Third time also a charm
for Metea Valley against Waubonsie Valley
2-0 win brings season sweep, seventh-straight regional title
By Curt Herron
AURORA -- After Metea Valley claimed two decisive victories over Waubonsie Valley during DuPage Valley Conference play, it was a good bet that the teams' third meeting in the IHSA playoffs would be a different type of a match, and that's just what happened for over an hour of scoreless play in Saturday's Class 3A regional final.
Then the Mustangs capitalized on a couple of good opportunities during the final 20 minutes. That led to a 2-0 win for coach Chris Whaley's squad that extended Metea Valley’s string of regional championships to seven.
As a result of their eighth shutout, the Mustangs (12-7-1) advance to Tuesday's Bolingbrook Sectional semifinals. They’ll travel to Naperville Central to take on the sectional's top-seeded team in a match whose start time has yet to be determined.
Metea Valley took control in the 61st minute when Tyra King fired a shot that was deflected by keeper Lauren Bornhoff. The Mustangs Jordan Lange got to the loose ball and scored from in front of the net.
In the 73rd minute, the Mustangs closed the game out Lange sent a pass to Katy Flanders, who connected from close range.
"We knew that they were going to give us a tough game," Whaley said. "They put a lot of players behind the ball, and we put up some goals against them, so that didn't surprise me.
“It took us a while to kind of figure out how to break them down.
"This is a really tough sectional so the top four teams that win the regional in this area have to work for it. And you can see how much it means to the girls when you saw their celebration afterward.
“They know how hard they've worked and this is one of the rewards that they get for the hard work. It's valuable to us as coaches, but it's definitely more valuable to them."
As with many other teams this season, adjusting to a lot of newcomers who had no varsity experience was a challenge, but the improvement has been significant.
"We had our moments this year where we had some ups and downs," Whaley said. "When you realize that you're kind of dealing with two freshmen classes, since the freshmen and sophomores were new to what we were doing.
“It took a little extra time, but now we're seeing more consistency. We've had great games all year, so we're just trying to put them together.
"We've got great playmakers. Jordan Lange is so confident on the ball, and she creates so many opportunities. I see her talent and know how much of an impact that she can have on a game, and it's huge."
It was the first time that the oldest and newest of the Indian Prairie School District schools had met three times in a season. While the newcomers were able to complete the sweep to claim Eola Road bragging rights, Waubonsie Valley coach Julie Bergstrom and her staff came up with a good game plan to try to spoil the party.
"Metea is a good team, and they move the ball around," Bergstrom said. "We had a game plan and I'm really proud of our team for executing it. We had it, but unfortunately, they got one, and that was it. I'm proud of them (her team) since they just kept fighting. They didn't want it to end, and that says a lot about them."
Metea Valley had a couple of good chances early in the final half. Addison Wargo sent in a free kick, and then Jocelyn Grabow placed a shot just wide a short time later.
Not long after the teams took a final water break, Lange connected.
Following an exchange of good shot attempts from Jillian Macaluso and Flanders, the latter was on the end of the pass from Lange that capped the scoring.
"We knew that they were going to come out strong, so we just played our game," Lange said. "It felt really good to finally get a goal in the second half. This program is very good.
“We started off playing really well together, and I think that we just have really good chemistry. Especially after not having a season last year, we needed to come out strong this year and we really did that."
With Kaylee Bannack, Alyssa Parrilli, Zoe Kirkman and Wargo anchoring the backline and Lauren Wardell and Samantha Mantia assisting on defense, Mustangs keeper Julia Straub didn't have to face very many serious scoring chances from the Warriors.
"I think we work really well together," Bannack said. "Zoe is stepping in as a freshman and getting amazing headers up the field, and Addison is running down people, Alyssa and I are keeping it tough on the sidelines and staying connected.
“I think we do a really good job of moving as a unit and listening to coach and his instructions. I love how everyone is positive and keeps each other up, and we're always there for each other. We keep the positivity up, especially in hard games like this one."
Keeping the regional streak going is a big deal for the program, which hopes in upcoming years to be able to get beyond the sectional finals, which is the furthest they've gone.
"I was a little nervous in the first half; because we were playing our hearts out, and they were playing their hearts out, so it was a really good match," Wargo said. "I think we were able to pull through at the end because we wanted it more.
“We had good goals, and they were ones we fought for. Something we really pride ourselves on is our seven regional titles. My sister, Chesney, was on the team before me for four years, so I watched those games. I'm really proud of everyone on this team."
Neither side had many good chances during the opening half with the best scoring opportunities for the Mustangs coming from Grabow, Lange and Wargo.
Now Metea Valley hopes that it can avoid a three-match sweep against Naperville Central, the undefeated DuPage Valley Conference champion and the top-seed in their sectional. The Mustangs lost 3-0 May 6 and 3-2 May 25 to the Redhawks.
Starting lineups
Waubonsie Valley
G - Lauren Bornhoff
D - Brooke Mathews
D - Elena Morton
D - Asa Potts
D - Jessica Keeley
M - Colette Casey
M - Olivia Abegg
M - Brooke Nelson
M - Isabel Langenkamp
F - Taylor Matthews
F - Audrey Young
Metea Valley
G - Julia Straub
D - Addison Wargo
D - Kaylee Bannack
D - Alyssa Parrilli
D - Zoe Kirkman
M - Katy Flanders
M - Jordan Lange
M - Leanne Barrett
M - Riley Strcic
F - Jocelyn Grabow
F - Tyra King
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Jordan Lange, so., MF, Metea Valley
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
MV - Lange, 61
MV - Flanders (Lange), 73
for Metea Valley against Waubonsie Valley
2-0 win brings season sweep, seventh-straight regional title
By Curt Herron
AURORA -- After Metea Valley claimed two decisive victories over Waubonsie Valley during DuPage Valley Conference play, it was a good bet that the teams' third meeting in the IHSA playoffs would be a different type of a match, and that's just what happened for over an hour of scoreless play in Saturday's Class 3A regional final.
