Batavia impresses
against youthful Wheaton North
Bulldogs soar past Falcons 3-0 to open up league play
By Chris Walker
BATAVIA -- Laila Figueras figured she had the right idea on a less than ideal night for soccer on Thursday as Batavia entertained Wheaton North in the DuKane Conference opener for both teams.
Figueras made a great choice to take her shot when she had it, scoring early in the second half to help the Bulldogs to a 3-0 victory over the Falcons on a cold and rainy night in The Windmill City.
“I was just able to find it,” said Figueras, who was named the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “I’m not sure who played me through, but I got it near the sideline and was looking to either play it in or get it on my right since I was on the left.
“We had numbers in the box, but I thought it was a better idea to cut inside and get it on my right and play it low and hard. I was able to find the back of the net there.”
She was able to turn her possession into a dangerous threat by dribbling past a defender while sufficiently maintaining her vision to process her options before selecting one that increased Batavia’s lead to 2-0.
“I was glad I was able to find something,” she said. “It was good. It’s just really fun to have a lot of people out there that can support you on and off the field. It’s a good group of girls.”
And a talented one. The elusive Figueras demonstrated her fine dribbling skills, speed and quickness throughout the night.
“I like when I’m able to use my speed,” she said. “It really was only one defender that I had to beat so I was happy I could do something with that.”
Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco is blessed to have a player like Figueras who can do a variety of things all over the field.
"She gives us a different look," he said. "It doesn't matter where we're putting her, and that's the flexibility (she gives us). You can play her in the back. You can play her on the wing. You can play her up-top because of her pace.”
Batavia (4-1-1, 1-0-0) once again didn’t need much offense. The Bulldogs have surrendered only a set piece goal in a 1-0 loss against Naperville North on March 24.
“It’s more of a work in progress, offense type of thing where it’s going to improve, but defensively is where we’re a lot more secure,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “You know, especially when you’ve got (keeper) Aubrey (Hahn) back there and three defenders.
Many a wise person has said if you don’t allow any goals you can’t lose.
“We’ve given up nothing in the run of play right now, so that’s good,” he said. “It’s what we’d like to see. We’ve kind of controlled some of the games we’ve been in, so now it’s just working on that offensive piece. We saw that today, and that’s really just getting people in the box.”
The Bulldogs have been right there on the cusp on finishing some set pieces. There’s certainly room for growth there and that would certainly make the Bulldogs even more dangerous.
“We’ve had some fall right there at the six but haven’t been able to put those away,” Gianfrancesco continued. “It’s a work in progress I’d say. I’d like to see more opportunities on frame, but I’d like to vary where we’re playing it. We’re right there, so I’d like to see us benefit from those opportunities.”
Though Wheaton North (2-3-0, 0-1-0) certainly did not want to surrender a goal just 3:32 into the action, it seemed to focus the Falcons.
“I think that first goal actually helped us settle down a little bit,” coach Tim McEvilly said. “I thought we played well after the first 10 minutes. We did a better job of communicating and organizing ourselves, recognizing at that point that they have a lot of fast players.
“They play quickly to each other so you cannot just sit there with your feet planted and not be ready for that next play. We did a nice job of adjusting.”
As much as they battled, the Falcons struggled to put many scoring scares into the Batavia.
“They just do a much better job than us, at this point in time, in controlling the ball in small spaces and then taking the ball and attacking the space when it’s there,” McEvilly said. “We were looking for our targets, and we were running off the ball well. It was just the technical excellence was not there. They would come out of the tight spaces; we would give the ball over the tight spaces. That was the difference, really the second half especially.
“They took it to us for the first 10 minutes of the first half, but we righted the ship. In the second half they really were in control the entire time, and we weren’t the same.”
Not allowing Wheaton North star Olivia Moreno to beat them was certainly part of Batavia’s game plan. The senior played a part in last year’s two victories over the Bulldogs (6-3 on April 20, 2021 and 2-0 later that spring on May 8).
“It was a really physical game,” Moreno said. “They’re always fun. I don’t think anybody should be upset with how we played tonight. We all played really well. We just finished short on finishing and didn’t get too many opportunities. But we tried to possess the ball as much as we could.”
The Bulldogs impressed Moreno, a Northern Michigan recruit, and one could expect that they would equally impress the folks behind the scenes of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. Batavia hasn’t cracked the list but is listed as the top team to “Look out for.”
“They were moving the ball, and they seem to have a lot of chemistry,” she said. “Their communication was really high, and we’re a young team this year. We don’t have a ton of experience this year.
