Minus 60% of its offense,
Streamwood still finds way to top S. Elgin
Each team missing star scorer in Sabres 2-1 U8 win
By Jared Birchfield
STREAMWOOD – Streamwood coach Matt Polovin wanted a positive result from Wednesday’s regular-season finale against Upstate Eight Conference rival South Elgin to boost his team’s morale for the start of next week’s state tournament.
But the Sabres manager faced two major impediments to his goal on a warm afternoon at Millennium Field: only 13 players in uniform; and his top scorer unavailable.
But Polovin’s diminished squad delivered with an inspired 2-1 win over the Storm.
“I told the girls (before the match) this is our last game going to regionals, and I don't want us going in there wishing we had done something different,” Polovin said. “I want us to go there on a high note with a win, play good soccer and get ready for (first tournament opponent) Jacobs.”
Natalia Colin, whose 25 goals represented 60 percent of the Sabres' offense, was missing from the lineup albeit for a very good reason.
“She's playing with the Mexican National Team at a camp and is gone until June 4,” the Streamwood coach explained.
Streamwood adjusted well.
“I think the girls had to find a way to play without her, and they did,” said Polovin. “They played very well. A lot of good chances, and they put the two in that we needed.”
Play in the first half was slow and deliberate with a lot of short passes and no runs on the goal.
On Streamwood’s side, the strategy was by design.
“We only have 14 players on the roster total and now I'm down to 13. I only have two subs,” Polovin said. “I don't want them driving the ball up the field and having girls try to run on every single ball especially with the temperature today.
“For us it, it was trying to play a little bit more possession. We had to try to conserve our energy a little bit.”
For South Elgin coach Laura Szwaja, the style of play was the result of a lot of matches in a short time period.
“It’s a product of two teams that are just really tired from shoving a lot into a short season,” said the Storm coach about the first half play. “I have a list of ongoing injuries. I think my injury list is about eight-deep right now, and I think we're just tired.”
The coach may have understated her injury list a bit. Out of the starting lineup Wednesday and gone for the rest of the season is Chicagoland Soccer all-stater and team co-captain Katrina Bartheld. She suffered an ankle injury against Geneva on May 22.
"As a team we have fought several injuries this season and have battled through the injuries of both of our true leaders," said Swaja, who welcomed back junior back and co-captain Chloe Beucler from an ankle issue for the game. Thank goodness both girls have good leadership skills off the field.
"We are a very young team that desperately needed varsity experience, and we got it. We fought through plenty of adversity this season, and I think our future will be bright because of it."
Streamwood forward Dayanara Huerta broke the scoreless deadlock in the 10th minute with her sixth goal of the season.
“I got a perfect pass from Emma (Skrgic). She chipped it a little,” the sophomore said. “The defender was a little bit behind me, and I got in front of her and chipped a little volley with my front foot.”
Huerta’s play earned her the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor.
“I think Dayanara really stuck out. Her partner in crime (Colin) is gone, and she stepped up and did what she had to do so take the place of Natalia,” Polovin said. “I thought she did a nice job today. She got the first goal. She was getting the ball and looking to attack. She came close on a couple other ones.”
Teammate junior Diana Herrera’s corner kick goal, her seventh strike of the season, extended the Sabres’ lead to 2-0 with 17:36 left in the first half.
“Diana had a nice corner kick that resulted in the goal. She's done that so many times in her career. She can hit pretty solid to the far post and score,” said Polovin. “I told her before the game, with this wind, if you get a chance do it. Actually, she was going against the wind when she scored.”
Both sides planned to step up the pace in the second half.
Polovin’s objective for the second 40 minutes was to keep South Elgin off the scoreboard and widen his team’s margin.
“I was a little disappointed that we gave up the one goal,” he said. “At halftime, up 2-0, I told them the most important number on the scoreboard was zero, and I wanted to keep it at zero. We don't take our foot off the gas no matter what.
“We've got the lead. If we give up a goal, they're back in it. If we get that third goal, then they're out. We know it, and they know it. So I wanted us to try to get that third goal early if we could -- that knockout punch. We didn't get it. We did what we had to do to preserve the win, because that’s what matters most in the end.”
Szwaja was of a similar mind.
“We talked about energy (at halftime). We talked about how it was the difference in the game,” said the Storm coach. "I told the team I don't think one team stands out as a team that could take control of the game until one of the teams found their energy.”
With recharged batteries, the Storm picked up its pace in the second half.
South Elgin only needed four minutes for sophomore Isabella Piaskowy to find the back net and halve Streamwood’s lead.
“I think the second half was a completely different game, because we focused on taking those moments of possession and trying to make the most of them and turning them from just possessions into attempted attacks,” Szwaja said.
The Storm mounted numerous attacks in the last 40 minutes but were turned away by the Sabres’ defense.
