Dynamic duo leads East
past North in St. Charles duel
Williams, Ella Stehman lead Saints to revenge 3-1 sectional win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
ST. CHARLES -- Ella Stehman was not going to let fear or envy rule her play on the field.
St. Charles East had done enough losing against rival St. Charles North this season. In the most consequential game of the year, much was at stake, and the Fighting Saints had put too much time, effort and activity into the buildup to let it go to waste.
“I feel like there’s a feeling whenever we play North that we are really nervous,” Stehman said.
The junior midfielder reflected on the two previous games that went the North Stars’ way: a 2-1 victory in the championship game of the Rose Augsburg-Drach Invitational on April 2 and the 2-0 DuKane Conference victory during at Tri-Cities Night on April 26.
Defender Madison Flanders echoed the thought of her teammate.
“The first two times, I think we were scared,” Flanders said. “We just shut down, because we know it’s our rival. This game, we knew it was all or nothing, either win or go home.
“We played them last year in the sectional finals (a shootout win), and we knew it was a matter of proving ourselves after we lost twice in a row. We wanted to win and move on.”
St. Charles North drew first blood with a stunning early goal by star Bella Najera.
The rest of the night belonged to the Saints.
Stehman created the first half equalizer in concert with Flanders, and joined forces with fast, electric forward Grace Williams for the final goal.
The Stehman-Williams combination effectively knocked the North Stars out.
Williams scored twice, and Stehman registered a goal and assist to lead sectional host St. Charles East to a 3-1 victory Friday night.
St. Charles East (20-4-2) won the game that truly mattered.
“St. Charles East came out and played really well today,” St. Charles North coach Brian Harks said. “They were the better team.
“When you get to this late in the season, it’s all about finishing opportunities. I thought we had some really nice opportunities that didn’t go our way.”
The misfortune included a shot that hit off the post.
St. Charles East advances to play host Barrington on Tuesday in the supersectional round, one step from state.
The game is a rematch of last year’s supersectional where the Fillies ended the Saints’ unbeaten season with a 1-0 victory.
This season, Barrington beat St. Charles East 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the Naperville Invitational on April 28.
In big games, early goals take on a heightened value.
St. Charles North (19-3-0) had moments. The Saints had the greater consistency and level of effort.
Najera’s beautiful goal, from a fluid and electric pass from Sophie Kirsten, just 1:46 into the game suggested the start of another dominant North Stars’ performance.
Najera stayed hot after scoring twice in the 4-1 semifinal victory over Wheaton Warrenville South on Tuesday.
“We came out with a lot of intensity, and we wanted to be the first one to score,” Najera said. “We thought our momentum would carry after that.
“It was an early goal, and we thought we had to keep pushing. Unfortunately, they had more goals than us, and they had more opportunities.”
Slowly, with signs incontrovertible and more subtle, the tide shifted in the favor of the St, Charles East.
The Saints players were quicker to the ball. The middle attack with Yasmin Martinez, Kara Machala and Alli Saviano pounced on the 50/50 balls and enabled the Saints to push numbers forward.
By the middle stretch of the first half, the game was played primarily in the North Stars’ end.
St. Charles East also had to cope with a significant middle of the season absence after standout midfielder McKenna Gahagan suffered a torn ACL.
“McKenna is a star player on our team,” forward Mia Raschke said. “I think Alli Saviano and Tia definitely stepped up and filled those spots. They have been doing an awesome job at it.
“I definitely feel like I want to play not just for myself, but for everybody else. I just feel like it’s a full team effort.”
The Saints also lost the services of 2021 Chicagoland Soccer all-stater Ashley Stellon, who graduated early prior to her college career at Illinois.
During their unbeaten run last year leading into the Barrington game, the St. Charles East reversed the equation and beat the North Stars all three times the schools met.
The Saints survived the North Stars in a penalty shootout for the sectional title after a scoreless regulation and two overtimes.
The memory proved valuable.
“I just think since the playoffs started, we have been so confident and working hard as a team,” Raschke said. “We went into this game knowing we could beat them, and we had the confidence.
“I think we stepped it up. We knew we had to fight. For some of us, this could be our last game. I think we all wanted to fight for each other.”
The Saints pressed numbers forward, finally yielding positive results in the 24th minute. Working the right wing, Flanders drove the ball down the edge and lofted a beautiful cross into the box.
