WWS offense snowballs against Lake Park
4-goal 2nd half powers 5-0 DVC victory
By Ken Keenan
ROSELLE -- Keeping within the theme with swirls of snow flurries filling the air, Wheaton Warrenville South unleashed a blizzard of second half goals to down host Lake Park 5-0 in DuPage Valley Conference action on Thursday.
The Tigers, playing for the first time since March 22, tallied four times after the break to put away the defense-minded Lancers, who left the pitch still seeking their first goal of the season. Wheaton Warrenville South improved to 3-1-0 overall with the win in its conference debut, while Lake Park fell to 0-8-0, 0-3-0.
"It was nice to start DVC play with a win," said Tigers junior forward Paige Miller, who scored two goals and assisted on another en route to earning Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors. "I thought we played well. Now we want to carry that through the rest of the season."
Dangerous Wheaton Warrenville South midfielder Allie Anderson, who added a goal and an assist, said, "I believe we can make a run for the DVC title this year. There's a lot of hope. I'm excited for the season."
Miller and Anderson did a lot of running against the Lancers, pacing the attack with aggressive rushes toward the net set up by a patient possession game in the midfield. Speedy junior midfielder Evelyn Demsher opened the scoring, cutting in on the right side past a defender and slamming in a low shot to the left of Lake Park junior goalkeeper Sarah Yochem with 29:32 left in the first half.
The Tigers had numerous opportunities to increase the margin before the break, but Yochem and the Lancers' 'D' stood firm to keep the home team within a goal after 40 minutes.
"We held 'em in the first half," said Lake Park junior defender Ziri Hernandez. "We were working so hard ... tired ourselves out."
In the 15th minute, Tigers junior defender Claire Kiple set up Demsher for a 15-yard try that popped over the crossbar. Sophomore mid Jennifer Aalbue cut in from the right side two minutes later and fired wide-right from 10 yards.
Yochem made a nice save at the left post to rob sophomore defender Abby Becker from 10 yards in the 22nd minute. Three minutes later, a perfect corner kick by Miller was headed just over the bar by Tigers junior defender Maria Dohse.
Lake Park's keeper answered a bouncing 20-yard shot from the left side by senior defender Julia Cox with 8 minutes left in the opening session, and Anderson charged in soon after to deliver a hard blast from 25 yards that missed to the left.
The Lancers finally recorded their first shot attempt of the match in the 38th minute when sophomore mid Lili Giron trickled a 15-yard try wide-left as Wheaton Warrenville South junior keeper Abbie Brennan rushed out to cut the angle.
"That's a very strong team, so (being) down 1-0 at the half, you feel good," said Lancers head coach Sean Crosby. "But four goals in the second half? You don't want to see that."
The Lake Park skipper certainly didn't jump for joy when he saw an innocent-looking 35-yard shot by Anderson slip through Yochem less than two minutes into the second half, giving the Tigers a 2-0 lead. Just over a minute later, Anderson fed a ball to Miller, who then hooked a sensational left-footed shot over Yochem's head and into the top left corner to make it 3-0.
Lake Park tried to answer. A well-placed free kick into the box by Lake Park senior defender Amber Sedwick was tipped wide-left by senior mid Jaclyn Lamz with 35 minutes to go, and steady senior middie Brianna McAloon punched a long shot wide-right four minutes later.
Otherwise, the visitors kept attacking. Anderson rifled a 30-yard shot wide-right with 27:10 remaining, and she sent another rocket over the bar just 50 seconds later. With exactly 20 minutes to go, Wheaton Warrenville South freshman mid Melisa Hadzic missed a wide open cage from in close, followed a minute later by a strike from junior mid Ellery Fahey that bounced off the crossbar.
Miller's second goal of the game, a tap-in to finish a pass from Dohse, increased the bulge to 4-0 with 14:26 left. Miller then set up Fahey, who blasted a missile high into the net to conclude the scoring in the 70th minute.
"We gained more confidence in the second half," Miller said. "We finished a few chances and really played as a team. The mindset was to control and possess."
Added Tigers head coach Guy Callipari: "I thought were much better in the second half -- much cleaner, more confidence. We hadn't played in 10 days or so, so I thought we struggled a bit with connections in the first half. The second half was much better."
