S. Elgin edges W. Aurora for 1st UEC crown
Freshman star Barthelt leads Storm to 1-0 win
By Steve Nemeth
AURORA -- South Elgin made a first half goal stand up for a 1-0 victory in Wednesday’s visit to West Aurora and that effort earned the Storm the school’s initial Upstate Eight Conference title in girls soccer.
After the triumph, the Storm players gathered their backpacks from the bench and decided to get milkshakes for their post-match celebration. However, the team bus was nowhere to be found.
After several phone calls, a U-46 school bus that had delivered Elgin’s baseball squad to West Aurora became the substitute chariot for the champs.
Original plans called for the match to be played at 6:30 p.m., but the two schools agreed to a 4:30 p.m. start in lieu of an ominous forecast.
For West Aurora (11-6-1, 6-2-1), the Storm came early.
"They outplayed us. They wanted it more, had more energy, won just about every ball,” West Aurora coach Laura Wagley said. “Unfortunately we didn’t come out ready to go and at times we were overthinking things.”
Of course the actual amount of thinking that went into the goal for South Elgin (12-3-3, 7-0-2, 23 points) produced different viewpoints.
“We talked about the importance of free kicks or corners, the need for a good service,” Storm coach Laura Szwaja said. “I can’t say we planned that one, I thought that was just pure hustle on Katrina’s part.”
Freshman phenom Katrina Barthelt pounced on an opportunity and scored just 17:30 into the match but described it as if just another corner kick chance.
“(Danielle Kurcharski’s) service was from the right, and I made my run from the left. I think the goalie was caught off guard a little because it got deflected, so I just focused on volleying it into the right half of the goal,” Barthelt said.
“With Katrina it’s usually placement, but in this case she pretty much just buried it,” Szwaja said. “It was simply a hard shot on goal.”
Being a junior and a program veteran, Kurcharski framed the pleasure of a conference championship with her ear-to-ear smile and perspective.
“We have a wall of conference championships (for Storm teams), and I’m really happy to know we’ve added to it,” Kurcharski said.
Did the Storm even contemplate that either West Aurora or Glenbard East were in a position to share the title or overtake South Elgin?
“I sat down about three games ago and did the addition, figuring out all the possible multiple outcomes,” Kurcharski admitted. “Of course I wasn’t going to tell coach. It feels so great be league champs.”
Although Glenbard East cruised to a 3-0 victory at Larkin and has a Thursday home date with Elgin, the Rams (15-4-2, 6-1-1) can, at best, finish with a maximum of 22 points to fall one shy of South Elgin.
The 2019 campaign marked the return of the UEC into a top-to-bottom structure after several seasons involving divisions. For the previous three years, Glenbard East either won (2016) or shared (2017 and 2018) the Valley Division crown.
In the very last two races, the team sharing the division with the Rams was Bartlett, and in both instances that was a result of West Aurora losing to the Hawks. This year, West beat Bartlett but still came up short.
“That empty feeling is a disappointment,” Wagley noted.
“It’s very frustrating,” West’s Kiara McPherson said. “One game away, one goal away, either way we just have to put it in the back of our minds and use it as motivation.”
“Our offense was just not quite there,” twin sister Olivia McPherson added. “I thought our defense stepped up minus one play. There were chances, but we didn’t get to the spots we needed.”
“Yeah our defense stood strong,” Kiara concurred. “But we had to get one more touch on some balls and didn’t.”
The Blackhawks’ Gracie Prather had a couple powerful blasts including a free kick midway through the second half, but it sailed over the goal. West's last attack with 11 seconds left on the clock didn’t rescue them -- Prather’s desperation try was too high.
Bottom line for South Elgin and Storm keeper Megan McClure, it became the eighth shutout of the year.
“The conference title makes this (shutout) a much more memorable one,” McClure stated. “There were a few moments when the ball was close, but our defensive line was very strong. I’m so proud of them and can always count on them to play smart.”
Szwaja seconded that thought and praised the Storm’s back four: Kaleigh LaRue, Kurcharski, Kayla Mathis and Taylor Latsonas.
“When people read or see our results, it’s easy for some to think Katrina carries us, but we’ve got seven seniors, eight juniors, some strong freshmen and sophomores,” Szwaja said. “You ask Katrina, and she’s always thanking her teammates, or Megan always thanks the defensive line. They play as a team.”
It is easy for outsiders to take that view considering Barthelt’s game-winner was her 28th goal of the season, and South has outscored its opposition 37-22. Even without Kurcharski’s assistance, 28 of 37 means Barthelt has scored 75.7 percent of the Storm goals. Despite her background playing club ball for Chicago Rush, even Barthelt didn’t anticipate having this phenomenal of a year.
“I’m surprised because you don’t know how hard the transition will be to playing varsity. But I’ve got to say my teammates are simply great and have made it easy,” she said. “They look for options to get me the ball. We always pick up our heads and not get in a rush, so the patience helps us connect passes.
