Young, Lane tie 1-1 on 80th-minute scores
2 goals in last 26 seconds deliver draw between storied city rivals
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- Sixteen seconds normally zips by almost imperceptibly, bound up in the rush of activity and fragmentary, throwaway moments. Time always moves differently with Young and Lane. Time is mysterious and transformative, every moment seemingly magnified and exaggerated.
In the storied history of the city’s greatest soccer rivalry, the final moments Monday now belong to legend. The only comparable moment was five years ago in the city championship at Gately Stadium when Young scored off a corner kick as time expired to force overtime and eventually pulled out the riveting 2-1 victory
Whatever you call it, the unexpected, the sublime, becomes commonplace.
“This game is always a big game for us,” Young senior forward Sophie Putrim said. “We know a lot of the [Lane] girls from club season. We recognize them from playing against them these four years. They are always really good, competitive games.”
In the showdown of two undefeated Chicago Public League Premier Division stalwarts, Young was on the verge of engineering a stunning upset on Putrim’s beautifully executed counter in the 80th minute. Even more miraculous, no. 21 Lane equalized on Sydney Varga’s left-footed blast from about 22 yards just 16 seconds later that yielded the incredible and improbable 1-1 draw Monday at Lane Stadium.
Sophie Putrim and Sydney Varga shared the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the match honors for their co-heroics.
“We always tell our kids that every second counts,” Lane coach Michelle Vale said. “If you play this game with love and passion, you play as if you are down a goal and you always play until the very end.”
Young (8-7-2, 6-0-1 Premier) finished its division play and holds a half-game lead over the Indians (6-3-2, 5-0-1), who travel to Jones Wednesday afternoon for their league finale. A Lane victory Wednesday gives the Indians a share of the regular season title and with its greater goal-differential would secure the top-seed for the city tournament. A loss or tie hands the title and top seed to Young.
“We came in with an undefeated [conference] record, and one of our goals was to win conference,” Putrim said. “Our goal was to come out and take it to them and get the conference victory.”
The game featured many complex subplots and counter movements. “I thought our kids played really well and hard, and typical of a Lane and Young game, there was a lot of adrenaline on both sides,” Vale said. Young and Lane have been synonymous with Chicago Public League soccer success. Only twice in the last 11 years have one or both teams not been involved in the city championship.
The Premier Division title tends to get overshadowed by the city championship. With two teams flowing to each ball, Lane generally having the better run of play, every moment mattered. “Both teams were really good about keeping the pressure up and making sure we were pressing on each other,” Putrim said.
The action was frenzied and relentless. The atmosphere and backdrop was also special, the large crowd contributing to the special emotional energy. Lane had the more consistent offensive attack. Sometimes it takes one standout player to level the field.
Mia Engelmann played the role to perfection. A junior keeper at Young, she moved quickly and decisively. Typically Young coach Spero Mandakas splits time with Engelmann and senior Gaby Lukanus. This time he stayed with the hot hand of Engelmann.
“Mia made some great big saves in the first half, so we rolled with her for the second half as well,” Mandakas said.
In the 61st minute, athletic Lane senior midfielder Jazzmin Jordan broke free on the right wing off a perfectly placed through-ball and bore down from an ideal angle. In a bang-bang sequence, Engelmann blocked the first ball and then charged off the line on the rebound to deprive Jordan of a follow-up shot.
“That’s kind of my signature move of sliding and coming out,” Engelmann said. “I saw that [Jordan] was past the defense, and it was a beautiful ball that they played. I thought it was time to come out and get it.” Engelmann also made a great lunge to her left to break up another Jordan left-footed ball from about 19 yards.
Lane generated three corner kicks from the left edge during the pivotal action. The best scoring chance saw Grace Dunaway serve a looping that ball that senior midfielder Ayla Guvener headed just over the top of the bar.
“Defensively our backline played really well in slowing them down on their attack,” Mandakas said. “Their wingers were getting out into space, and we were able to apply some pressure. Mia made some great saves to keep us in it. As well as we played defensively, I though we panicked a little bit in our attack. I thought we played a little too one-directional.
“Too often we gave the ball right back to them.”
Young just needed one play and Putrim appeared to turn the tables as the clock melted inside of a minute.
“I think at that point they really had a lot of pressure on us,” she said. “Most of the numbers were up. I went in to make a defensive play. We’ve been working on that all year. We won the ball, and there weren’t many girls back, and I saw Audrey [Howaniec]. We had all the space that we wanted, and we did the through-ball.”
Switching ends beautifully, Howaniec orchestrated a two-on-one that slotted a ball to Putrim on the right wing. Trying to cut away the angle, Lane standout senior keeper Maggie Grossman bolted from her line.
Putrim was ready.
“Patience has been a virtue in a lot of our games and practices this year,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of opportunities. We’ve struggled a little bit with finishing, so it’s just composure and patience, and and what we’ve been working on lately.
“That was what I was trying to do.”
Grossman rushed towards her but Putrim’s shot from about 14 yards broke perfectly inside the far post for her ninth goal of the year.
