutes with Hinsdale Central forward Hanna Florence bearing down on her.
For the next 12 minutes, Lyons largely kept the ball on its attacking half of the field. Musgrove, Kosonovich, Rielly Chesna and Ava Dallavo all had shots that either flew wide of frame, were blocked by defenders or saved by Arain.
“In the first half we had a lot of good chances,” Lanspeary said. “We can clean things up a little and get better looks, but the pressure that we did have was good. So I like the potential we have there in the attack.”
Hinsdale Central went into Friday’s game having already played twice: the Red Devils won 6-0 over Hinsdale South and 4-2 over Oak Park and River Forest. Central’s girls knew they’d have to elevate their play even further to compete with a Lyons team that brought another level of skill and physicality.
Mission accomplished after a game that saw Hinsdale Central play most of the game within one goal of tying the contest.
“We’re proud of that,” Central senior Emma Elliot said. “They’re big rivals, great competitors, and it was really nice to see because a 1-0 game is anybody’s game.
“It’s almost a brand-new team, and there are a lot of younger girls, but they’re really stepping up. We have a lot to work on, but I’m really proud of them so far.”
Lyons senior striker Dallavo spent a good spell of the second half as one of the most dangerous players on the field. She both distributed and found her own shots in the run of play throughout the second 40 minutes.
Dallavo played a ball to Eleanor Musgrove on the right side just one minute into the second half, and Musgrove fired a low shot from 12 yards that Arain made the stop on.
Junior midfielder Musgrove also stood out Friday.
“Eleanor Musgrove had a heck of a game for us in the middle of the park,” Lanspeary said. “She was very active in winning things and creating things for us.”
Dallavo burned a shot off Arain’s hands to a corner kick at 47 minutes, and Livingston sent a shot high of frame a minute later. Lee saved a low free kick taken by Hinsdale Central’s Sidney Turnbull at 55 minutes, and Arain saved a header from Livingston at 56 minutes.
Central defender Turnbull was also a key cog in helping keep Lyons out of net in the second half. The rangy junior won numerous balls in the air on Lyons serves to the box throughout the contest.
The teams essentially traded free kicks as the game’s primary scoring chances to the 70th minute. Hinsdale Central made a strong push for a tying goal down the stretch, getting its most dangerous scoring chance at 68 minutes.
Red Devils junior Hanna Florence took a good swipe from 14 yards that forced Lee to make a diving stop at the post.
“Hanna had that late shot, and she had a great performance,” Hinsdale Central coach Anthony Madonia said. “She’s solid. She’s not the biggest girl, and we asked her to hold the ball for us, and she did it well.”
A Lyons backline led by central defenders Kosonovich and McPartlin played airtight soccer all day, but the Lions defended hard all over the field.
“It was our first time, really, playing 11-v-11 with our backline, so we knew communication would be key,” Kosonovich said. “Me and Maddie McPartlin, the other center back, took a leadership role, and I feel like the communication helped the younger players kind of fit in. I also think our forwards getting back to defend really helped us.
“You can’t ask for better than a win against your rival in your first game of the year.”
Lanspeary was happy with the shutout but coaching in a game when your team holds a 1-0 lead for 55 minutes is never a peaceful place for a coach.
“They were dangerous on the counter and on set pieces, and you just never know,” Lanspeary said. “There was nothing comfortable about that.
“But I liked our backs, they did a really nice job of limiting their opportunities, and I thought Dallavo was as dangerous as she ever was. Jordan also had a nice finish, Izzy Wirtz is a freshman, and she did a nice job stepping in at holding mid for us. There were a lot of good things to build off of today.”
Lee-Caracci knows that if her team defends this season like it did Friday, Lyons could be in for another fine season.
“Our defense is a brick wall,” Lee-Caracci said. “They lock down everybody. There’s nobody getting past them. (Defender) Kate Fulscher took that right side and shut it down, and the same with (defender) Ava Pike. And our back two (Kosonovich and McPartlin) were able to control things.”
Despite the loss, Hinsdale Central’s players left the field anything but discouraged after pressing hard for a tying goal down the stretch.
“They really liked how hard they competed. They didn’t lay down, and it was a 1-0 game for most of the game, and they fought,” Madonia said. “As the game went on I think they realized it was actually more possible to tie it up. We got better as the game wore on.
“We just need to be a little more focused, organized, and poised, and that just comes with everyone getting used to playing in a varsity match that’s this competitive, where the adrenaline is going. Once they figure out how to harness it a little more, I think we can be that team you saw in the last 10 minutes today.”
Elliot agreed.