“We’re going through a lot of growing pains right now, but I think we have a lot of potential for this season,” Moreno said. “We just have to figure out how to work through the growing pains and not let them affect us as much.
“It was our first conference game, and we can’t let it get to us. We’re really more focused on the playoffs this year and bringing home some hardware hopefully. So, this is just another stepping stone.”
And as Moreno is finishing up her high school years, she’s helping the newcomers dive in and get acclimated to them.
“(Freshman) Tailia Kaempf is a great addition,” she said. “She’s starting at right forward right now and working really hard, and I’ve known her from club. The same with (freshman midfielder) Calah Strong and (freshman forward), Piper Harborth and (freshman defender) Annie Pyykkonen. They’re all working really hard in practice, and we’re including them.”
The task now is to get that talent to take shape.
“Although there’s a lot of soccer experience, a lot of us haven’t played together yet,” Moreno said. “We know how to play the game, but we just got to figure out how to do it together cohesively.”
It didn’t take Batavia long to figure out a way to fly ahead of the Falcons. Ryan Gianfrancesco scored early.
“I kind of ran through it,” she said. “I was pressing hard in the first 20 minutes. The girl kind of bobbled it; the goalie came out on me, and I slotted it past her.”
The Bulldogs got their insurance goal from Figueras early in the second half and then sealed the victory in the final minutes when sophomore Addison Lowe found junior Riley DiBiase right in front of the net.
“I totally think we dominated the game,” Ryan Gianfrancesco said. “I mean, there were a couple minutes where we were chasing a bit, but we got back the momentum. I think switching the field really helped us open our attack, because the wing was open.”
It’s been quite an impressive beginning for Gianfrancesco whose lone year playing for the Bulldogs prior to this year was on the JV squad in 2019. She scored the team’s first goal in the season opener and now scored the first goal in conference play. Pretty cool moments not only for her, but for the rest of her family, including her dad and coach.
“It’s enjoyable to see her play for us and have some success,” Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I like seeing that, I guess, from a dad standpoint. But as far as you’ve got to make this run, you’ve got to pass this ball, this ball has got to be here, here try this, it’s not personal, it’s business.”
While he acknowledged that his daughter sees him as both her father and coach while he’s coaching, he doesn’t see it the same way, separating the two roles.
“It’s coaching, that’s what it is. It’s not I’m your dad. I’m not giving you a suggestion, I’m telling you what to do. Like this is what it is, you know, and some days, just like any of the kids, some days it’s received a little bit differently than other days.”
The dynamic of a father-daughter/coach-player relationship has likely been strengthened by Mark Gianfrancesco’s prior experiences, including calling his own mom coach.
“My mom was one of my first soccer coaches, but it’s just knowing what it is and my wife is a good mediator at times for that,” he said. “She can be the mouthpiece rather than me. She’ll take it better, maybe, from her than from me. It’s a good tag-team, so I guess it works out well.”
If we’ve learned anything these past two years during the pandemic it’s that time doesn’t stop and potential experiences at the high school level were severe losses for many. Just a couple years ago, Hailey Flannagan, Amber Gutsch, Kyle Kahley, Kennedy Rud, Hailey Skupa, Grace Salyers, Kate Schoenfelder, Morgan Toronyi, Chloe Valentino, Bella Zink and Abby Zipse were among 11 Batavia seniors that watched their final season get pushed back and postponed until ultimately being canceled. The Gianfrancescos have been blessed with this one season to coach and play for each other, and they’re making the most of it.
“I like seeing her out here and enjoy having her,” Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I think she brings a good bit to the team. It’s the last year she’s going to play any formal soccer so just let it all out like a lot of the seniors. There’s nothing to lose for sure.”
But as the Bulldogs have shown thus far, there’s a lot to be gained.
Starting lineups
Wheaton North
GK: Zoey Bohmer
D: Abby Gosling
D: Grace Ryan
D: Anna Roe
D: Rowan Smith
MF: Calah Strong
MF: Claudia Kim
MF: Addison Falco
F: Macy Hutchinson
F: Talia Kaempf
F: Olivia Moreno
Batavia
GK: Aubrey Hahn
D: Mia Anzalone
D: Jaden Collins
D: Carlin King
MF: Riley DiBiase
MF: Kailey Hansen
MF: Brooke Carlson
F: Laila Figueras
F: Ryan Gianfrancesco
F: Bella Lins
F: Johanna Shubert
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Laila Figueras, jr., F, Batavia
Scoring summary
First half
Batavia: Ryan Gianfrancesco (unassisted), 3rd minute
Second half
Batavia: Laila Figueras (unassisted), 50th minute
Batavia: Riley DiBiase (Addison Lowe), 76th minute
against youthful Wheaton North
Bulldogs soar past Falcons 3-0 to open up league play
By Chris Walker
BATAVIA -- Laila Figueras figured she had the right idea on a less than ideal night for soccer on Thursday as Batavia entertained Wheaton North in the DuKane Conference opener for both teams.
