LWC drops Glenbard East
short of tournament goal
Host Rams fall 1-0 Windy City Ram Classic quarterfinal
By Patrick Z. McGavin
LOMBARD -- By the usual metrics Glenbard East appeared poised to blast off the first week of the new season.
The Rams welcomed back multiple starters and enjoyed a continuity and stability of players who have been together for four years.
However in the post-pandemic landscape, nothing is ever quite what it appears.
“We return nine starters, and so you come into the year thinking we’d come out flying,” Glenbard East coach Kent Overbey said.
“Last season was not normal. It was abbreviated, and we’re still a little bit behind. We are trying to get people settled into their positions.”
Senior midfielder Sarah Conroy is one of five returners who have started since their freshman year.
The hope, promise and difficulties are all intertwined.
Navigating those jumbled conditions takes time and patience.
“I think starting off the season, we clicked very well,” Conroy said. “We have a lot of new girls on varsity.
“This has given us the opportunity to work together as a team. Even in the cold the last two weeks, we have gotten a chance to get out and play.”
The Rams looked to punch their ticket to the semifinals of the Windy City Ram Classic.
After winning their first two games by a combined margin of 10-1, Glenbard East encountered its most difficult assignment in the form of a skilled and talented team from Lincoln-Way Central.
“I think the challenge for us was our first game was not very competitive, and that set us back a little bit,” Conroy said.
The Rams suffered a 1-0 loss after the Knights’ Jenni Andjelic drilled a 20-yard free kick in the 61st minute here Saturday.
Glenbard East (2-1-0) will play Lincoln-Way West in a fifth place bracket game.
Lincoln-Way Central (3-0-0) will play Glenbrook South (3-0-0) at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Reavis. The Titans defeated Lincoln-Way West 1-0 in double overtime.
Andrew and Lincoln-Way East will play in the first semifinal at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Reavis.
The quarterfinal games were played at satellite sites under the typical rules of the tournament, which feature two 35-minute halves.
Andjelic was fouled at the top of the box.
She stepped up and drilled a sharp ball that eluded the wall and broke perfectly inside the near post.
“I just had to gather my composure,” she said. “I felt confident stepping up and taking it.
“The left side of the goal was wide open. The wall was more directed to the near right, and the goalie was off their shoulder, and that just opened the left side.”
Andjelic earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her outstanding two-way play.
Lanky and skilled, she was part of an airtight defense that nullified the Rams at the point of attack.
Glenbard East midfielder Maia Zatarski had a couple of decent looks from the midrange.
But by and large, Lincoln-Way Central enjoyed the advantage in possession time and opportunities.
“We really had to stay composed, tight together, and communicate, because they had a lot of movement across the top,” Lincoln-Way East center back Grace Grundhofer said.
“We just had to keep telling each other who was in, and check them in order to slow them down.”
Grundhofer is another intriguing talent who juices up the Knights’ attack with her set pieces and free kicks.
Her flip-throws in from the edge created some difficult moments for the Rams’ defense.
Her free kicks were also problematic.
The Knights’ superior possession time broke up the fluidity of the Rams’ attack.
Glenbard East managed some solid half-chances and decent opportunities. Even those opportunities lacked true substance.
“This game today is the reason why I love playing in this tournament,” Overbey said.
“We got our legs underneath us on Tuesday and Thursday. We played a very strong, high-intensity, high-press team, and coach Sean Fahey does a great job organizing them in the back. They’re hard to break down.”
The Rams have a dynamic attack at the point with quality attacking players in Sarah Ljestrand, Jasmine Dhamers and Conroy.
“Playing forward now, I feel like Jasmine, Zatarski and some of the others do a great job of helping set me up,” Conroy said.
“I think today showed what we really need to work on, especially our passes on top. We have the idea. We just need to execute it better.”
Senior keeper Zoe Romano was solid with five saves.
The deep senior class is now bolstered and reinforced by young and emerging talent like freshman Julia Bereta, who is starting at center back.
The mix requires some time to cohere and take flight.
“We have a bunch of four-year varsity players, and we have a bunch of brand-new talent coming up,” Romano said.