Ella Stehman elevated and smashed home her 11th goal of the year for the equalizer.
“We practiced that a lot yesterday, and we followed it up in this game,” Flanders said. “We knew they were going to come after us. If they scored one, they’d look to score more.
“I think the combination between Ella and I is really good. Our coach, Vince DiNuzzo, also tells us to loft the ball into the middle of the box, and that’s what we were able to do.”
Freshman keeper Sidney Lazenby was another impressive storyline for the Saints.
She is a “bubble player,” one who has toggled between the lower level and varsity competition since the beginning of the year. Her talent, range and instincts have been a developing story.
Even with two experienced keepers in Grace Stehman and Sofia Iori, Lazenby has become the go-to stopper.
She had seven saves, the most impressive coming just moments after the goal by Ella Stehman.
St. Charles North created pressure that produced a foul just outside the top of the box. Najera, who scored a tremendous free kick goal Tuesday, delivered a sidewinder howitzer.
Lazenby made a quick move to her left for the fingernail save.
“That was a great save by the keeper on the free kick,” Harks said.
Lazenby also had the presence of mind to shake off the early goal.
“There was a lot of pressure going in because it was the sectional finals,” she said. “Everybody was able to keep up the pressure today.
“I think the goal gave me extra motivation to try and keep up, and try to keep the goals out.”
Williams was the story of the second half.
The transfer from Neuqua Valley scored her team-best 23rd and 24th goals in the second half.
“I have a friend on the North team, and last year we came and watched them go into penalty kicks,” Williams said.
“Obviously I knew from the start when I transferred, I knew they were good. I just knew I had to work hard to earn my place, and hopefully help the team.”
Just as Najera provided early fireworks to start the game, Williams changed everything at the beginning of the second half.
In the 41st minute, she saw the opportunity to pressure North Stars’ keeper Kara Claussner on an attempted clearance.
“I just threw myself into it,” Williams said. “I saw her take the touch, and I saw her turn. I told myself she is going to go this way, and I just turned my whole body and hoped to get something on it.”
Claussner punted the ball, and Williams jumped into its path. The ball deflected off Williams body near the top of the box with enough torque to sail over the keeper’s head and into the net for the stunning goal just 36 seconds into the second half.
“It was definitely unlucky,” Najera said. “There was probably a 99 percent chance they would not go in.”
Williams is smooth and heady in space. The Saints’ attack gives her plenty of room to operate.
“I like to turn on my defenders,” Williams said. “North’s defenders are really good, especially their center backs, Abby Vichich and Martina Nava. Their outside backs are also really good.
“I knew from the start it was not going to be easy to turn and go. I knew we had to combine a lot and play more as a team.”
Lazenby continued to play beyond her years.
Connecting with Martinez and Ella Stehman for the follow-up, Williams put the game away in the 67th minute. Operating off a corner from the left edge, Stehman volleyed the Martinez corner toward the right side.
Williams did the rest.
“I just tried to get something on it, and I knew a little bit more would help,” she said.
Grace Williams earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her superb play.
Now the Saints think about another team they owe, Barrington.
“We have to go into it the same way we played today,” Williams said.
“This was one of our best games of the year. Our mentality was great. Our energy was great, and we have to go into Barrington and finish our shots. Our mentality is to not let anything up, and just deny everything.”
Starting lineups
St. Charles North
GK: Kara Claussner
D: Lauren Balster
D: Abby Vichich
D: Martina Nava
D: Sidney Timms
MF: Juliana Park
MF: Bella Najera
MF: Sophie Kirsten
MF: Kayla Floyd
F: Sophie Hein
F: Sophie Sunderland
St. Charles East
GK: Sidney Lazenby
D: Mackenzie Loomis
D: Anna Champine
D: Madison Flanders
D: Libby Thomas
MF: Yasmin Martinez
MF: Kara Machala
MF: Alli Saviano
F: Grace Williams
F: Ella Stehman
F: Mia Raschke
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Grace Williams, jr., F, St. Charles East
Scoring summary
First half
SCN: Bella Najera (Sophie Kirsten), 2’
SCE: Ella Stehman (Madison Flanders), 24’
Second half
SCE: Grace Williams (unassisted), 41’
SCE: Williams (Stehman), 67’
past North in St. Charles duel
Williams, Ella Stehman lead Saints to revenge 3-1 sectional win
By Patrick Z. McGavin
ST. CHARLES -- Ella Stehman was not going to let fear or envy rule her play on the field.
