Repurposed striker Stransky
leads WWS to win over Fenwick
Rostered defender scores 1st 2 goals, takes Tigers to title round
By Bobby Narang
SCHAUMBURG — Wheaton Warrenville South freshman Bri Stransky’s expression told the whole story Sunday.
The freshman defender was in shock after scoring her first goal against Fenwick in the BodyArmor Series at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
Less than 45 seconds later, Stransky doubled her career goal output and added another shocked expression by standing still amid a crowd of people.
The two late goals powered Wheaton Warrenville South (3-2-1) to a 2-1 victory over Fenwick on the second day of the tournament. With the two wins, the Tigers advance to the championship day on April 24 at Lyons High School.
The Tigers (3-2-1) opened the tournament, previously known as the PepsiCo Showdown, with a 2-1 victory over Joliet Catholic on Saturday.
After helping her team win the pivotal matchup against a talented Fenwick squad, Stransky’s postgame words were quiet and brief and a stark contrast to her aggressive and loud play on the pitch on Field 3 in the soccer complex.
After each of her goals from her newfound striker position, Stransky looked stunned.
“I’m a center defender, so I had never scored,” Stransky said. “I honestly don’t even remember my first goal.
“It was really fun. I probably haven’t scored since last season. It’s really cool to score two goals. I got set up each time on my goals. This is pretty special win for us.”
Wheaton Warrenville South senior defender Olivia Vassios stepped on the pitch to help keep the Friars scoreless until the 78th minute. She stepped off the artificial surface after the game speaking about Stransky’s two-goal outing.
“It was so special to see (Bri) score her first two goals for our varsity program, especially since she’s normally a center defender,” Vassios said. “It’s a really special thing. We’re all so proud of her.”
Fenwick coach Craig Blazer said he was happy how his team bounced back with a late goal and how his defense played, particiularly in the first half.
“Wheaton Warrenville South was an outstanding team,” Blazer said. “They had a number of really good players, like Stransky.
“The wind was significant, and we did all we could in the first half not to give up a goal. Our goalie had a great first half.
“We knew we would have a little bit of a boost with the wind in the second half. Credit Wheaton Warrenville South. We will learn from it.”
Wheaton Warrenville South junior defender Ella McClatchy said she was thrilled to see Stransky end a scoreless drought and guide the Tigers to a victory.
“I was so happy for Bri,” McClatchy said. “She played great, especially being in a position that she’s not comfortable with. She took everything she knew and put it on the field and hustled and played great.”
Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said he wanted to add some spice to his lineup, so he moved Stransky to striker for a portion of the two weekend games.
“You can see that Bri is kind of wiry around the ball and is very aggressive, and she can strike the ball really well,” Callipari said. “That’s what also makes her a very good defender. In club (soccer) they decided to put her back there, because they have some pretty good players up-top.
“But we have a couple of injuries and Bri needs to play, so let’s put her back where she started. On Saturday, she played there a little bit as well. I wanted to give her a taste.
“She finished great. She’s around the ball a lot and has good instincts. She’s simple and doesn’t try to do too much. She puts it on frame, and that worked for us today.
“It was fun to watch. We needed those goals. Fenwick is really good on the ball, especially possessing and building.”
Ironically, the Tigers failed to score in the first half despite having a heavy advantage due to the strong wind pushing toward Fenwick’s net. The Tigers certainly had their chances in the opening 40 minutes. Fenwick’s goalie Leah Hyland tallied seven of her 10 saves in the half.
The Tigers had five quality chances in the final 20 minutes before halftime, but they were unable to tally a goal.
“It was tough conditions today. We weren’t mistake free, and we covered well defensively,” Callipari said.
After just missing scoring on three shots in a five-minute period in the second half, Wheaton Warrenville South ended the scoring drought with Stransky’s first goal.
A few seconds later, Stransky scored off a shot that smacked off the crossbar. It caromed directly in front of her, and she quickly shot past Hyland to spark the Tigers to another win.
