Lane brings down curtain vs. Young
Understudy Lindgren stars in Indians' 4th-straight city title
By Patrick Z. McGavin
BRIDGEVIEW -- In the second act of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” the Danish prince meets with his courtiers Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as the talk turns on themes of ambition and dreams. “I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not I have bad dreams,” Hamlet says.
“Which dreams, indeed, are ambition,” Guildenstern says. “For the very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream.”
Hamlet: “A dream itself is but a shadow.”
Leigh Ann Lindgren made her dream vivid and real. A sophomore midfielder at Lane, she did what every athlete seeks by imagining and then creating her own thrilling actualization. “I had a dream last night that I scored the game-winning goal,” Lindgren said.
“The whole rest of the game, I could not believe it was real.”
Lindgren authored her own history by completing a diagonal run and controlling a beautiful through-ball from freshman Lisa Rios. She finished the sequence by drilling a one-touch left-footed ball inside the far post in the 71st minute that finalized Lane’s thrilling 1-0 victory over Young in the championship of the Chicago Public League city tournament Thursday night at Toyota Park.
Lane, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, won the final for an unprecedented fourth-consecutive time
Talk about infinite space, it was an apt description for the width and depth of the professional stadium field. Lindgren had plenty of room to roam. Junior midfielder Alana Coffman played the initial ball to Rios on the left edge.
“I just received the ball, and I was going to play it in over here [on the left wing], but they were getting cornered,” Rios said. “And then I just saw Leigh Ann running in, and I waited for her to make it a little closer to the goal, and I sent it through.”
Lindgren had the presence and clarity to seize the moment. She also captured the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match for her performance and historic goal.
“Usually I stay wide, but I saw that there were a couple of people more toward my side so I knew that making the run wide would not really work. That is why I decided to cut in,” she said. “The defender was pretty far back, and since I cut in I could see she was looking [the other] way, and Lisa made the beautiful pass.”
Lindgren capitalized on her own opportunity. Lane coach Michelle Vale has a deep and versatile roster. She has a shrewd instinct of how to manage her players to the exact moment. Lindgren was ready after she was inserted into the game after sophomore midfielder Camaron Niforos suffered a leg cramp.
“It’s a really great moment,” Lindgren said. “I thought coach V did a really good job of managing the players, because I did not play in any of the first half. She put me in the second half, and it was fresh legs against their very tired defenders who’d been playing the whole game. And it was why I was able to win that race to the ball.”
Young junior keeper Mia Engelmann played brilliantly for the Dolphins, registering eight saves, including a terrific half volley from Niforos off a free kick midway in the 62nd minute. After Lindgren broke by the last defender, Engelmann leapt off her line in an effort to deny Lindgren.
“I’m right footed, so I just had to stay composed,” Lindgren said.
The positional versatility Lane enjoys effectively decided the game.
“Leigh Ann came in the second half and brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm because, of course, who wouldn’t have enthusiasm playing at this beautiful stadium,” Vale said. “We were trying to find what was the best combination, and how could we set it up so that we could capitalize on our strengths.
“It was not looking for Young’s weaknesses, but what were our own strengths and how could we play to them.”
In its own right, Young (12-10-2) was majestic and deeply resilient, overcoming a difficult start that saw Lane apply considerable pressure. Lane dictated the early pace and had the Dolphins on their heels. After setting in, Young countered behind the terrific play of senior forward Sophie Putrim and sophomore midfielder Mia Lisanti.
“The first 15 or 20 minutes I thought we were still taking it all up, figuring out the field size, how they play. And the last 15 minutes of the first half we finally started to get into a rhythm and get into our attacking third,” Young senior midfielder Keila Vega said.
“We picked it up and started attacking and had a lot of opportunities.”
Athletic and exceptionally dynamic, Sophie Putrim was often the most dangerous player on the field. She used her size and speed to turn the momentum in the Dolphins’ favor. Sophomore forward Ayana Loyd also altered the dynamic with her speed and creativity on the wing.
“We really settled in after that first 10 minutes,” Young coach Spero Mandakas said. “We started changing direction, possessing a little bit more before we went forward with it. Ayana Loyd came off the bench and was really a spark plug for us. We got her in on a couple of through-balls where she was in with the keeper, battling with a defender, and we were trying to get one touch and sneak it by.”
The game featured drama and backdrop. The atmosphere was electric, fueled by an intensity of feeling and two contrasting forces -- Lane’s play for history and Young’s desire to win its first city title since 2014. Playing on the massive field meant adjusting to the moment.