A tremendous save by Yochem to thwart a breakaway attempt by Miller with 4:50 to go provided a late highlight for the Lancers. Lake Park also nearly broke its scoring drought when a McAloon attempt bounced near the goal line in traffic with 1:50 showing.
"To see us push at the end, scratching and clawing, we were still fighting to the end," Crosby said. "But we've got to put together a full 80 minutes. We had solid 'D' ... maybe a bit of fatigue in the second half. But we need to see the other side of it, the offense, and focus on cracking the goal line."
Battle-tested veteran McAloon, a team co-captain, said she'll do her part to help the Lancers stay the course through adverse times.
"It's not easy, but it's about how you respond to that," she said. "You've gotta keep working hard. Forget the score and contribute to the whole team concept. Keep going, don't give up, and fight for the whole 80 minutes.
"I feel we have a great group of girls. We just have to find our momentum."
Starting lineups
Wheaton Warrenville South
G: Abbie Brennan
D: Claire Kiple
D: Maria Dohse
D: Sam Buol
M: Allie Anderson
M: Evelyn Demsher
M: Molly Fank
M: Jennifer Aalbue
M: Melisa Hadzic
F: Morgan Schwerin
F: Paige Miller
Lake Park
G: Sarah Yochem
D: Elizabeth Guenther
D: Stephanie Zachemski
D: Emma Thorne
D: Amber Sedwick
M: Jaclyn Lamz
M: Lauren Tarchala
M: Ann Marie Ahrens
M: Alexis Morgan
M: Brianna McAloon
F: Cyndi Martinez
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Paige Miller, jr., F, Wheaton Warrenville South
Officials: Boris Vukovic, Alex Bargamian, Jim Ventrone
Scoring summary
1. Wheaton Warrenville South: Evelyn Demsher (unassisted) in 11th minute
2. Wheaton Warrenville South: Allie Anderson (assisted by Claire Kiple) in 42nd minute
3. Wheaton Warrenville South: Paige Miller (assisted by Anderson) in 43rd minute
4. Wheaton Warrenville South: Miller (assisted by Maria Dohse) in 66th minute
5. Wheaton Warrenville South: Ellery Fahey (assisted by Miller) in 70th minute
4-goal 2nd half powers 5-0 DVC victory
By Ken Keenan
ROSELLE -- Keeping within the theme with swirls of snow flurries filling the air, Wheaton Warrenville South unleashed a blizzard of second half goals to down host Lake Park 5-0 in DuPage Valley Conference action on Thursday.
The Tigers, playing for the first time since March 22, tallied four times after the break to put away the defense-minded Lancers, who left the pitch still seeking their first goal of the season. Wheaton Warrenville South improved to 3-1-0 overall with the win in its conference debut, while Lake Park fell to 0-8-0, 0-3-0.
"It was nice to start DVC play with a win," said Tigers junior forward Paige Miller, who scored two goals and assisted on another en route to earning Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors. "I thought we played well. Now we want to carry that through the rest of the season."
Dangerous Wheaton Warrenville South midfielder Allie Anderson, who added a goal and an assist, said, "I believe we can make a run for the DVC title this year. There's a lot of hope. I'm excited for the season."
Miller and Anderson did a lot of running against the Lancers, pacing the attack with aggressive rushes toward the net set up by a patient possession game in the midfield. Speedy junior midfielder Evelyn Demsher opened the scoring, cutting in on the right side past a defender and slamming in a low shot to the left of Lake Park junior goalkeeper Sarah Yochem with 29:32 left in the first half.
The Tigers had numerous opportunities to increase the margin before the break, but Yochem and the Lancers' 'D' stood firm to keep the home team within a goal after 40 minutes.
"We held 'em in the first half," said Lake Park junior defender Ziri Hernandez. "We were working so hard ... tired ourselves out."
In the 15th minute, Tigers junior defender Claire Kiple set up Demsher for a 15-yard try that popped over the crossbar. Sophomore mid Jennifer Aalbue cut in from the right side two minutes later and fired wide-right from 10 yards.
Yochem made a nice save at the left post to rob sophomore defender Abby Becker from 10 yards in the 22nd minute. Three minutes later, a perfect corner kick by Miller was headed just over the bar by Tigers junior defender Maria Dohse.