“We work hard, try to posses as much as we can, and we’re not a team that just kicks it out,” Elliot said. “We play as a team. We just have to want it a little more. It’s hard to play a full 80 minutes, but it’s always something we can work on, and with such a new team we’ll keep working on our team chemistry.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK Izzy Lee
D Maddie McPartlin
D Ava Pike
D Kate Fulscher
D Elli Kosonovich
M Jordan Lee-Caracci
M Avery Livingston
M Lily Mattern
M Eleanor Musgrove
F Ava Dallavo
F Reese Kornsthoeft
Hinsdale Central
GK Rania Arain
D Hanna Florence
D Lauren Oleferchik
D Ava Elliot
D Sidney Turnbull
M Maddy Panveno
M Reana Ibrahimian
M Gabrielle Gottfried
M Maggie Sanders
M Emma Elliot
F Francesca Schiavitti
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Eleanor Musgrove, jr., MF, Lyons
Scoring summary
First half
Lyons — Lee-Caracci (Livingston) 25 minutes
Second half
No scoring
Lions win season-opener 1-0 on Lee-Caracci goal
By Gary Larsen
HINSDALE — After Lyons won its season-opening game against Hinsdale Central on Friday, Lions senior Elli Kosonovich addressed the long break since the last time she and her teammates had donned school colors and played soccer together.
“It’s been 692 days,” Kosonovich said.
“Not that she was counting,” joked Lyons coach Bill Lanspeary.
The Lions ended their long pandemic hiatus from high school soccer with a 1-0 win at Hinsdale Central thanks to a first half goal from Jordan Lee-Caracci, steady attacking pressure and some rock-solid defense.
Like many players throughout Illinois, Lee-Caracci is a senior playing in her first varsity season, after missing out on the chance to play varsity soccer as a junior last season.
“We’ve been waiting for this moment for a while,” Lee-Caracci said of her fellow seniors. “It was hard not playing. I live right across from our home field so being a part of the varsity has been my dream since, like, third grade. So it was like ‘Finally, after all these years.’"
Happy to release the pent-up energy built over 692 days, Lyons (1-0-0, 1-0-0) broke from the gate like a rodeo bronco against West Suburban Conference Silver Divison arch-rival Hinsdale Central (2-1-0, 1-1-0).
There’s never a shortage of energy when this pair lines up, and Friday’s game met the standard.
Lyons' Lilly Mattern headed a good scoring chance over the bar just three minutes into the game, and Lee-Caracci volleyed a second quality chance just high six minutes later. Free and corner kicks marked much of the game’s first 20 minutes.
Host Hinsdale Central answered Lyons energetic start with an Emma Elliot corner kick that curled to the near post and fell to the carpet before being cleared away. The Red Devils Sidney Turnbull sent a long free kick in that Lyons keeper Izzy Lee fielded on one hop shortly thereafter.
Kosonovich returned the favor with long free kick snared by Central keeper Rania Arain, and Lyons’ Eleanor Musgrove sent a free kick from 22 yards just wide of the far post.
Lyons’ first goal in 692 games came at 25 minutes, and it was a beauty.
Midfielder Avery Livingston sent a perfect through-ball ahead on the right side with Lee-Caracci running on. Lee-Caracci took one touch and blistered a shot from inside 10 yards that tore under the crossbar.
“That was a beautiful ball from Avery,” Lee-Caracci said. “I saw the keeper off the goal post a little, and I just put it right up there.”
Lyons defender Maddie McPartlin broke up a potentially dangerous run at 26 minutes, and Lee left her line and elevated to snare a serve to the post at 28 minutes with Hinsdale Central forward Hanna Florence bearing down on her.
For the next 12 minutes, Lyons largely kept the ball on its attacking half of the field. Musgrove, Kosonovich, Rielly Chesna and Ava Dallavo all had shots that either flew wide of frame, were blocked by defenders or saved by Arain.
“In the first half we had a lot of good chances,” Lanspeary said. “We can clean things up a little and get better looks, but the pressure that we did have was good. So I like the potential we have there in the attack.”
Hinsdale Central went into Friday’s game having already played twice: the Red Devils won 6-0 over Hinsdale South and 4-2 over Oak Park and River Forest. Central’s girls knew they’d have to elevate their play even further to compete with a Lyons team that brought another level of skill and physicality.
Mission accomplished after a game that saw Hinsdale Central play most of the game within one goal of tying the contest.
“We’re proud of that,” Central senior Emma Elliot said. “They’re big rivals, great competitors, and it was really nice to see because a 1-0 game is anybody’s game.