“We really tried to shrink the field when we were defending and when we got into the attack expand on it,” Mandakas said. “We were pretty good with that. Sometimes we gave them some easy outs where we did not want them to get it to the wing, and we did a good job of regrouping, tracking back and getting the ball in the center.
“They slotted one in, and they made a good finish. It’s a big field, a big moment, a little hotter than normal, and we didn’t necessarily go as deep as we sometimes do.
“The girls left everything on the field.”
Lane is now 11-0-1 since April 3. The Indians’ three losses were early and against ranked teams: no. 7 Loyola; no. 10 Glenbrook South and no. 14 Deerfield. Only the 1-1 draw with Young on April 23rd stands in the way of a perfect run.
The flexibility and multitude of options was the difference.
“We started off the season with six injured players,” Vale said. “I have a [roster] of 21, and I don’t usually take large teams. I usually go with 18, more or less. This year I went with 21, with six players who were injured to start. The idea was to make sure we have a variety of players. Some of them are stronger, some are faster, and some of them have the more accurate shot, and some of them are really great at the cross.
“I wanted to make sure I had a complete team to work together, and I think we have done a nice job with that. The beginning of the season was rough for us, we had to figure it out with some of the kids playing positions they don’t normally play to make the adjustment for the girls who were injured.”
Lane (13-3-2) started its girls program in 1996. The city title is now the 10th in school history, the fourth in Vale’s five-year history as the head coach. The group has eight seniors encompassing a range of experience, from a four-year starter like captain Izzy Oganovich to a first-year player like tenacious forward Rebeca Baciu. Twins Ayla and Ayser Guvener are two-year performers. Keeper Maggie Grossman, defenders Kinuko Mrozik and Leah Finkielsztein are three-year starters.
Oganovich, Jazzmin Jordan and goalkeeper Maggie Grossman became the first players to win four city titles. Oganovich scored the game-winner against Young her sophomore year.
“It’s so amazing just to know I have had such a solid team,” Oganovich said. “It’s the best feeling ever, especially making varsity my freshman year and coming in and having the senior mentors was a big deal, and they really helped me. Knowing I could be the same now for the younger girls is really important to me.
“I am really happy we ended it on a great note.”
Young countered every Lane action and contested everything. The game was as close as possible.
“We battle with them every year, and it’s always a one-goal game,” Mandakas said.
“Unfortunately, for this year, we came up on the other side of it. I feel for my seniors.
This is four years where they have had to see Lane lift the trophy.
“But it also gives a little inspiration for our younger players to work harder in the off-season to do the things that it means to be a champion so we can shine in these moments.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Mia Engelmann
D: Kyra Sobel
D: Carson Herman
D: Lauren Ehlers
D: Addie Schlensker
M: Sara Woods
M: Keila Vega
M: Mia Lisanti
F: Sophie Putrim
F: Sarah Heise
F: Olivia Putrim
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Samantha Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Zehra Halilic
M: Alana Coffman
M: Camaron Niforos
M: Carlye Makuch
M: Ayla Guvener
F: Grace Dunaway
F: Ayser Guvener
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Leigh Ann Lindgren, so., M, Lane
Scoring summary
Second half
Lane—Leigh Ann Lindgren (Lisa Rios), 71st minute
Understudy Lindgren stars in Indians' 4th-straight city title
By Patrick Z. McGavin
BRIDGEVIEW -- In the second act of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” the Danish prince meets with his courtiers Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as the talk turns on themes of ambition and dreams. “I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not I have bad dreams,” Hamlet says.
“Which dreams, indeed, are ambition,” Guildenstern says. “For the very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream.”
Hamlet: “A dream itself is but a shadow.”
Leigh Ann Lindgren made her dream vivid and real. A sophomore midfielder at Lane, she did what every athlete seeks by imagining and then creating her own thrilling actualization. “I had a dream last night that I scored the game-winning goal,” Lindgren said.
“The whole rest of the game, I could not believe it was real.”
Lindgren authored her own history by completing a diagonal run and controlling a beautiful through-ball from freshman Lisa Rios. She finished the sequence by drilling a one-touch left-footed ball inside the far post in the 71st minute that finalized Lane’s thrilling 1-0 victory over Young in the championship of the Chicago Public League city tournament Thursday night at Toyota Park.
Lane, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, won the final for an unprecedented fourth-consecutive time
Talk about infinite space, it was an apt description for the width and depth of the professional stadium field. Lindgren had plenty of room to roam. Junior midfielder Alana Coffman played the initial ball to Rios on the left edge.