Vale was impressed. “They played with a lot of poise in that situation, but I was very happy with how we responded after giving up a goal with just 26 seconds left,” she said.
Vale’s admonishment to live in the moment and never concede resonated with her players.
The Indians never panicked. Off the restart, midfielder Alana Coffman controlled the ball and punched it down the left wing to a streaking Varga.
“I knew we had less than a minute left and I knew that we needed a goal,” Varga said. “When Alana played the ball to me, I saw that the sideline was open, and I just hit it down. I thought to myself that I might as well shoot.”
It is an axiom of soccer that teams are never more vulnerable than right after they score. Flummoxed on multiple occasions, Lane broke through. Varga wedged the ball at an ideal angle, and it curved inside the far post with 10 seconds remaining.
It was her third goal of the year.
“I think the wind did help it a little bit,” she said. “It looked like it was going to go over and then it curved and made it in.” The remarkable close was a jolt to both sides.
“It could have been better, and it could have been worse,” Varga said. “It was really a fun game to be in, even though we were disappointed we didn’t win. Just the fact once they scored we were able to jump back in and score seconds later, I think that shows how strong of a team we are. It shows that we have a lot going for us.
“I am proud of us for picking it back up.”
It was not a matter of Young celebrating early. As Vale pointed out, the adrenaline raced on both sides.
“We have been working on defensive breakdowns the whole season,” Putrim said. “I think after a big play after that with twenty-some seconds left, I was really winded after that. I could not really breathe. We were all just trying to catch our breaths.”
The logical or expected is simply not possible in this rivalry.
“We had a few missteps in there where the ball was on our foot where in most cases we are going to send that ball to the top row of the bleachers,” Mandakas said. “We had that good counter where we caught them off guard and calmly finished.
“We have to play the full 80 [minutes]. That is something we will focus on as we move forward. We are going to learn from it.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Mia Engelmann
D: Sarah Heise
D: Meaghan Jungels
D: Lauren Ehlers
D: Addie Schlensker
MF: Keila Vega
MF: Sara Woods
MF: Jessica O’Donnell
F: Sophie Putrim
F: Mia Lisanti
F: Audrey Howaniec
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Samantha Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Zehra Halilic
M: Alana Coffman
M: Camaron Niforos
M: Ayla Guvener
M: Grace Dunaway
F: Ayser Guvener
F: Kayla Dutton
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Sophie Putrim, sr., F, Young
Sydney Varga, jr., M, Lane
Scoring summary
Second half
Young—Sophie Putrim (Howaniec), 79:34
Lane—Sydney Varga (Alana Coffman), 79:50
2 goals in last 26 seconds deliver draw between storied city rivals
By Patrick Z. McGavin
CHICAGO -- Sixteen seconds normally zips by almost imperceptibly, bound up in the rush of activity and fragmentary, throwaway moments. Time always moves differently with Young and Lane. Time is mysterious and transformative, every moment seemingly magnified and exaggerated.
In the storied history of the city’s greatest soccer rivalry, the final moments Monday now belong to legend. The only comparable moment was five years ago in the city championship at Gately Stadium when Young scored off a corner kick as time expired to force overtime and eventually pulled out the riveting 2-1 victory
Whatever you call it, the unexpected, the sublime, becomes commonplace.
“This game is always a big game for us,” Young senior forward Sophie Putrim said. “We know a lot of the [Lane] girls from club season. We recognize them from playing against them these four years. They are always really good, competitive games.”
In the showdown of two undefeated Chicago Public League Premier Division stalwarts, Young was on the verge of engineering a stunning upset on Putrim’s beautifully executed counter in the 80th minute. Even more miraculous, no. 21 Lane equalized on Sydney Varga’s left-footed blast from about 22 yards just 16 seconds later that yielded the incredible and improbable 1-1 draw Monday at Lane Stadium.
Sophie Putrim and Sydney Varga shared the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the match honors for their co-heroics.
“We always tell our kids that every second counts,” Lane coach Michelle Vale said. “If you play this game with love and passion, you play as if you are down a goal and you always play until the very end.”
Young (8-7-2, 6-0-1 Premier) finished its division play and holds a half-game lead over the Indians (6-3-2, 5-0-1), who travel to Jones Wednesday afternoon for their league finale. A Lane victory Wednesday gives the Indians a share of the regular season title and with its greater goal-differential would secure the top-seed for the city tournament. A loss or tie hands the title and top seed to Young.
“We came in with an undefeated [conference] record, and one of our goals was to win conference,” Putrim said. “Our goal was to come out and take it to them and get the conference victory.”
The game featured many complex subplots and counter movements. “I thought our kids played really well and hard, and typical of a Lane and Young game, there was a lot of adrenaline on both sides,” Vale said. Young and Lane have been synonymous with Chicago Public League soccer success. Only twice in the last 11 years have one or both teams not been involved in the city championship.
The Premier Division title tends to get overshadowed by the city championship. With two teams flowing to each ball, Lane generally having the better run of play, every moment mattered. “Both teams were really good about keeping the pressure up and making sure we were pressing on each other,” Putrim said.
