Mussallem, Stagg overpower Plainfield S.
Chargers advance to Windy City final, Cougars suffer 1st setback
By Steve Millar
BURBANK -- Early in the season, Stagg has shown a knack for starting fast.
Chargers coach Allison Kaim says it’s all about preparation.
“I think the girls are putting in the work in practice, and they’re very focused during the warmups,” Kaim sad. “They’re really good at taking the initiative and getting themselves ready. Right when that whistle blows, they’re ready to take it to the other team.”
That was on display again Tuesday night as the Chargers got a pair of early goals and cruised to a 4-0 win over Plainfield South in a Windy City Ram Classic semifinal at Reavis.
Stagg (4-0-0) will take on Fenwick in the championship game of the 32-team event at 2 p.m. Sunday at Toyota Park.
It’ll be the Chargers’ first appearance in the tournament’s final.
Plainfield South (4-1-0) will meet Lincoln-Way Central in the third place game set for 10 a.m. Saturday at Reavis.
Stagg got a big boost this season when senior midfielder Ally Mussallem decided to return to the team.
Mussallem, a Purdue recruit, played with the Chargers as a freshman in 2015, when Stagg won a sectional title. She stuck with her club team the last two seasons.
Mussallem, Chicagoland Soccer’s MVP of the Match, scored twice Tuesday to increase her goal total to eight on the young season.
Sophomore forward Agnes Lojek also joined the Chargers this season after playing club last year.
“Having Ally and Agnes with us is a huge boost,” Kaim said. “We add them to a group of seniors, who are four-year starters and have great experience, and that’s a great combination. We have a great group to work with.”
Mussallem got Stagg on the board with a dynamite strike in the ninth minute. The Chargers’ Erini Kosmas tracked down a loose ball and sent a quick pass to Mussallem, who had her back to the net.
Mussallem turned and quickly unleashed a shot from 30 yards out that rocketed into the top of the net.
“I just turned and took a hit,” Mussallem said. “I was pretty comfortable taking the shot there.”
Mussallem said the Chargers were ready to go Tuesday, knowing stakes were high.
“We went out with a lot of energy and wanted to get the job done,” she said. “We really wanted to get this win and get to Toyota Park. We’re all super excited to play there and get the job done there and win this championship.”
In the 15th minute, Stagg freshman Aoife Finn struck for her first high school goal to make it 2-0.
Grace Javaras took a corner kick and sent a dangerous cross into the middle of the box. Lojek’s initial shot was blocked, but Finn was there to put in the rebound.
“It just all happened in the moment,” Finn said. “I went for my shot. There was so much excitement running through me after that. I was just happy to help out the team.”
Kaim is thrilled to have a hard-working, coachable freshman in Finn. Finn’s brother, James, played for Stagg and graduated last year.
“Aoife is very receptive to everything the coaches say, and she comes from a great family,” Kaim said. “She’s very similar to James in that she’ll do whatever the coaches ask of her. She’s strong offensively and defensively.”
Leading 2-0 at halftime, Stagg did not let up. The Chargers scored twice in the opening five minutes of the second half to erase any doubts.
Mussallem buried a cross from Veronika Stafira to make it 3-0 before Stafira found the net just over a minute later, finishing off a nice combination play as the ball went from Eilis Hannon to Lojek to Stafira.
“2-0 is a dangerous score,” Mussallem said. “We knew they were going to come at us, so we just wanted to put it away.”
The Chargers’ backline of Javaras, Hannon, Maggie O’Leary and Maja Persa, and goalkeeper Sydney Downs, finished things off from there.
Stagg has yet to allow a goal, recording four-straight shutouts.
“Communication is good in the back,” Kaim said. “As soon as we lose the ball, everyone’s working to get it back right away. We defend all across the field, from our forwards back, and everyone is able to communicate their role.”
Plainfield South tested Downs with five shots on goal, but she was up to the task each time.
The Cougars got a couple looks late in the game. Karis Mele put a free kick from 45 yards on frame with 5:15 to go, but Downs caught the shot.
Phoebe Hillery made a bid at net from 40 yards with 1:30 to go, but was stopped by Downs.