Steamwood goalkeeper Selina Chavez made six of her seven saves in the last half.
“She did everything she needed to do to keep the ball in front of her,” Polovin said. “She didn't give up any rebounds; she almost looked like she had stickum on her gloves. She didn't let anything go and I was really proud of her today.”
The backline also stepped up its play.
“I think the defense held their own very well. Esther (Cardenas) and Vanessa (Colin), the two center backs played lights out. They tried to stop everything that they could -- anything that came up the middle,” Polovin said.
“Danielle (Sanchez) our outside right back. She's such a little pit bull. She's got a lot of speed, can recover quickly and gets in the attack,” he continued. “Today she looked like she had never-ending energy. She did a really nice job slowing down their attack on the outside.”
Polovin also commended midfielders Skrgic and Karla Morales.
“Little no. 2 (Skrgic) was doing everything she could to move the ball around and find our target players,” said the Streamwood coach. “I wanted Morales in the game more for defensive purposes. I wanted her to just control the middle of the field front and back.”
Streamwood ended regular season play with an 8-4-1 overall record and a 5-3-1 mark in the conference. The fourth-seeded Sabres open the state tournament match against Jacobs at home next Wednesday. The Golden Eagles are seeded 13th in the Class 3A Huntley Sectional
.
South Elgin (6-3-2, 4-2-2) has one more game on its schedule at conference rival Elgin on Friday before the state tournament. The Storm, seeded sixth is also in the Huntley Sectional. They host no. 11 Dundee-Crown on Wednesday.
Starting lineups
South Elgin
GK: Karissa Cruz
D: Maille Dunne
D: Chloe Beucler
D: Ella Dihel
D: Lesly Ulloa
D: Norah Stueck
M: Alyssa Doherty
M: Allie Rys
M: Erin Morahan
F: Isabella Piaskowy
F: Kiara Andrewin
Streamwood
GK: Selina Chavez
D: Esther Cardenas
D: Madison Rivera
D: Vanessa Colin
D: Daniela Sanchez
M: Emma Skrgic
M: Karla Morales
M: Reyna Saldivar
F: Kristina Kellogg
F: Dayanara Huerta
F: Diana Herrera
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Dayanara Huerta, so., F, Streamwood
Scoring summary
First half
Streamwood: Huerta (Skrgic) 10 minutes
Streamwood: Herrera (corner kick) 23 minutes
Second half
South Elgin: Piaskowy (Dihel) 44 minutes
Streamwood still finds way to top S. Elgin
Each team missing star scorer in Sabres 2-1 U8 win
By Jared Birchfield
STREAMWOOD – Streamwood coach Matt Polovin wanted a positive result from Wednesday’s regular-season finale against Upstate Eight Conference rival South Elgin to boost his team’s morale for the start of next week’s state tournament.
But the Sabres manager faced two major impediments to his goal on a warm afternoon at Millennium Field: only 13 players in uniform; and his top scorer unavailable.
But Polovin’s diminished squad delivered with an inspired 2-1 win over the Storm.
“I told the girls (before the match) this is our last game going to regionals, and I don't want us going in there wishing we had done something different,” Polovin said. “I want us to go there on a high note with a win, play good soccer and get ready for (first tournament opponent) Jacobs.”
Natalia Colin, whose 25 goals represented 60 percent of the Sabres' offense, was missing from the lineup albeit for a very good reason.
“She's playing with the Mexican National Team at a camp and is gone until June 4,” the Streamwood coach explained.
Streamwood adjusted well.
“I think the girls had to find a way to play without her, and they did,” said Polovin. “They played very well. A lot of good chances, and they put the two in that we needed.”
Play in the first half was slow and deliberate with a lot of short passes and no runs on the goal.
On Streamwood’s side, the strategy was by design.
“We only have 14 players on the roster total and now I'm down to 13. I only have two subs,” Polovin said. “I don't want them driving the ball up the field and having girls try to run on every single ball especially with the temperature today.
“For us it, it was trying to play a little bit more possession. We had to try to conserve our energy a little bit.”
For South Elgin coach Laura Szwaja, the style of play was the result of a lot of matches in a short time period.
“It’s a product of two teams that are just really tired from shoving a lot into a short season,” said the Storm coach about the first half play. “I have a list of ongoing injuries. I think my injury list is about eight-deep right now, and I think we're just tired.”
The coach may have understated her injury list a bit. Out of the starting lineup Wednesday and gone for the rest of the season is Chicagoland Soccer all-stater and team co-captain Katrina Bartheld. She suffered an ankle injury against Geneva on May 22.
"As a team we have fought several injuries this season and have battled through the injuries of both of our true leaders," said Swaja, who welcomed back junior back and co-captain Chloe Beucler from an ankle issue for the game. Thank goodness both girls have good leadership skills off the field.