Figueras made a great choice to take her shot when she had it, scoring early in the second half to help the Bulldogs to a 3-0 victory over the Falcons on a cold and rainy night in The Windmill City.
“I was just able to find it,” said Figueras, who was named the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “I’m not sure who played me through, but I got it near the sideline and was looking to either play it in or get it on my right since I was on the left.
“We had numbers in the box, but I thought it was a better idea to cut inside and get it on my right and play it low and hard. I was able to find the back of the net there.”
She was able to turn her possession into a dangerous threat by dribbling past a defender while sufficiently maintaining her vision to process her options before selecting one that increased Batavia’s lead to 2-0.
“I was glad I was able to find something,” she said. “It was good. It’s just really fun to have a lot of people out there that can support you on and off the field. It’s a good group of girls.”
And a talented one. The elusive Figueras demonstrated her fine dribbling skills, speed and quickness throughout the night.
“I like when I’m able to use my speed,” she said. “It really was only one defender that I had to beat so I was happy I could do something with that.”
Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco is blessed to have a player like Figueras who can do a variety of things all over the field.
"She gives us a different look," he said. "It doesn't matter where we're putting her, and that's the flexibility (she gives us). You can play her in the back. You can play her on the wing. You can play her up-top because of her pace.”
Batavia (4-1-1, 1-0-0) once again didn’t need much offense. The Bulldogs have surrendered only a set piece goal in a 1-0 loss against Naperville North on March 24.
“It’s more of a work in progress, offense type of thing where it’s going to improve, but defensively is where we’re a lot more secure,” Batavia coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “You know, especially when you’ve got (keeper) Aubrey (Hahn) back there and three defenders.
Many a wise person has said if you don’t allow any goals you can’t lose.
“We’ve given up nothing in the run of play right now, so that’s good,” he said. “It’s what we’d like to see. We’ve kind of controlled some of the games we’ve been in, so now it’s just working on that offensive piece. We saw that today, and that’s really just getting people in the box.”
The Bulldogs have been right there on the cusp on finishing some set pieces. There’s certainly room for growth there and that would certainly make the Bulldogs even more dangerous.
“We’ve had some fall right there at the six but haven’t been able to put those away,” Gianfrancesco continued. “It’s a work in progress I’d say. I’d like to see more opportunities on frame, but I’d like to vary where we’re playing it. We’re right there, so I’d like to see us benefit from those opportunities.”
Though Wheaton North (2-3-0, 0-1-0) certainly did not want to surrender a goal just 3:32 into the action, it seemed to focus the Falcons.
“I think that first goal actually helped us settle down a little bit,” coach Tim McEvilly said. “I thought we played well after the first 10 minutes. We did a better job of communicating and organizing ourselves, recognizing at that point that they have a lot of fast players.
“They play quickly to each other so you cannot just sit there with your feet planted and not be ready for that next play. We did a nice job of adjusting.”
As much as they battled, the Falcons struggled to put many scoring scares into the Batavia.
“They just do a much better job than us, at this point in time, in controlling the ball in small spaces and then taking the ball and attacking the space when it’s there,” McEvilly said. “We were looking for our targets, and we were running off the ball well. It was just the technical excellence was not there. They would come out of the tight spaces; we would give the ball over the tight spaces. That was the difference, really the second half especially.
“They took it to us for the first 10 minutes of the first half, but we righted the ship. In the second half they really were in control the entire time, and we weren’t the same.”
Not allowing Wheaton North star Olivia Moreno to beat them was certainly part of Batavia’s game plan. The senior played a part in last year’s two victories over the Bulldogs (6-3 on April 20, 2021 and 2-0 later that spring on May 8).
“It was a really physical game,” Moreno said. “They’re always fun. I don’t think anybody should be upset with how we played tonight. We all played really well. We just finished short on finishing and didn’t get too many opportunities. But we tried to possess the ball as much as we could.”
The Bulldogs impressed Moreno, a Northern Michigan recruit, and one could expect that they would equally impress the folks behind the scenes of the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. Batavia hasn’t cracked the list but is listed as the top team to “Look out for.”
“They were moving the ball, and they seem to have a lot of chemistry,” she said. “Their communication was really high, and we’re a young team this year. We don’t have a ton of experience this year.