Hillery also had a pair of shots on goal in the first half, while Taylor Metcalf had one.
Nicole Trenholm made two saves for the Cougars.
“We made a lot of mistakes on our end,” Plainfield South coach Alfonso Lopez said. “Stagg is a great team. They play well all-around, and (Mussallem) is phenomenal.
“So, not taking anything away from them, but we made a lot of mistakes that we can fix. We lost the ball too many times and gave them too many good chances.”
Despite the defeat, Lopez saw plenty of positives.
“We played a strong game,” he said. “Our girls tried hard, and they did a lot of good things. We created some chances. Stagg just capitalized on all our mistakes.”
Lopez has been proud of his team’s work ethic so far this season.
“Our effort has been there every game,” he said. “The girls give it everything they have, and they leave it all on the field. We’ve got a lot of leadership on our team.”
Going forward, Lopez would like to see his team display some more tenacity on the field.
“We’ve got to be more aggressive,” he said. “We can’t hold back. We have to go after the ball. We’ve got to win loose balls, and we’ve got to be able to clear the ball out and limit chances for the teams we play.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield South
GK: Nicole Trenholm
D: Christina Schade
D: Emily Sauder
D: Amaya Silvar
D: Adanelly Escamilla
M: Alyssa Grigg
M: Phoebe Hillery
M: Ciara Coneset
M: Taylor Metcalf
F: Isabel Cerda
F: Emily Devivo
Stagg
GK: Sydney Downs
D: Maggie O’Leary
D: Eilis Hannon
D: Maja Persa
D: Grace Javaras
M: Anna Kois
M: Ally Mussallem
M: Erini Kosmas
M: Aoife Finn
F: Agnes Lojek
F: Angelina Kosmas
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Ally Mussallem, sr., M, Stagg
Scoring summary
First half
Stagg: Ally Mussallem (Erini Kosmas), 9th minute
Stagg: Aoife Finn (Agnes Lojek), 15th minute
Second half
Stagg: Mussallem (Veronika Stafira), 38th minute
Stagg: Stafira (Lojek), 40th minute
Chargers advance to Windy City final, Cougars suffer 1st setback
By Steve Millar
BURBANK -- Early in the season, Stagg has shown a knack for starting fast.
Chargers coach Allison Kaim says it’s all about preparation.
“I think the girls are putting in the work in practice, and they’re very focused during the warmups,” Kaim sad. “They’re really good at taking the initiative and getting themselves ready. Right when that whistle blows, they’re ready to take it to the other team.”
That was on display again Tuesday night as the Chargers got a pair of early goals and cruised to a 4-0 win over Plainfield South in a Windy City Ram Classic semifinal at Reavis.
Stagg (4-0-0) will take on Fenwick in the championship game of the 32-team event at 2 p.m. Sunday at Toyota Park.
It’ll be the Chargers’ first appearance in the tournament’s final.
Plainfield South (4-1-0) will meet Lincoln-Way Central in the third place game set for 10 a.m. Saturday at Reavis.
Stagg got a big boost this season when senior midfielder Ally Mussallem decided to return to the team.
Mussallem, a Purdue recruit, played with the Chargers as a freshman in 2015, when Stagg won a sectional title. She stuck with her club team the last two seasons.
Mussallem, Chicagoland Soccer’s MVP of the Match, scored twice Tuesday to increase her goal total to eight on the young season.
Sophomore forward Agnes Lojek also joined the Chargers this season after playing club last year.
“Having Ally and Agnes with us is a huge boost,” Kaim said. “We add them to a group of seniors, who are four-year starters and have great experience, and that’s a great combination. We have a great group to work with.”
Mussallem got Stagg on the board with a dynamite strike in the ninth minute. The Chargers’ Erini Kosmas tracked down a loose ball and sent a quick pass to Mussallem, who had her back to the net.
Mussallem turned and quickly unleashed a shot from 30 yards out that rocketed into the top of the net.
“I just turned and took a hit,” Mussallem said. “I was pretty comfortable taking the shot there.”
Mussallem said the Chargers were ready to go Tuesday, knowing stakes were high.