The action was frenzied and relentless. The atmosphere and backdrop was also special, the large crowd contributing to the special emotional energy. Lane had the more consistent offensive attack. Sometimes it takes one standout player to level the field.
Mia Engelmann played the role to perfection. A junior keeper at Young, she moved quickly and decisively. Typically Young coach Spero Mandakas splits time with Engelmann and senior Gaby Lukanus. This time he stayed with the hot hand of Engelmann.
“Mia made some great big saves in the first half, so we rolled with her for the second half as well,” Mandakas said.
In the 61st minute, athletic Lane senior midfielder Jazzmin Jordan broke free on the right wing off a perfectly placed through-ball and bore down from an ideal angle. In a bang-bang sequence, Engelmann blocked the first ball and then charged off the line on the rebound to deprive Jordan of a follow-up shot.
“That’s kind of my signature move of sliding and coming out,” Engelmann said. “I saw that [Jordan] was past the defense, and it was a beautiful ball that they played. I thought it was time to come out and get it.” Engelmann also made a great lunge to her left to break up another Jordan left-footed ball from about 19 yards.
Lane generated three corner kicks from the left edge during the pivotal action. The best scoring chance saw Grace Dunaway serve a looping that ball that senior midfielder Ayla Guvener headed just over the top of the bar.
“Defensively our backline played really well in slowing them down on their attack,” Mandakas said. “Their wingers were getting out into space, and we were able to apply some pressure. Mia made some great saves to keep us in it. As well as we played defensively, I though we panicked a little bit in our attack. I thought we played a little too one-directional.
“Too often we gave the ball right back to them.”
Young just needed one play and Putrim appeared to turn the tables as the clock melted inside of a minute.
“I think at that point they really had a lot of pressure on us,” she said. “Most of the numbers were up. I went in to make a defensive play. We’ve been working on that all year. We won the ball, and there weren’t many girls back, and I saw Audrey [Howaniec]. We had all the space that we wanted, and we did the through-ball.”
Switching ends beautifully, Howaniec orchestrated a two-on-one that slotted a ball to Putrim on the right wing. Trying to cut away the angle, Lane standout senior keeper Maggie Grossman bolted from her line.
Putrim was ready.
“Patience has been a virtue in a lot of our games and practices this year,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of opportunities. We’ve struggled a little bit with finishing, so it’s just composure and patience, and and what we’ve been working on lately.
“That was what I was trying to do.”
Grossman rushed towards her but Putrim’s shot from about 14 yards broke perfectly inside the far post for her ninth goal of the year.
Vale was impressed. “They played with a lot of poise in that situation, but I was very happy with how we responded after giving up a goal with just 26 seconds left,” she said.
Vale’s admonishment to live in the moment and never concede resonated with her players.
The Indians never panicked. Off the restart, midfielder Alana Coffman controlled the ball and punched it down the left wing to a streaking Varga.
“I knew we had less than a minute left and I knew that we needed a goal,” Varga said. “When Alana played the ball to me, I saw that the sideline was open, and I just hit it down. I thought to myself that I might as well shoot.”
It is an axiom of soccer that teams are never more vulnerable than right after they score. Flummoxed on multiple occasions, Lane broke through. Varga wedged the ball at an ideal angle, and it curved inside the far post with 10 seconds remaining.
It was her third goal of the year.
“I think the wind did help it a little bit,” she said. “It looked like it was going to go over and then it curved and made it in.” The remarkable close was a jolt to both sides.
“It could have been better, and it could have been worse,” Varga said. “It was really a fun game to be in, even though we were disappointed we didn’t win. Just the fact once they scored we were able to jump back in and score seconds later, I think that shows how strong of a team we are. It shows that we have a lot going for us.
“I am proud of us for picking it back up.”
It was not a matter of Young celebrating early. As Vale pointed out, the adrenaline raced on both sides.
“We have been working on defensive breakdowns the whole season,” Putrim said. “I think after a big play after that with twenty-some seconds left, I was really winded after that. I could not really breathe. We were all just trying to catch our breaths.”
The logical or expected is simply not possible in this rivalry.
“We had a few missteps in there where the ball was on our foot where in most cases we are going to send that ball to the top row of the bleachers,” Mandakas said. “We had that good counter where we caught them off guard and calmly finished.
“We have to play the full 80 [minutes]. That is something we will focus on as we move forward. We are going to learn from it.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Mia Engelmann
D: Sarah Heise
D: Meaghan Jungels
D: Lauren Ehlers
D: Addie Schlensker
MF: Keila Vega
MF: Sara Woods
MF: Jessica O’Donnell
F: Sophie Putrim
F: Mia Lisanti
F: Audrey Howaniec
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Samantha Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Zehra Halilic
M: Alana Coffman
M: Camaron Niforos
M: Ayla Guvener
M: Grace Dunaway
F: Ayser Guvener
F: Kayla Dutton
Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Sophie Putrim, sr., F, Young
Sydney Varga, jr., M, Lane
Scoring summary
Second half
Young—Sophie Putrim (Howaniec), 79:34
Lane—Sydney Varga (Alana Coffman), 79:50