“Our team never gets frustrated. First off we have confidence the defenders will step to the ball. Our forwards love to work give-and-go’s. They thrive on playing smart off the ball.”
In reiterating Barthelt's assessment, Kurcharski described the Storm’s bond in another way.
“Instead of just being a close-knit team, we’re more like a family,” she said. “We help each other through any hard times. We keep each other going, and we’re together on and off the field.”
Szwaja and her players recognize that their record and status as conference champions now put a target on their backs. In the previous two years since Szwaja took over the program, South Elgin had a 1-7-2 combined conference record in 2017 and 2018. Now the Storm boast a nine-match unbeaten streak for league play. And last year’s 1-11-3 record has now been virtually flipped 180 degrees.
With an initial UEC banner, South Elgin now aims to earn a regional crown for the first time since the spring of 2016 when the Storm won three-straight plaques under Tiffany Disher. As the four-seed within the 17-school Class 3A Guilford Sectional, South Elgin faces 13-seed McHenry at 5 p.m. May 15. The follow-up 7 p.m. contest pits five-seed and regional host Huntley against 12-seed Streamwood. The winners then meet at 10 a.m. on May 18.
West Aurora, which moves to the Southwest Prairie Conference for the 2019-20 season, is once again lumped into arguably one of the sectional clusters considered to be groups of death. Among the 17 schools in the East Aurora Sectional, the Blackhawks are the 8-seed and face 9-seed Plainfield South in a 6 p.m. May 14 semifinal at East Aurora. A victory advances them to the championship match, where the anticipated foe is number-one seed Naperville North.
Starting lineups
South Elgin
GK: Megan McClure
D Kayla Mathias
D Kaleigh LaRue
D Danielle Kurcharski
D Taylor Latsonas
M Bridget Bondi
M Katrina Barthelt
M Maddie Kordecki
M Nicole Peeters
F Maddie Frietag
F Bella Tusa
West Aurora
GK: Madison Russell
D Laeticia Mbende
D Lizzy Kuhn
D Krystal Diaz
D Isela Chavez
M Sarai Munoz
M Gracie Prather
M Yuvia Ontiveros
F Kiara McPherson
F Audrey Stephens
F Olivia McPherson
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Katrina Barthelt, fr., F, South Elgin
Officials: Trey McClure (center), Kevin O’Connor, Alex Alvarado
Scoring summary
First half
SE -- Barthelt six-yard finish of loose ball of corner kick (Kurcharski assist), 17:30 gone
Second half
No scoring
Freshman star Barthelt leads Storm to 1-0 win
By Steve Nemeth
AURORA -- South Elgin made a first half goal stand up for a 1-0 victory in Wednesday’s visit to West Aurora and that effort earned the Storm the school’s initial Upstate Eight Conference title in girls soccer.
After the triumph, the Storm players gathered their backpacks from the bench and decided to get milkshakes for their post-match celebration. However, the team bus was nowhere to be found.
After several phone calls, a U-46 school bus that had delivered Elgin’s baseball squad to West Aurora became the substitute chariot for the champs.
Original plans called for the match to be played at 6:30 p.m., but the two schools agreed to a 4:30 p.m. start in lieu of an ominous forecast.
For West Aurora (11-6-1, 6-2-1), the Storm came early.
"They outplayed us. They wanted it more, had more energy, won just about every ball,” West Aurora coach Laura Wagley said. “Unfortunately we didn’t come out ready to go and at times we were overthinking things.”
Of course the actual amount of thinking that went into the goal for South Elgin (12-3-3, 7-0-2, 23 points) produced different viewpoints.
“We talked about the importance of free kicks or corners, the need for a good service,” Storm coach Laura Szwaja said. “I can’t say we planned that one, I thought that was just pure hustle on Katrina’s part.”
Freshman phenom Katrina Barthelt pounced on an opportunity and scored just 17:30 into the match but described it as if just another corner kick chance.
“(Danielle Kurcharski’s) service was from the right, and I made my run from the left. I think the goalie was caught off guard a little because it got deflected, so I just focused on volleying it into the right half of the goal,” Barthelt said.
“With Katrina it’s usually placement, but in this case she pretty much just buried it,” Szwaja said. “It was simply a hard shot on goal.”
Being a junior and a program veteran, Kurcharski framed the pleasure of a conference championship with her ear-to-ear smile and perspective.
“We have a wall of conference championships (for Storm teams), and I’m really happy to know we’ve added to it,” Kurcharski said.
Did the Storm even contemplate that either West Aurora or Glenbard East were in a position to share the title or overtake South Elgin?
“I sat down about three games ago and did the addition, figuring out all the possible multiple outcomes,” Kurcharski admitted. “Of course I wasn’t going to tell coach. It feels so great be league champs.”
Although Glenbard East cruised to a 3-0 victory at Larkin and has a Thursday home date with Elgin, the Rams (15-4-2, 6-1-1) can, at best, finish with a maximum of 22 points to fall one shy of South Elgin.