“It feels great to win,” McClatchy said. “I think having this win is really good to put some momentum into our games this week. We have some tough conference and nonconference games coming up.
“Now we’re really seeing the connection from each third of the field, and we can definitely build off this and make this a great season.”
Six minutes later, Fenwick’s Caroline Henige scored on a free kick, lofting a shot to the far upper corner to slice the deficit to 2-1.
“I put the ball down, and I was eyeing the right corner,” Henige said. “I knew that’s where I wanted to place it. I’m really happy I scored on it. I scored off a free kick on Thursday, so I knew what would work. I did the same thing.
“We just have to learn that every play counts. If we didn’t allow that second goal, it would’ve been a 1-1 tie. We have to play hard until the end.”
Fenwick senior defender Abbie Rogowski said she saw several positives in the loss.
“Our energy was good, even when we got scored on we had that same energy and wanted to score,” she said. “It didn’t work out the way we wanted it, but we can learn from this. We’ve been playing well and are learning a lot more about each other. This game we really brought the energy.”
Starting lineups
Wheaton Warrenville South
GK Caroline Spayth
D Mallory Cadagin
D Olivia Vassios
D Ella McClatchy
D Lily Petrie
MF Carrie Harvey
MF Elie Farrell
MF Meghan Economos
MF Mia Taullahu
F Lauren Barnett
F Ashlyn Adams
Fenwick
GK Leah Hyland
D Lizzie Brunick
D Abbie Rogowski
D Gabi Kapusta
D Emily Ortiz
MF Caroline Henige
MF Natalie LoGuidice
MF Julia Cianci
MF Maddie Rogowski
MF Grace Kapsch
F Kate Henige
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Bri Stransky, fr., D/S, Wheaton Warrenville South
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Wheaton Warrenville South — Bri Stransky (unassisted), 71st minute
Wheaton Warrenville South — Bri Stransky (unassisted), 72nd minute
Fenwick — Caroline Henige (unassisted), 78th minute
leads WWS to win over Fenwick
Rostered defender scores 1st 2 goals, takes Tigers to title round
By Bobby Narang
SCHAUMBURG — Wheaton Warrenville South freshman Bri Stransky’s expression told the whole story Sunday.
The freshman defender was in shock after scoring her first goal against Fenwick in the BodyArmor Series at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
Less than 45 seconds later, Stransky doubled her career goal output and added another shocked expression by standing still amid a crowd of people.
The two late goals powered Wheaton Warrenville South (3-2-1) to a 2-1 victory over Fenwick on the second day of the tournament. With the two wins, the Tigers advance to the championship day on April 24 at Lyons High School.
The Tigers (3-2-1) opened the tournament, previously known as the PepsiCo Showdown, with a 2-1 victory over Joliet Catholic on Saturday.
After helping her team win the pivotal matchup against a talented Fenwick squad, Stransky’s postgame words were quiet and brief and a stark contrast to her aggressive and loud play on the pitch on Field 3 in the soccer complex.
After each of her goals from her newfound striker position, Stransky looked stunned.
“I’m a center defender, so I had never scored,” Stransky said. “I honestly don’t even remember my first goal.
“It was really fun. I probably haven’t scored since last season. It’s really cool to score two goals. I got set up each time on my goals. This is pretty special win for us.”
Wheaton Warrenville South senior defender Olivia Vassios stepped on the pitch to help keep the Friars scoreless until the 78th minute. She stepped off the artificial surface after the game speaking about Stransky’s two-goal outing.
“It was so special to see (Bri) score her first two goals for our varsity program, especially since she’s normally a center defender,” Vassios said. “It’s a really special thing. We’re all so proud of her.”
Fenwick coach Craig Blazer said he was happy how his team bounced back with a late goal and how his defense played, particiularly in the first half.
“Wheaton Warrenville South was an outstanding team,” Blazer said. “They had a number of really good players, like Stransky.
“The wind was significant, and we did all we could in the first half not to give up a goal. Our goalie had a great first half.