“We went out with a lot of energy and wanted to get the job done,” she said. “We really wanted to get this win and get to Toyota Park. We’re all super excited to play there and get the job done there and win this championship.”
In the 15th minute, Stagg freshman Aoife Finn struck for her first high school goal to make it 2-0.
Grace Javaras took a corner kick and sent a dangerous cross into the middle of the box. Lojek’s initial shot was blocked, but Finn was there to put in the rebound.
“It just all happened in the moment,” Finn said. “I went for my shot. There was so much excitement running through me after that. I was just happy to help out the team.”
Kaim is thrilled to have a hard-working, coachable freshman in Finn. Finn’s brother, James, played for Stagg and graduated last year.
“Aoife is very receptive to everything the coaches say, and she comes from a great family,” Kaim said. “She’s very similar to James in that she’ll do whatever the coaches ask of her. She’s strong offensively and defensively.”
Leading 2-0 at halftime, Stagg did not let up. The Chargers scored twice in the opening five minutes of the second half to erase any doubts.
Mussallem buried a cross from Veronika Stafira to make it 3-0 before Stafira found the net just over a minute later, finishing off a nice combination play as the ball went from Eilis Hannon to Lojek to Stafira.
“2-0 is a dangerous score,” Mussallem said. “We knew they were going to come at us, so we just wanted to put it away.”
The Chargers’ backline of Javaras, Hannon, Maggie O’Leary and Maja Persa, and goalkeeper Sydney Downs, finished things off from there.
Stagg has yet to allow a goal, recording four-straight shutouts.
“Communication is good in the back,” Kaim said. “As soon as we lose the ball, everyone’s working to get it back right away. We defend all across the field, from our forwards back, and everyone is able to communicate their role.”
Plainfield South tested Downs with five shots on goal, but she was up to the task each time.
The Cougars got a couple looks late in the game. Karis Mele put a free kick from 45 yards on frame with 5:15 to go, but Downs caught the shot.
Phoebe Hillery made a bid at net from 40 yards with 1:30 to go, but was stopped by Downs.
Hillery also had a pair of shots on goal in the first half, while Taylor Metcalf had one.
Nicole Trenholm made two saves for the Cougars.
“We made a lot of mistakes on our end,” Plainfield South coach Alfonso Lopez said. “Stagg is a great team. They play well all-around, and (Mussallem) is phenomenal.
“So, not taking anything away from them, but we made a lot of mistakes that we can fix. We lost the ball too many times and gave them too many good chances.”
Despite the defeat, Lopez saw plenty of positives.
“We played a strong game,” he said. “Our girls tried hard, and they did a lot of good things. We created some chances. Stagg just capitalized on all our mistakes.”
Lopez has been proud of his team’s work ethic so far this season.
“Our effort has been there every game,” he said. “The girls give it everything they have, and they leave it all on the field. We’ve got a lot of leadership on our team.”
Going forward, Lopez would like to see his team display some more tenacity on the field.
“We’ve got to be more aggressive,” he said. “We can’t hold back. We have to go after the ball. We’ve got to win loose balls, and we’ve got to be able to clear the ball out and limit chances for the teams we play.”
Starting lineups
Plainfield South
GK: Nicole Trenholm
D: Christina Schade
D: Emily Sauder
D: Amaya Silvar
D: Adanelly Escamilla
M: Alyssa Grigg
M: Phoebe Hillery
M: Ciara Coneset
M: Taylor Metcalf
F: Isabel Cerda
F: Emily Devivo
Stagg
GK: Sydney Downs
D: Maggie O’Leary
D: Eilis Hannon
D: Maja Persa
D: Grace Javaras
M: Anna Kois
M: Ally Mussallem
M: Erini Kosmas
M: Aoife Finn
F: Agnes Lojek
F: Angelina Kosmas
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Ally Mussallem, sr., M, Stagg
Scoring summary
First half
Stagg: Ally Mussallem (Erini Kosmas), 9th minute
Stagg: Aoife Finn (Agnes Lojek), 15th minute
Second half
Stagg: Mussallem (Veronika Stafira), 38th minute
Stagg: Stafira (Lojek), 40th minute