Connolly’s late tally gives
Young draw vs. Evanston
Dolphins’ Murray, Wildkits' Viamille shine in 3-3 tie
By Michael Wojtychiw
EVANSTON -- The early part of the season is a time when managers often try different lineups to see what combination of players will give the biggest edge.
Both Young and Evanston did just that when they met in a nonconference clash Saturday afternoon in Evanston. The Dolphins played what manager Ross LaBeaux believed to be their seventh different lineup in as many games this season.
“We’re just trying to get the best lineup out there, the one we feel will give us the best opportunity to win,” he said.
Evanston, on the other hand, didn’t have much choice in at least one position. They played without midfielder Adriana Merriam in the matchup against one of the Chicago Public League’s top teams.
After the end of 80 minutes, the two teams walked out just as they had when they walked into Murney Lazier Field to start the day -- even. The result kept the eighth-ranked Wildkits (4-0-1) unbeaten on the year and upped the Dolphins’ unbeaten streak (3-0-1, 3-2-2 overall).
“Today was about adversity,” Evanston coach Stacy Salgado said. “We were a little low on numbers. So we had some players playing in positions they’re not used to playing, and they came through.
“We didn’t get the W, but we had some really great opportunities and would like to capitalize on those chances going forward. But there’s stuff we need to clean up, and this was a good test to show us what we need to work on.”
The match may have been a bit more aggressive than each team originally figured, evidenced by the nine-first half fouls, most of which were in the first 25 minutes of the match.
“I don’t think we were expecting the physicality at all. We came into this, I think we were the underdogs, and Evanston played a really great game,” Young senior midfielder Daphne Murray said. “It was really competitive, and I think has been one of our toughest games, if not our toughest game. We came out and played really well.”
The Dolphins got on the board first when senior forward Ella Kadish took a ball from Murray and put it past Evanston keeper Ariel Kite to give the visitors the early lead with nine minutes, 59 seconds remaining in the first half.
The lead was short-lived, however. Evanston used a nice combination between Brealyn Viamille’s passing and sophomore Jocelyn Leigh’s finishing to tie the game with just over two minutes remaining in the half.
The Wildkits wasted little time after intermission to get the lead. Tate Lucas put Evanston’s second goal past Young goalie Zoe Adelstein in the 43rd minute.
“The halftime message was to be fierce and attack right from the beginning,” Salgado said. “We wanted to set the tone for the half early.”
However, Young started to control much of the game after the score. The Dolphins possessed the ball and made Kite make save after save to keep the visitors off the scoreboard.
According to Viamille, it was Young that came out really hungry in the second half.
“They were really capitalizing on the fact we didn’t win the first ball; we didn’t win the second ball,” she said. “They did a good job capitalizing on that. That’s their job as a team that likes to get counters. Our team is one that likes to play the game on the ground, and we couldn’t do that. But once we did, we were able to score.”
Young worked hard for the equalizer.
“We all put in a lot of grit, and that’s a big shoutout to our defense; they played really well,” Murray said. “We pressed high. We really had the momentum and were following our shots, which eventually led to the two goals.”
With the team still down 2-1 and the clock ticking closer and closer to halfway through the second half, Murray took it into her own hands to pull Young even.
Just under the halfway point of the final half, the Butler-bound senior came up the left side of the field and unleashed a shot that went past Kite and tied the score and caused a groan through the Evanston crowd that came out to cheer on its squad in a rainy, snowy day.
“We were all trying to shoot a lot, especially once it got rainy because you never know what can happen,” Murray said.
But, much like it had earlier in the game, and like it had against Loyola two games ago, Evanston’s resilience came through.
Viamille, a Florida International recruit, used her experience to garner a scoring opportunity with just over 12 minutes remaining. It gave the home squad its second lead of the day.
“We just needed shots at that point,” Viamille said. “Good shot, a shot on goal. It’s slippery outside, so you have a good chance of it going in. So I took a chance and shot it toward goal.
“It’s encouraging to see us come back like we did. We know how good of a team we are. We know what we can do, our expectations, our capabilities. And the fact that we try to meet and exceed the standard, it’s great to see a team that doesn’t give up.”
“The resilience is telling about this group,” the Evanston manager said. “They don’t put their heads down and give up. It’s early in the season still, so we’re learning and figuring out some things.”
Young was not deterred. The Dolphins came back ready to put the ball on goal. It started with a shot by Lauren Roche that hit the crossbar and came down in front of the goal line before being cleared away by the Evanston defense.