Lake Park's keeper answered a bouncing 20-yard shot from the left side by senior defender Julia Cox with 8 minutes left in the opening session, and Anderson charged in soon after to deliver a hard blast from 25 yards that missed to the left.
The Lancers finally recorded their first shot attempt of the match in the 38th minute when sophomore mid Lili Giron trickled a 15-yard try wide-left as Wheaton Warrenville South junior keeper Abbie Brennan rushed out to cut the angle.
"That's a very strong team, so (being) down 1-0 at the half, you feel good," said Lancers head coach Sean Crosby. "But four goals in the second half? You don't want to see that."
The Lake Park skipper certainly didn't jump for joy when he saw an innocent-looking 35-yard shot by Anderson slip through Yochem less than two minutes into the second half, giving the Tigers a 2-0 lead. Just over a minute later, Anderson fed a ball to Miller, who then hooked a sensational left-footed shot over Yochem's head and into the top left corner to make it 3-0.
Lake Park tried to answer. A well-placed free kick into the box by Lake Park senior defender Amber Sedwick was tipped wide-left by senior mid Jaclyn Lamz with 35 minutes to go, and steady senior middie Brianna McAloon punched a long shot wide-right four minutes later.
Otherwise, the visitors kept attacking. Anderson rifled a 30-yard shot wide-right with 27:10 remaining, and she sent another rocket over the bar just 50 seconds later. With exactly 20 minutes to go, Wheaton Warrenville South freshman mid Melisa Hadzic missed a wide open cage from in close, followed a minute later by a strike from junior mid Ellery Fahey that bounced off the crossbar.
Miller's second goal of the game, a tap-in to finish a pass from Dohse, increased the bulge to 4-0 with 14:26 left. Miller then set up Fahey, who blasted a missile high into the net to conclude the scoring in the 70th minute.
"We gained more confidence in the second half," Miller said. "We finished a few chances and really played as a team. The mindset was to control and possess."
Added Tigers head coach Guy Callipari: "I thought were much better in the second half -- much cleaner, more confidence. We hadn't played in 10 days or so, so I thought we struggled a bit with connections in the first half. The second half was much better."
A tremendous save by Yochem to thwart a breakaway attempt by Miller with 4:50 to go provided a late highlight for the Lancers. Lake Park also nearly broke its scoring drought when a McAloon attempt bounced near the goal line in traffic with 1:50 showing.
"To see us push at the end, scratching and clawing, we were still fighting to the end," Crosby said. "But we've got to put together a full 80 minutes. We had solid 'D' ... maybe a bit of fatigue in the second half. But we need to see the other side of it, the offense, and focus on cracking the goal line."
Battle-tested veteran McAloon, a team co-captain, said she'll do her part to help the Lancers stay the course through adverse times.
"It's not easy, but it's about how you respond to that," she said. "You've gotta keep working hard. Forget the score and contribute to the whole team concept. Keep going, don't give up, and fight for the whole 80 minutes.
"I feel we have a great group of girls. We just have to find our momentum."
Starting lineups
Wheaton Warrenville South
G: Abbie Brennan
D: Claire Kiple
D: Maria Dohse
D: Sam Buol
M: Allie Anderson
M: Evelyn Demsher
M: Molly Fank
M: Jennifer Aalbue
M: Melisa Hadzic
F: Morgan Schwerin
F: Paige Miller
Lake Park
G: Sarah Yochem
D: Elizabeth Guenther
D: Stephanie Zachemski
D: Emma Thorne
D: Amber Sedwick
M: Jaclyn Lamz
M: Lauren Tarchala
M: Ann Marie Ahrens
M: Alexis Morgan
M: Brianna McAloon
F: Cyndi Martinez
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Paige Miller, jr., F, Wheaton Warrenville South
Officials: Boris Vukovic, Alex Bargamian, Jim Ventrone
Scoring summary
1. Wheaton Warrenville South: Evelyn Demsher (unassisted) in 11th minute
2. Wheaton Warrenville South: Allie Anderson (assisted by Claire Kiple) in 42nd minute
3. Wheaton Warrenville South: Paige Miller (assisted by Anderson) in 43rd minute
4. Wheaton Warrenville South: Miller (assisted by Maria Dohse) in 66th minute
5. Wheaton Warrenville South: Ellery Fahey (assisted by Miller) in 70th minute