St. Charles East had done enough losing against rival St. Charles North this season. In the most consequential game of the year, much was at stake, and the Fighting Saints had put too much time, effort and activity into the buildup to let it go to waste.
“I feel like there’s a feeling whenever we play North that we are really nervous,” Stehman said.
The junior midfielder reflected on the two previous games that went the North Stars’ way: a 2-1 victory in the championship game of the Rose Augsburg-Drach Invitational on April 2 and the 2-0 DuKane Conference victory during at Tri-Cities Night on April 26.
Defender Madison Flanders echoed the thought of her teammate.
“The first two times, I think we were scared,” Flanders said. “We just shut down, because we know it’s our rival. This game, we knew it was all or nothing, either win or go home.
“We played them last year in the sectional finals (a shootout win), and we knew it was a matter of proving ourselves after we lost twice in a row. We wanted to win and move on.”
St. Charles North drew first blood with a stunning early goal by star Bella Najera.
The rest of the night belonged to the Saints.
Stehman created the first half equalizer in concert with Flanders, and joined forces with fast, electric forward Grace Williams for the final goal.
The Stehman-Williams combination effectively knocked the North Stars out.
Williams scored twice, and Stehman registered a goal and assist to lead sectional host St. Charles East to a 3-1 victory Friday night.
St. Charles East (20-4-2) won the game that truly mattered.
“St. Charles East came out and played really well today,” St. Charles North coach Brian Harks said. “They were the better team.
“When you get to this late in the season, it’s all about finishing opportunities. I thought we had some really nice opportunities that didn’t go our way.”
The misfortune included a shot that hit off the post.
St. Charles East advances to play host Barrington on Tuesday in the supersectional round, one step from state.
The game is a rematch of last year’s supersectional where the Fillies ended the Saints’ unbeaten season with a 1-0 victory.
This season, Barrington beat St. Charles East 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the Naperville Invitational on April 28.
In big games, early goals take on a heightened value.
St. Charles North (19-3-0) had moments. The Saints had the greater consistency and level of effort.
Najera’s beautiful goal, from a fluid and electric pass from Sophie Kirsten, just 1:46 into the game suggested the start of another dominant North Stars’ performance.
Najera stayed hot after scoring twice in the 4-1 semifinal victory over Wheaton Warrenville South on Tuesday.
“We came out with a lot of intensity, and we wanted to be the first one to score,” Najera said. “We thought our momentum would carry after that.
“It was an early goal, and we thought we had to keep pushing. Unfortunately, they had more goals than us, and they had more opportunities.”
Slowly, with signs incontrovertible and more subtle, the tide shifted in the favor of the St, Charles East.
The Saints players were quicker to the ball. The middle attack with Yasmin Martinez, Kara Machala and Alli Saviano pounced on the 50/50 balls and enabled the Saints to push numbers forward.
By the middle stretch of the first half, the game was played primarily in the North Stars’ end.
St. Charles East also had to cope with a significant middle of the season absence after standout midfielder McKenna Gahagan suffered a torn ACL.
“McKenna is a star player on our team,” forward Mia Raschke said. “I think Alli Saviano and Tia definitely stepped up and filled those spots. They have been doing an awesome job at it.
“I definitely feel like I want to play not just for myself, but for everybody else. I just feel like it’s a full team effort.”
The Saints also lost the services of 2021 Chicagoland Soccer all-stater Ashley Stellon, who graduated early prior to her college career at Illinois.
During their unbeaten run last year leading into the Barrington game, the St. Charles East reversed the equation and beat the North Stars all three times the schools met.
The Saints survived the North Stars in a penalty shootout for the sectional title after a scoreless regulation and two overtimes.
The memory proved valuable.
“I just think since the playoffs started, we have been so confident and working hard as a team,” Raschke said. “We went into this game knowing we could beat them, and we had the confidence.
“I think we stepped it up. We knew we had to fight. For some of us, this could be our last game. I think we all wanted to fight for each other.”
The Saints pressed numbers forward, finally yielding positive results in the 24th minute. Working the right wing, Flanders drove the ball down the edge and lofted a beautiful cross into the box.