“We knew we would have a little bit of a boost with the wind in the second half. Credit Wheaton Warrenville South. We will learn from it.”
Wheaton Warrenville South junior defender Ella McClatchy said she was thrilled to see Stransky end a scoreless drought and guide the Tigers to a victory.
“I was so happy for Bri,” McClatchy said. “She played great, especially being in a position that she’s not comfortable with. She took everything she knew and put it on the field and hustled and played great.”
Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said he wanted to add some spice to his lineup, so he moved Stransky to striker for a portion of the two weekend games.
“You can see that Bri is kind of wiry around the ball and is very aggressive, and she can strike the ball really well,” Callipari said. “That’s what also makes her a very good defender. In club (soccer) they decided to put her back there, because they have some pretty good players up-top.
“But we have a couple of injuries and Bri needs to play, so let’s put her back where she started. On Saturday, she played there a little bit as well. I wanted to give her a taste.
“She finished great. She’s around the ball a lot and has good instincts. She’s simple and doesn’t try to do too much. She puts it on frame, and that worked for us today.
“It was fun to watch. We needed those goals. Fenwick is really good on the ball, especially possessing and building.”
Ironically, the Tigers failed to score in the first half despite having a heavy advantage due to the strong wind pushing toward Fenwick’s net. The Tigers certainly had their chances in the opening 40 minutes. Fenwick’s goalie Leah Hyland tallied seven of her 10 saves in the half.
The Tigers had five quality chances in the final 20 minutes before halftime, but they were unable to tally a goal.
“It was tough conditions today. We weren’t mistake free, and we covered well defensively,” Callipari said.
After just missing scoring on three shots in a five-minute period in the second half, Wheaton Warrenville South ended the scoring drought with Stransky’s first goal.
A few seconds later, Stransky scored off a shot that smacked off the crossbar. It caromed directly in front of her, and she quickly shot past Hyland to spark the Tigers to another win.
“It feels great to win,” McClatchy said. “I think having this win is really good to put some momentum into our games this week. We have some tough conference and nonconference games coming up.
“Now we’re really seeing the connection from each third of the field, and we can definitely build off this and make this a great season.”
Six minutes later, Fenwick’s Caroline Henige scored on a free kick, lofting a shot to the far upper corner to slice the deficit to 2-1.
“I put the ball down, and I was eyeing the right corner,” Henige said. “I knew that’s where I wanted to place it. I’m really happy I scored on it. I scored off a free kick on Thursday, so I knew what would work. I did the same thing.
“We just have to learn that every play counts. If we didn’t allow that second goal, it would’ve been a 1-1 tie. We have to play hard until the end.”
Fenwick senior defender Abbie Rogowski said she saw several positives in the loss.
“Our energy was good, even when we got scored on we had that same energy and wanted to score,” she said. “It didn’t work out the way we wanted it, but we can learn from this. We’ve been playing well and are learning a lot more about each other. This game we really brought the energy.”
Starting lineups
Wheaton Warrenville South
GK Caroline Spayth
D Mallory Cadagin
D Olivia Vassios
D Ella McClatchy
D Lily Petrie
MF Carrie Harvey
MF Elie Farrell
MF Meghan Economos
MF Mia Taullahu
F Lauren Barnett
F Ashlyn Adams
Fenwick
GK Leah Hyland
D Lizzie Brunick
D Abbie Rogowski
D Gabi Kapusta
D Emily Ortiz
MF Caroline Henige
MF Natalie LoGuidice
MF Julia Cianci
MF Maddie Rogowski
MF Grace Kapsch
F Kate Henige
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Bri Stransky, fr., D/S, Wheaton Warrenville South
Scoring summary
First half
No scoring
Second half
Wheaton Warrenville South — Bri Stransky (unassisted), 71st minute
Wheaton Warrenville South — Bri Stransky (unassisted), 72nd minute
Fenwick — Caroline Henige (unassisted), 78th minute