“We’re rotating sophomores in; we’re rotating juniors in. We’re trying to get everyone minutes where we can and give everybody a chance to play.”
Zatarski had probably the best scoring threat in the 58th minute with a rocket ball that Knights’ keeper Alexa Hadley was able to get a hand on.
The Rams just need time to fuse all the pieces together.
“We’re trying to find our identity as an attacking team,” Overbey said. “We have a lot of players up-top who can be game-changers.”
Time and opportunity have never been so apparent for this generation of players who have experienced an unprecedented sequence of events, beginning with losing an entire season two years ago.
“It’s incalculable what the loss of the season was,” Overbey said.
“If you look at our roster, five of these seniors have started since they were freshmen. They learned the high school game that year. Their sophomore year was going to be the year they came into their own.”
The return of the girls game last year proved chaotic and jagged, with the team enduring health and safety protocols. Overbey said he did not have his full roster available until the final regular-season game against Bartlett.
The loss in the Windy City Ram Classic winners’ bracket was a tough blow, but it’s early and the team is still confident and assured.
“We go down with 10 minutes left, and it’s a lesson we are going to take with us,” Overbey said.
This senior group is used to adversity and overcoming the odds.
“We are just trying to get the work in and play more games together,” Conroy said.
“This tournament gets us started and gets the team ready for conference.”
Starting lineups
Lincoln-Way Central
GK: Alexa Hadley
D: Jenni Andjelic
D: Grace Grundhofer
D: Abby Sudkamp
D: Jaylin Sustr
MF: Madi Watt
MF: Emma Olson
MF: Madisyn Kenworthy
MF: Emma Vogler
F: Christine Erdman
F: Reagan Schultz
Glenbard East
GK: Zoe Romano
D: Haley Tu
D: Julie Bereta
D: Brielle DeForest
D: Ruby Campuzano
MF: Hope McKenna
MF: Sarah Conroy
MF: Maia Zatarski
F: Jasmine Dhamers
F: Sarah Liljestrand
F: Sophia Sommesi
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Jenni Andjelic, sr., D, Lincoln-Way Central
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Lincoln-Way Central—Jenni Andjelic (free kick), 61st minute
short of tournament goal
Host Rams fall 1-0 Windy City Ram Classic quarterfinal
By Patrick Z. McGavin
LOMBARD -- By the usual metrics Glenbard East appeared poised to blast off the first week of the new season.
The Rams welcomed back multiple starters and enjoyed a continuity and stability of players who have been together for four years.
However in the post-pandemic landscape, nothing is ever quite what it appears.
“We return nine starters, and so you come into the year thinking we’d come out flying,” Glenbard East coach Kent Overbey said.
“Last season was not normal. It was abbreviated, and we’re still a little bit behind. We are trying to get people settled into their positions.”
Senior midfielder Sarah Conroy is one of five returners who have started since their freshman year.
The hope, promise and difficulties are all intertwined.
Navigating those jumbled conditions takes time and patience.
“I think starting off the season, we clicked very well,” Conroy said. “We have a lot of new girls on varsity.
“This has given us the opportunity to work together as a team. Even in the cold the last two weeks, we have gotten a chance to get out and play.”
The Rams looked to punch their ticket to the semifinals of the Windy City Ram Classic.
After winning their first two games by a combined margin of 10-1, Glenbard East encountered its most difficult assignment in the form of a skilled and talented team from Lincoln-Way Central.
“I think the challenge for us was our first game was not very competitive, and that set us back a little bit,” Conroy said.
The Rams suffered a 1-0 loss after the Knights’ Jenni Andjelic drilled a 20-yard free kick in the 61st minute here Saturday.
Glenbard East (2-1-0) will play Lincoln-Way West in a fifth place bracket game.
Lincoln-Way Central (3-0-0) will play Glenbrook South (3-0-0) at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Reavis. The Titans defeated Lincoln-Way West 1-0 in double overtime.
Andrew and Lincoln-Way East will play in the first semifinal at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Reavis.
The quarterfinal games were played at satellite sites under the typical rules of the tournament, which feature two 35-minute halves.
Andjelic was fouled at the top of the box.
She stepped up and drilled a sharp ball that eluded the wall and broke perfectly inside the near post.