The 2019 campaign marked the return of the UEC into a top-to-bottom structure after several seasons involving divisions. For the previous three years, Glenbard East either won (2016) or shared (2017 and 2018) the Valley Division crown.
In the very last two races, the team sharing the division with the Rams was Bartlett, and in both instances that was a result of West Aurora losing to the Hawks. This year, West beat Bartlett but still came up short.
“That empty feeling is a disappointment,” Wagley noted.
“It’s very frustrating,” West’s Kiara McPherson said. “One game away, one goal away, either way we just have to put it in the back of our minds and use it as motivation.”
“Our offense was just not quite there,” twin sister Olivia McPherson added. “I thought our defense stepped up minus one play. There were chances, but we didn’t get to the spots we needed.”
“Yeah our defense stood strong,” Kiara concurred. “But we had to get one more touch on some balls and didn’t.”
The Blackhawks’ Gracie Prather had a couple powerful blasts including a free kick midway through the second half, but it sailed over the goal. West's last attack with 11 seconds left on the clock didn’t rescue them -- Prather’s desperation try was too high.
Bottom line for South Elgin and Storm keeper Megan McClure, it became the eighth shutout of the year.
“The conference title makes this (shutout) a much more memorable one,” McClure stated. “There were a few moments when the ball was close, but our defensive line was very strong. I’m so proud of them and can always count on them to play smart.”
Szwaja seconded that thought and praised the Storm’s back four: Kaleigh LaRue, Kurcharski, Kayla Mathis and Taylor Latsonas.
“When people read or see our results, it’s easy for some to think Katrina carries us, but we’ve got seven seniors, eight juniors, some strong freshmen and sophomores,” Szwaja said. “You ask Katrina, and she’s always thanking her teammates, or Megan always thanks the defensive line. They play as a team.”
It is easy for outsiders to take that view considering Barthelt’s game-winner was her 28th goal of the season, and South has outscored its opposition 37-22. Even without Kurcharski’s assistance, 28 of 37 means Barthelt has scored 75.7 percent of the Storm goals. Despite her background playing club ball for Chicago Rush, even Barthelt didn’t anticipate having this phenomenal of a year.
“I’m surprised because you don’t know how hard the transition will be to playing varsity. But I’ve got to say my teammates are simply great and have made it easy,” she said. “They look for options to get me the ball. We always pick up our heads and not get in a rush, so the patience helps us connect passes.
“Our team never gets frustrated. First off we have confidence the defenders will step to the ball. Our forwards love to work give-and-go’s. They thrive on playing smart off the ball.”
In reiterating Barthelt's assessment, Kurcharski described the Storm’s bond in another way.
“Instead of just being a close-knit team, we’re more like a family,” she said. “We help each other through any hard times. We keep each other going, and we’re together on and off the field.”
Szwaja and her players recognize that their record and status as conference champions now put a target on their backs. In the previous two years since Szwaja took over the program, South Elgin had a 1-7-2 combined conference record in 2017 and 2018. Now the Storm boast a nine-match unbeaten streak for league play. And last year’s 1-11-3 record has now been virtually flipped 180 degrees.
With an initial UEC banner, South Elgin now aims to earn a regional crown for the first time since the spring of 2016 when the Storm won three-straight plaques under Tiffany Disher. As the four-seed within the 17-school Class 3A Guilford Sectional, South Elgin faces 13-seed McHenry at 5 p.m. May 15. The follow-up 7 p.m. contest pits five-seed and regional host Huntley against 12-seed Streamwood. The winners then meet at 10 a.m. on May 18.
West Aurora, which moves to the Southwest Prairie Conference for the 2019-20 season, is once again lumped into arguably one of the sectional clusters considered to be groups of death. Among the 17 schools in the East Aurora Sectional, the Blackhawks are the 8-seed and face 9-seed Plainfield South in a 6 p.m. May 14 semifinal at East Aurora. A victory advances them to the championship match, where the anticipated foe is number-one seed Naperville North.
Starting lineups
South Elgin
GK: Megan McClure
D Kayla Mathias
D Kaleigh LaRue
D Danielle Kurcharski
D Taylor Latsonas
M Bridget Bondi
M Katrina Barthelt
M Maddie Kordecki
M Nicole Peeters
F Maddie Frietag
F Bella Tusa
West Aurora
GK: Madison Russell
D Laeticia Mbende
D Lizzy Kuhn
D Krystal Diaz
D Isela Chavez
M Sarai Munoz
M Gracie Prather
M Yuvia Ontiveros
F Kiara McPherson
F Audrey Stephens
F Olivia McPherson
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Katrina Barthelt, fr., F, South Elgin
Officials: Trey McClure (center), Kevin O’Connor, Alex Alvarado
Scoring summary
First half
SE -- Barthelt six-yard finish of loose ball of corner kick (Kurcharski assist), 17:30 gone
Second half
No scoring