Then the Mustangs capitalized on a couple of good opportunities during the final 20 minutes. That led to a 2-0 win for coach Chris Whaley's squad that extended Metea Valley’s string of regional championships to seven.
As a result of their eighth shutout, the Mustangs (12-7-1) advance to Tuesday's Bolingbrook Sectional semifinals. They’ll travel to Naperville Central to take on the sectional's top-seeded team in a match whose start time has yet to be determined.
Metea Valley took control in the 61st minute when Tyra King fired a shot that was deflected by keeper Lauren Bornhoff. The Mustangs Jordan Lange got to the loose ball and scored from in front of the net.
In the 73rd minute, the Mustangs closed the game out Lange sent a pass to Katy Flanders, who connected from close range.
"We knew that they were going to give us a tough game," Whaley said. "They put a lot of players behind the ball, and we put up some goals against them, so that didn't surprise me.
“It took us a while to kind of figure out how to break them down.
"This is a really tough sectional so the top four teams that win the regional in this area have to work for it. And you can see how much it means to the girls when you saw their celebration afterward.
“They know how hard they've worked and this is one of the rewards that they get for the hard work. It's valuable to us as coaches, but it's definitely more valuable to them."
As with many other teams this season, adjusting to a lot of newcomers who had no varsity experience was a challenge, but the improvement has been significant.
"We had our moments this year where we had some ups and downs," Whaley said. "When you realize that you're kind of dealing with two freshmen classes, since the freshmen and sophomores were new to what we were doing.
“It took a little extra time, but now we're seeing more consistency. We've had great games all year, so we're just trying to put them together.
"We've got great playmakers. Jordan Lange is so confident on the ball, and she creates so many opportunities. I see her talent and know how much of an impact that she can have on a game, and it's huge."
It was the first time that the oldest and newest of the Indian Prairie School District schools had met three times in a season. While the newcomers were able to complete the sweep to claim Eola Road bragging rights, Waubonsie Valley coach Julie Bergstrom and her staff came up with a good game plan to try to spoil the party.
"Metea is a good team, and they move the ball around," Bergstrom said. "We had a game plan and I'm really proud of our team for executing it. We had it, but unfortunately, they got one, and that was it. I'm proud of them (her team) since they just kept fighting. They didn't want it to end, and that says a lot about them."
Metea Valley had a couple of good chances early in the final half. Addison Wargo sent in a free kick, and then Jocelyn Grabow placed a shot just wide a short time later.
Not long after the teams took a final water break, Lange connected.
Following an exchange of good shot attempts from Jillian Macaluso and Flanders, the latter was on the end of the pass from Lange that capped the scoring.
"We knew that they were going to come out strong, so we just played our game," Lange said. "It felt really good to finally get a goal in the second half. This program is very good.
“We started off playing really well together, and I think that we just have really good chemistry. Especially after not having a season last year, we needed to come out strong this year and we really did that."
With Kaylee Bannack, Alyssa Parrilli, Zoe Kirkman and Wargo anchoring the backline and Lauren Wardell and Samantha Mantia assisting on defense, Mustangs keeper Julia Straub didn't have to face very many serious scoring chances from the Warriors.
"I think we work really well together," Bannack said. "Zoe is stepping in as a freshman and getting amazing headers up the field, and Addison is running down people, Alyssa and I are keeping it tough on the sidelines and staying connected.
“I think we do a really good job of moving as a unit and listening to coach and his instructions. I love how everyone is positive and keeps each other up, and we're always there for each other. We keep the positivity up, especially in hard games like this one."
Keeping the regional streak going is a big deal for the program, which hopes in upcoming years to be able to get beyond the sectional finals, which is the furthest they've gone.
"I was a little nervous in the first half; because we were playing our hearts out, and they were playing their hearts out, so it was a really good match," Wargo said. "I think we were able to pull through at the end because we wanted it more.
“We had good goals, and they were ones we fought for. Something we really pride ourselves on is our seven regional titles. My sister, Chesney, was on the team before me for four years, so I watched those games. I'm really proud of everyone on this team."
Neither side had many good chances during the opening half with the best scoring opportunities for the Mustangs coming from Grabow, Lange and Wargo.
Now Metea Valley hopes that it can avoid a three-match sweep against Naperville Central, the undefeated DuPage Valley Conference champion and the top-seed in their sectional. The Mustangs lost 3-0 May 6 and 3-2 May 25 to the Redhawks.
Starting lineups
Waubonsie Valley
G - Lauren Bornhoff
D - Brooke Mathews
D - Elena Morton
D - Asa Potts
D - Jessica Keeley
M - Colette Casey
M - Olivia Abegg
M - Brooke Nelson
M - Isabel Langenkamp
F - Taylor Matthews
F - Audrey Young
Metea Valley
G - Julia Straub
D - Addison Wargo
D - Kaylee Bannack
D - Alyssa Parrilli
D - Zoe Kirkman
M - Katy Flanders
M - Jordan Lange
M - Leanne Barrett
M - Riley Strcic
F - Jocelyn Grabow
F - Tyra King
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match:
Jordan Lange, so., MF, Metea Valley
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
MV - Lange, 61
MV - Flanders (Lange), 73