“It’s almost a brand-new team, and there are a lot of younger girls, but they’re really stepping up. We have a lot to work on, but I’m really proud of them so far.”
Lyons senior striker Dallavo spent a good spell of the second half as one of the most dangerous players on the field. She both distributed and found her own shots in the run of play throughout the second 40 minutes.
Dallavo played a ball to Eleanor Musgrove on the right side just one minute into the second half, and Musgrove fired a low shot from 12 yards that Arain made the stop on.
Junior midfielder Musgrove also stood out Friday.
“Eleanor Musgrove had a heck of a game for us in the middle of the park,” Lanspeary said. “She was very active in winning things and creating things for us.”
Dallavo burned a shot off Arain’s hands to a corner kick at 47 minutes, and Livingston sent a shot high of frame a minute later. Lee saved a low free kick taken by Hinsdale Central’s Sidney Turnbull at 55 minutes, and Arain saved a header from Livingston at 56 minutes.
Central defender Turnbull was also a key cog in helping keep Lyons out of net in the second half. The rangy junior won numerous balls in the air on Lyons serves to the box throughout the contest.
The teams essentially traded free kicks as the game’s primary scoring chances to the 70th minute. Hinsdale Central made a strong push for a tying goal down the stretch, getting its most dangerous scoring chance at 68 minutes.
Red Devils junior Hanna Florence took a good swipe from 14 yards that forced Lee to make a diving stop at the post.
“Hanna had that late shot, and she had a great performance,” Hinsdale Central coach Anthony Madonia said. “She’s solid. She’s not the biggest girl, and we asked her to hold the ball for us, and she did it well.”
A Lyons backline led by central defenders Kosonovich and McPartlin played airtight soccer all day, but the Lions defended hard all over the field.
“It was our first time, really, playing 11-v-11 with our backline, so we knew communication would be key,” Kosonovich said. “Me and Maddie McPartlin, the other center back, took a leadership role, and I feel like the communication helped the younger players kind of fit in. I also think our forwards getting back to defend really helped us.
“You can’t ask for better than a win against your rival in your first game of the year.”
Lanspeary was happy with the shutout but coaching in a game when your team holds a 1-0 lead for 55 minutes is never a peaceful place for a coach.
“They were dangerous on the counter and on set pieces, and you just never know,” Lanspeary said. “There was nothing comfortable about that.
“But I liked our backs, they did a really nice job of limiting their opportunities, and I thought Dallavo was as dangerous as she ever was. Jordan also had a nice finish, Izzy Wirtz is a freshman, and she did a nice job stepping in at holding mid for us. There were a lot of good things to build off of today.”
Lee-Caracci knows that if her team defends this season like it did Friday, Lyons could be in for another fine season.
“Our defense is a brick wall,” Lee-Caracci said. “They lock down everybody. There’s nobody getting past them. (Defender) Kate Fulscher took that right side and shut it down, and the same with (defender) Ava Pike. And our back two (Kosonovich and McPartlin) were able to control things.”
Despite the loss, Hinsdale Central’s players left the field anything but discouraged after pressing hard for a tying goal down the stretch.
“They really liked how hard they competed. They didn’t lay down, and it was a 1-0 game for most of the game, and they fought,” Madonia said. “As the game went on I think they realized it was actually more possible to tie it up. We got better as the game wore on.
“We just need to be a little more focused, organized, and poised, and that just comes with everyone getting used to playing in a varsity match that’s this competitive, where the adrenaline is going. Once they figure out how to harness it a little more, I think we can be that team you saw in the last 10 minutes today.”
Elliot agreed.
“We work hard, try to posses as much as we can, and we’re not a team that just kicks it out,” Elliot said. “We play as a team. We just have to want it a little more. It’s hard to play a full 80 minutes, but it’s always something we can work on, and with such a new team we’ll keep working on our team chemistry.”
Starting lineups
Lyons
GK Izzy Lee
D Maddie McPartlin
D Ava Pike
D Kate Fulscher
D Elli Kosonovich
M Jordan Lee-Caracci
M Avery Livingston
M Lily Mattern
M Eleanor Musgrove
F Ava Dallavo
F Reese Kornsthoeft
Hinsdale Central
GK Rania Arain
D Hanna Florence
D Lauren Oleferchik
D Ava Elliot
D Sidney Turnbull
M Maddy Panveno
M Reana Ibrahimian
M Gabrielle Gottfried
M Maggie Sanders
M Emma Elliot
F Francesca Schiavitti
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Eleanor Musgrove, jr., MF, Lyons
Scoring summary
First half
Lyons — Lee-Caracci (Livingston) 25 minutes
Second half
No scoring