“I just had to gather my composure,” she said. “I felt confident stepping up and taking it.
“The left side of the goal was wide open. The wall was more directed to the near right, and the goalie was off their shoulder, and that just opened the left side.”
Andjelic earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her outstanding two-way play.
Lanky and skilled, she was part of an airtight defense that nullified the Rams at the point of attack.
Glenbard East midfielder Maia Zatarski had a couple of decent looks from the midrange.
But by and large, Lincoln-Way Central enjoyed the advantage in possession time and opportunities.
“We really had to stay composed, tight together, and communicate, because they had a lot of movement across the top,” Lincoln-Way East center back Grace Grundhofer said.
“We just had to keep telling each other who was in, and check them in order to slow them down.”
Grundhofer is another intriguing talent who juices up the Knights’ attack with her set pieces and free kicks.
Her flip-throws in from the edge created some difficult moments for the Rams’ defense.
Her free kicks were also problematic.
The Knights’ superior possession time broke up the fluidity of the Rams’ attack.
Glenbard East managed some solid half-chances and decent opportunities. Even those opportunities lacked true substance.
“This game today is the reason why I love playing in this tournament,” Overbey said.
“We got our legs underneath us on Tuesday and Thursday. We played a very strong, high-intensity, high-press team, and coach Sean Fahey does a great job organizing them in the back. They’re hard to break down.”
The Rams have a dynamic attack at the point with quality attacking players in Sarah Ljestrand, Jasmine Dhamers and Conroy.
“Playing forward now, I feel like Jasmine, Zatarski and some of the others do a great job of helping set me up,” Conroy said.
“I think today showed what we really need to work on, especially our passes on top. We have the idea. We just need to execute it better.”
Senior keeper Zoe Romano was solid with five saves.
The deep senior class is now bolstered and reinforced by young and emerging talent like freshman Julia Bereta, who is starting at center back.
The mix requires some time to cohere and take flight.
“We have a bunch of four-year varsity players, and we have a bunch of brand-new talent coming up,” Romano said.
“We’re rotating sophomores in; we’re rotating juniors in. We’re trying to get everyone minutes where we can and give everybody a chance to play.”
Zatarski had probably the best scoring threat in the 58th minute with a rocket ball that Knights’ keeper Alexa Hadley was able to get a hand on.
The Rams just need time to fuse all the pieces together.
“We’re trying to find our identity as an attacking team,” Overbey said. “We have a lot of players up-top who can be game-changers.”
Time and opportunity have never been so apparent for this generation of players who have experienced an unprecedented sequence of events, beginning with losing an entire season two years ago.
“It’s incalculable what the loss of the season was,” Overbey said.
“If you look at our roster, five of these seniors have started since they were freshmen. They learned the high school game that year. Their sophomore year was going to be the year they came into their own.”
The return of the girls game last year proved chaotic and jagged, with the team enduring health and safety protocols. Overbey said he did not have his full roster available until the final regular-season game against Bartlett.
The loss in the Windy City Ram Classic winners’ bracket was a tough blow, but it’s early and the team is still confident and assured.
“We go down with 10 minutes left, and it’s a lesson we are going to take with us,” Overbey said.
This senior group is used to adversity and overcoming the odds.
“We are just trying to get the work in and play more games together,” Conroy said.
“This tournament gets us started and gets the team ready for conference.”
Starting lineups
Lincoln-Way Central
GK: Alexa Hadley
D: Jenni Andjelic
D: Grace Grundhofer
D: Abby Sudkamp
D: Jaylin Sustr
MF: Madi Watt
MF: Emma Olson
MF: Madisyn Kenworthy
MF: Emma Vogler
F: Christine Erdman
F: Reagan Schultz
Glenbard East
GK: Zoe Romano
D: Haley Tu
D: Julie Bereta
D: Brielle DeForest
D: Ruby Campuzano
MF: Hope McKenna
MF: Sarah Conroy
MF: Maia Zatarski
F: Jasmine Dhamers
F: Sarah Liljestrand
F: Sophia Sommesi
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Jenni Andjelic, sr., D, Lincoln-Way Central
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Lincoln-Way Central—Jenni Andjelic (free kick), 61st minute