That led to a corner kick that ended with a shot that went just high.
The Dolphins persistence paid off with just under five minutes when Connolly took a nifty pass from Ella Koleno in the box and finished the scoring for the day.
“It was a nice little pass from Ella, and I was going into the box,” Connolly said. “I think it may have hit somebody, but it was there for me to put it in.”
Both teams have been involved in a number of exciting contests previous to this one. The Wildkits eked out a last-minute win over Loyola. Young tied the Ramblers, and both of its losses have come against ranked West Suburban Conference Silver Division Lyons and Hinsdale Central.
“We’ve learned that we can’t keep our heads down when we’re down,” Connolly said. “We’ve really just got to keep working and putting in 110 percent effort the entire game because you never know what can happen.
“In the Loyola game, they scored in the last minute. Something we learned there especially is you have to keep the intensity up.”
“We want to play the tough teams, because we want to figure out what we have to do to be ready for the end of the season,” LaBeaux said. “We have to be battle-tested, and that’s really the only way to do it.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Zoe Adelstein
D: Celeste Garton
D: Ainsley Christensen
D: Lauren Roche
D: Katie Sweitzer
MF: Sydney Koleno
MF: Alexis Sassower
MF: Moira Koleno
F: Maisy Connolly
F: Ella Koleno
F: Daphne Murray
Evanston
GK: Ariel Kite
D: Anna Bergmann
D: Ellie Oif
D: Carly Menocal
D: Lucinda Lindland
MF: Shea Ackman
MF: Lily Shure
MF: Nalah Dominguez
MF: Sydney Ross
F: Brealyn Viamille
F: Jocelyn Leigh
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Brealyn Viamille, sr., F, Evanston; Daphne Murray, sr., MF, Young
Scoring summary
First half
Young - Ella Kadish (Daphne Murray), 31st minute
Evanston - Jocelyn Leigh (Brealyn Viamille), 38th minute
Second half
Evanston - Tate Lucas (unassisted), 42nd minute
Young - Murray (unassisted), 61st minute
Evanston - Viamille (unassisted), 67th minute
Young - Maisy Connolly (Ella Koleno), 76th minute
Young draw vs. Evanston
Dolphins’ Murray, Wildkits' Viamille shine in 3-3 tie
By Michael Wojtychiw
EVANSTON -- The early part of the season is a time when managers often try different lineups to see what combination of players will give the biggest edge.
Both Young and Evanston did just that when they met in a nonconference clash Saturday afternoon in Evanston. The Dolphins played what manager Ross LaBeaux believed to be their seventh different lineup in as many games this season.
“We’re just trying to get the best lineup out there, the one we feel will give us the best opportunity to win,” he said.
Evanston, on the other hand, didn’t have much choice in at least one position. They played without midfielder Adriana Merriam in the matchup against one of the Chicago Public League’s top teams.
After the end of 80 minutes, the two teams walked out just as they had when they walked into Murney Lazier Field to start the day -- even. The result kept the eighth-ranked Wildkits (4-0-1) unbeaten on the year and upped the Dolphins’ unbeaten streak (3-0-1, 3-2-2 overall).
“Today was about adversity,” Evanston coach Stacy Salgado said. “We were a little low on numbers. So we had some players playing in positions they’re not used to playing, and they came through.
“We didn’t get the W, but we had some really great opportunities and would like to capitalize on those chances going forward. But there’s stuff we need to clean up, and this was a good test to show us what we need to work on.”
The match may have been a bit more aggressive than each team originally figured, evidenced by the nine-first half fouls, most of which were in the first 25 minutes of the match.
“I don’t think we were expecting the physicality at all. We came into this, I think we were the underdogs, and Evanston played a really great game,” Young senior midfielder Daphne Murray said. “It was really competitive, and I think has been one of our toughest games, if not our toughest game. We came out and played really well.”
The Dolphins got on the board first when senior forward Ella Kadish took a ball from Murray and put it past Evanston keeper Ariel Kite to give the visitors the early lead with nine minutes, 59 seconds remaining in the first half.
The lead was short-lived, however. Evanston used a nice combination between Brealyn Viamille’s passing and sophomore Jocelyn Leigh’s finishing to tie the game with just over two minutes remaining in the half.
The Wildkits wasted little time after intermission to get the lead. Tate Lucas put Evanston’s second goal past Young goalie Zoe Adelstein in the 43rd minute.