“We’re going through a lot of growing pains right now, but I think we have a lot of potential for this season,” Moreno said. “We just have to figure out how to work through the growing pains and not let them affect us as much.
“It was our first conference game, and we can’t let it get to us. We’re really more focused on the playoffs this year and bringing home some hardware hopefully. So, this is just another stepping stone.”
And as Moreno is finishing up her high school years, she’s helping the newcomers dive in and get acclimated to them.
“(Freshman) Tailia Kaempf is a great addition,” she said. “She’s starting at right forward right now and working really hard, and I’ve known her from club. The same with (freshman midfielder) Calah Strong and (freshman forward), Piper Harborth and (freshman defender) Annie Pyykkonen. They’re all working really hard in practice, and we’re including them.”
The task now is to get that talent to take shape.
“Although there’s a lot of soccer experience, a lot of us haven’t played together yet,” Moreno said. “We know how to play the game, but we just got to figure out how to do it together cohesively.”
It didn’t take Batavia long to figure out a way to fly ahead of the Falcons. Ryan Gianfrancesco scored early.
“I kind of ran through it,” she said. “I was pressing hard in the first 20 minutes. The girl kind of bobbled it; the goalie came out on me, and I slotted it past her.”
The Bulldogs got their insurance goal from Figueras early in the second half and then sealed the victory in the final minutes when sophomore Addison Lowe found junior Riley DiBiase right in front of the net.
“I totally think we dominated the game,” Ryan Gianfrancesco said. “I mean, there were a couple minutes where we were chasing a bit, but we got back the momentum. I think switching the field really helped us open our attack, because the wing was open.”
It’s been quite an impressive beginning for Gianfrancesco whose lone year playing for the Bulldogs prior to this year was on the JV squad in 2019. She scored the team’s first goal in the season opener and now scored the first goal in conference play. Pretty cool moments not only for her, but for the rest of her family, including her dad and coach.
“It’s enjoyable to see her play for us and have some success,” Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I like seeing that, I guess, from a dad standpoint. But as far as you’ve got to make this run, you’ve got to pass this ball, this ball has got to be here, here try this, it’s not personal, it’s business.”
While he acknowledged that his daughter sees him as both her father and coach while he’s coaching, he doesn’t see it the same way, separating the two roles.
“It’s coaching, that’s what it is. It’s not I’m your dad. I’m not giving you a suggestion, I’m telling you what to do. Like this is what it is, you know, and some days, just like any of the kids, some days it’s received a little bit differently than other days.”
The dynamic of a father-daughter/coach-player relationship has likely been strengthened by Mark Gianfrancesco’s prior experiences, including calling his own mom coach.
“My mom was one of my first soccer coaches, but it’s just knowing what it is and my wife is a good mediator at times for that,” he said. “She can be the mouthpiece rather than me. She’ll take it better, maybe, from her than from me. It’s a good tag-team, so I guess it works out well.”
If we’ve learned anything these past two years during the pandemic it’s that time doesn’t stop and potential experiences at the high school level were severe losses for many. Just a couple years ago, Hailey Flannagan, Amber Gutsch, Kyle Kahley, Kennedy Rud, Hailey Skupa, Grace Salyers, Kate Schoenfelder, Morgan Toronyi, Chloe Valentino, Bella Zink and Abby Zipse were among 11 Batavia seniors that watched their final season get pushed back and postponed until ultimately being canceled. The Gianfrancescos have been blessed with this one season to coach and play for each other, and they’re making the most of it.
“I like seeing her out here and enjoy having her,” Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I think she brings a good bit to the team. It’s the last year she’s going to play any formal soccer so just let it all out like a lot of the seniors. There’s nothing to lose for sure.”
But as the Bulldogs have shown thus far, there’s a lot to be gained.
Starting lineups
Wheaton North
GK: Zoey Bohmer
D: Abby Gosling
D: Grace Ryan
D: Anna Roe
D: Rowan Smith
MF: Calah Strong
MF: Claudia Kim
MF: Addison Falco
F: Macy Hutchinson
F: Talia Kaempf
F: Olivia Moreno
Batavia
GK: Aubrey Hahn
D: Mia Anzalone
D: Jaden Collins
D: Carlin King
MF: Riley DiBiase
MF: Kailey Hansen
MF: Brooke Carlson
F: Laila Figueras
F: Ryan Gianfrancesco
F: Bella Lins
F: Johanna Shubert
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Laila Figueras, jr., F, Batavia
Scoring summary
First half
Batavia: Ryan Gianfrancesco (unassisted), 3rd minute
Second half
Batavia: Laila Figueras (unassisted), 50th minute
Batavia: Riley DiBiase (Addison Lowe), 76th minute