Ella Stehman elevated and smashed home her 11th goal of the year for the equalizer.
“We practiced that a lot yesterday, and we followed it up in this game,” Flanders said. “We knew they were going to come after us. If they scored one, they’d look to score more.
“I think the combination between Ella and I is really good. Our coach, Vince DiNuzzo, also tells us to loft the ball into the middle of the box, and that’s what we were able to do.”
Freshman keeper Sidney Lazenby was another impressive storyline for the Saints.
She is a “bubble player,” one who has toggled between the lower level and varsity competition since the beginning of the year. Her talent, range and instincts have been a developing story.
Even with two experienced keepers in Grace Stehman and Sofia Iori, Lazenby has become the go-to stopper.
She had seven saves, the most impressive coming just moments after the goal by Ella Stehman.
St. Charles North created pressure that produced a foul just outside the top of the box. Najera, who scored a tremendous free kick goal Tuesday, delivered a sidewinder howitzer.
Lazenby made a quick move to her left for the fingernail save.
“That was a great save by the keeper on the free kick,” Harks said.
Lazenby also had the presence of mind to shake off the early goal.
“There was a lot of pressure going in because it was the sectional finals,” she said. “Everybody was able to keep up the pressure today.
“I think the goal gave me extra motivation to try and keep up, and try to keep the goals out.”
Williams was the story of the second half.
The transfer from Neuqua Valley scored her team-best 23rd and 24th goals in the second half.
“I have a friend on the North team, and last year we came and watched them go into penalty kicks,” Williams said.
“Obviously I knew from the start when I transferred, I knew they were good. I just knew I had to work hard to earn my place, and hopefully help the team.”
Just as Najera provided early fireworks to start the game, Williams changed everything at the beginning of the second half.
In the 41st minute, she saw the opportunity to pressure North Stars’ keeper Kara Claussner on an attempted clearance.
“I just threw myself into it,” Williams said. “I saw her take the touch, and I saw her turn. I told myself she is going to go this way, and I just turned my whole body and hoped to get something on it.”
Claussner punted the ball, and Williams jumped into its path. The ball deflected off Williams body near the top of the box with enough torque to sail over the keeper’s head and into the net for the stunning goal just 36 seconds into the second half.
“It was definitely unlucky,” Najera said. “There was probably a 99 percent chance they would not go in.”
Williams is smooth and heady in space. The Saints’ attack gives her plenty of room to operate.
“I like to turn on my defenders,” Williams said. “North’s defenders are really good, especially their center backs, Abby Vichich and Martina Nava. Their outside backs are also really good.
“I knew from the start it was not going to be easy to turn and go. I knew we had to combine a lot and play more as a team.”
Lazenby continued to play beyond her years.
Connecting with Martinez and Ella Stehman for the follow-up, Williams put the game away in the 67th minute. Operating off a corner from the left edge, Stehman volleyed the Martinez corner toward the right side.
Williams did the rest.
“I just tried to get something on it, and I knew a little bit more would help,” she said.
Grace Williams earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her superb play.
Now the Saints think about another team they owe, Barrington.
“We have to go into it the same way we played today,” Williams said.
“This was one of our best games of the year. Our mentality was great. Our energy was great, and we have to go into Barrington and finish our shots. Our mentality is to not let anything up, and just deny everything.”
Starting lineups
St. Charles North
GK: Kara Claussner
D: Lauren Balster
D: Abby Vichich
D: Martina Nava
D: Sidney Timms
MF: Juliana Park
MF: Bella Najera
MF: Sophie Kirsten
MF: Kayla Floyd
F: Sophie Hein
F: Sophie Sunderland
St. Charles East
GK: Sidney Lazenby
D: Mackenzie Loomis
D: Anna Champine
D: Madison Flanders
D: Libby Thomas
MF: Yasmin Martinez
MF: Kara Machala
MF: Alli Saviano
F: Grace Williams
F: Ella Stehman
F: Mia Raschke
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Grace Williams, jr., F, St. Charles East
Scoring summary
First half
SCN: Bella Najera (Sophie Kirsten), 2’
SCE: Ella Stehman (Madison Flanders), 24’
Second half
SCE: Grace Williams (unassisted), 41’
SCE: Williams (Stehman), 67’