“The halftime message was to be fierce and attack right from the beginning,” Salgado said. “We wanted to set the tone for the half early.”
However, Young started to control much of the game after the score. The Dolphins possessed the ball and made Kite make save after save to keep the visitors off the scoreboard.
According to Viamille, it was Young that came out really hungry in the second half.
“They were really capitalizing on the fact we didn’t win the first ball; we didn’t win the second ball,” she said. “They did a good job capitalizing on that. That’s their job as a team that likes to get counters. Our team is one that likes to play the game on the ground, and we couldn’t do that. But once we did, we were able to score.”
Young worked hard for the equalizer.
“We all put in a lot of grit, and that’s a big shoutout to our defense; they played really well,” Murray said. “We pressed high. We really had the momentum and were following our shots, which eventually led to the two goals.”
With the team still down 2-1 and the clock ticking closer and closer to halfway through the second half, Murray took it into her own hands to pull Young even.
Just under the halfway point of the final half, the Butler-bound senior came up the left side of the field and unleashed a shot that went past Kite and tied the score and caused a groan through the Evanston crowd that came out to cheer on its squad in a rainy, snowy day.
“We were all trying to shoot a lot, especially once it got rainy because you never know what can happen,” Murray said.
But, much like it had earlier in the game, and like it had against Loyola two games ago, Evanston’s resilience came through.
Viamille, a Florida International recruit, used her experience to garner a scoring opportunity with just over 12 minutes remaining. It gave the home squad its second lead of the day.
“We just needed shots at that point,” Viamille said. “Good shot, a shot on goal. It’s slippery outside, so you have a good chance of it going in. So I took a chance and shot it toward goal.
“It’s encouraging to see us come back like we did. We know how good of a team we are. We know what we can do, our expectations, our capabilities. And the fact that we try to meet and exceed the standard, it’s great to see a team that doesn’t give up.”
“The resilience is telling about this group,” the Evanston manager said. “They don’t put their heads down and give up. It’s early in the season still, so we’re learning and figuring out some things.”
Young was not deterred. The Dolphins came back ready to put the ball on goal. It started with a shot by Lauren Roche that hit the crossbar and came down in front of the goal line before being cleared away by the Evanston defense.
That led to a corner kick that ended with a shot that went just high.
The Dolphins persistence paid off with just under five minutes when Connolly took a nifty pass from Ella Koleno in the box and finished the scoring for the day.
“It was a nice little pass from Ella, and I was going into the box,” Connolly said. “I think it may have hit somebody, but it was there for me to put it in.”
Both teams have been involved in a number of exciting contests previous to this one. The Wildkits eked out a last-minute win over Loyola. Young tied the Ramblers, and both of its losses have come against ranked West Suburban Conference Silver Division Lyons and Hinsdale Central.
“We’ve learned that we can’t keep our heads down when we’re down,” Connolly said. “We’ve really just got to keep working and putting in 110 percent effort the entire game because you never know what can happen.
“In the Loyola game, they scored in the last minute. Something we learned there especially is you have to keep the intensity up.”
“We want to play the tough teams, because we want to figure out what we have to do to be ready for the end of the season,” LaBeaux said. “We have to be battle-tested, and that’s really the only way to do it.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Zoe Adelstein
D: Celeste Garton
D: Ainsley Christensen
D: Lauren Roche
D: Katie Sweitzer
MF: Sydney Koleno
MF: Alexis Sassower
MF: Moira Koleno
F: Maisy Connolly
F: Ella Koleno
F: Daphne Murray
Evanston
GK: Ariel Kite
D: Anna Bergmann
D: Ellie Oif
D: Carly Menocal
D: Lucinda Lindland
MF: Shea Ackman
MF: Lily Shure
MF: Nalah Dominguez
MF: Sydney Ross
F: Brealyn Viamille
F: Jocelyn Leigh
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Brealyn Viamille, sr., F, Evanston; Daphne Murray, sr., MF, Young
Scoring summary
First half
Young - Ella Kadish (Daphne Murray), 31st minute
Evanston - Jocelyn Leigh (Brealyn Viamille), 38th minute
Second half
Evanston - Tate Lucas (unassisted), 42nd minute
Young - Murray (unassisted), 61st minute
Evanston - Viamille (unassisted), 67th minute
Young - Maisy Connolly (Ella Koleno), 76th minute