"We are a very young team that desperately needed varsity experience, and we got it. We fought through plenty of adversity this season, and I think our future will be bright because of it."
Streamwood forward Dayanara Huerta broke the scoreless deadlock in the 10th minute with her sixth goal of the season.
“I got a perfect pass from Emma (Skrgic). She chipped it a little,” the sophomore said. “The defender was a little bit behind me, and I got in front of her and chipped a little volley with my front foot.”
Huerta’s play earned her the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor.
“I think Dayanara really stuck out. Her partner in crime (Colin) is gone, and she stepped up and did what she had to do so take the place of Natalia,” Polovin said. “I thought she did a nice job today. She got the first goal. She was getting the ball and looking to attack. She came close on a couple other ones.”
Teammate junior Diana Herrera’s corner kick goal, her seventh strike of the season, extended the Sabres’ lead to 2-0 with 17:36 left in the first half.
“Diana had a nice corner kick that resulted in the goal. She's done that so many times in her career. She can hit pretty solid to the far post and score,” said Polovin. “I told her before the game, with this wind, if you get a chance do it. Actually, she was going against the wind when she scored.”
Both sides planned to step up the pace in the second half.
Polovin’s objective for the second 40 minutes was to keep South Elgin off the scoreboard and widen his team’s margin.
“I was a little disappointed that we gave up the one goal,” he said. “At halftime, up 2-0, I told them the most important number on the scoreboard was zero, and I wanted to keep it at zero. We don't take our foot off the gas no matter what.
“We've got the lead. If we give up a goal, they're back in it. If we get that third goal, then they're out. We know it, and they know it. So I wanted us to try to get that third goal early if we could -- that knockout punch. We didn't get it. We did what we had to do to preserve the win, because that’s what matters most in the end.”
Szwaja was of a similar mind.
“We talked about energy (at halftime). We talked about how it was the difference in the game,” said the Storm coach. "I told the team I don't think one team stands out as a team that could take control of the game until one of the teams found their energy.”
With recharged batteries, the Storm picked up its pace in the second half.
South Elgin only needed four minutes for sophomore Isabella Piaskowy to find the back net and halve Streamwood’s lead.
“I think the second half was a completely different game, because we focused on taking those moments of possession and trying to make the most of them and turning them from just possessions into attempted attacks,” Szwaja said.
The Storm mounted numerous attacks in the last 40 minutes but were turned away by the Sabres’ defense.
Steamwood goalkeeper Selina Chavez made six of her seven saves in the last half.
“She did everything she needed to do to keep the ball in front of her,” Polovin said. “She didn't give up any rebounds; she almost looked like she had stickum on her gloves. She didn't let anything go and I was really proud of her today.”
The backline also stepped up its play.
“I think the defense held their own very well. Esther (Cardenas) and Vanessa (Colin), the two center backs played lights out. They tried to stop everything that they could -- anything that came up the middle,” Polovin said.
“Danielle (Sanchez) our outside right back. She's such a little pit bull. She's got a lot of speed, can recover quickly and gets in the attack,” he continued. “Today she looked like she had never-ending energy. She did a really nice job slowing down their attack on the outside.”
Polovin also commended midfielders Skrgic and Karla Morales.
“Little no. 2 (Skrgic) was doing everything she could to move the ball around and find our target players,” said the Streamwood coach. “I wanted Morales in the game more for defensive purposes. I wanted her to just control the middle of the field front and back.”
Streamwood ended regular season play with an 8-4-1 overall record and a 5-3-1 mark in the conference. The fourth-seeded Sabres open the state tournament match against Jacobs at home next Wednesday. The Golden Eagles are seeded 13th in the Class 3A Huntley Sectional
.
South Elgin (6-3-2, 4-2-2) has one more game on its schedule at conference rival Elgin on Friday before the state tournament. The Storm, seeded sixth is also in the Huntley Sectional. They host no. 11 Dundee-Crown on Wednesday.
Starting lineups
South Elgin
GK: Karissa Cruz
D: Maille Dunne
D: Chloe Beucler
D: Ella Dihel
D: Lesly Ulloa
D: Norah Stueck
M: Alyssa Doherty
M: Allie Rys
M: Erin Morahan
F: Isabella Piaskowy
F: Kiara Andrewin
Streamwood
GK: Selina Chavez
D: Esther Cardenas
D: Madison Rivera
D: Vanessa Colin
D: Daniela Sanchez
M: Emma Skrgic
M: Karla Morales
M: Reyna Saldivar
F: Kristina Kellogg
F: Dayanara Huerta
F: Diana Herrera
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Dayanara Huerta, so., F, Streamwood
Scoring summary
First half
Streamwood: Huerta (Skrgic) 10 minutes
Streamwood: Herrera (corner kick) 23 minutes
Second half
South Elgin: Piaskowy (Dihel) 44 minutes