“I just received the ball, and I was going to play it in over here [on the left wing], but they were getting cornered,” Rios said. “And then I just saw Leigh Ann running in, and I waited for her to make it a little closer to the goal, and I sent it through.”
Lindgren had the presence and clarity to seize the moment. She also captured the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match for her performance and historic goal.
“Usually I stay wide, but I saw that there were a couple of people more toward my side so I knew that making the run wide would not really work. That is why I decided to cut in,” she said. “The defender was pretty far back, and since I cut in I could see she was looking [the other] way, and Lisa made the beautiful pass.”
Lindgren capitalized on her own opportunity. Lane coach Michelle Vale has a deep and versatile roster. She has a shrewd instinct of how to manage her players to the exact moment. Lindgren was ready after she was inserted into the game after sophomore midfielder Camaron Niforos suffered a leg cramp.
“It’s a really great moment,” Lindgren said. “I thought coach V did a really good job of managing the players, because I did not play in any of the first half. She put me in the second half, and it was fresh legs against their very tired defenders who’d been playing the whole game. And it was why I was able to win that race to the ball.”
Young junior keeper Mia Engelmann played brilliantly for the Dolphins, registering eight saves, including a terrific half volley from Niforos off a free kick midway in the 62nd minute. After Lindgren broke by the last defender, Engelmann leapt off her line in an effort to deny Lindgren.
“I’m right footed, so I just had to stay composed,” Lindgren said.
The positional versatility Lane enjoys effectively decided the game.
“Leigh Ann came in the second half and brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm because, of course, who wouldn’t have enthusiasm playing at this beautiful stadium,” Vale said. “We were trying to find what was the best combination, and how could we set it up so that we could capitalize on our strengths.
“It was not looking for Young’s weaknesses, but what were our own strengths and how could we play to them.”
In its own right, Young (12-10-2) was majestic and deeply resilient, overcoming a difficult start that saw Lane apply considerable pressure. Lane dictated the early pace and had the Dolphins on their heels. After setting in, Young countered behind the terrific play of senior forward Sophie Putrim and sophomore midfielder Mia Lisanti.
“The first 15 or 20 minutes I thought we were still taking it all up, figuring out the field size, how they play. And the last 15 minutes of the first half we finally started to get into a rhythm and get into our attacking third,” Young senior midfielder Keila Vega said.
“We picked it up and started attacking and had a lot of opportunities.”
Athletic and exceptionally dynamic, Sophie Putrim was often the most dangerous player on the field. She used her size and speed to turn the momentum in the Dolphins’ favor. Sophomore forward Ayana Loyd also altered the dynamic with her speed and creativity on the wing.
“We really settled in after that first 10 minutes,” Young coach Spero Mandakas said. “We started changing direction, possessing a little bit more before we went forward with it. Ayana Loyd came off the bench and was really a spark plug for us. We got her in on a couple of through-balls where she was in with the keeper, battling with a defender, and we were trying to get one touch and sneak it by.”
The game featured drama and backdrop. The atmosphere was electric, fueled by an intensity of feeling and two contrasting forces -- Lane’s play for history and Young’s desire to win its first city title since 2014. Playing on the massive field meant adjusting to the moment.
“We really tried to shrink the field when we were defending and when we got into the attack expand on it,” Mandakas said. “We were pretty good with that. Sometimes we gave them some easy outs where we did not want them to get it to the wing, and we did a good job of regrouping, tracking back and getting the ball in the center.
“They slotted one in, and they made a good finish. It’s a big field, a big moment, a little hotter than normal, and we didn’t necessarily go as deep as we sometimes do.
“The girls left everything on the field.”
Lane is now 11-0-1 since April 3. The Indians’ three losses were early and against ranked teams: no. 7 Loyola; no. 10 Glenbrook South and no. 14 Deerfield. Only the 1-1 draw with Young on April 23rd stands in the way of a perfect run.
The flexibility and multitude of options was the difference.
“We started off the season with six injured players,” Vale said. “I have a [roster] of 21, and I don’t usually take large teams. I usually go with 18, more or less. This year I went with 21, with six players who were injured to start. The idea was to make sure we have a variety of players. Some of them are stronger, some are faster, and some of them have the more accurate shot, and some of them are really great at the cross.
“I wanted to make sure I had a complete team to work together, and I think we have done a nice job with that. The beginning of the season was rough for us, we had to figure it out with some of the kids playing positions they don’t normally play to make the adjustment for the girls who were injured.”
Lane (13-3-2) started its girls program in 1996. The city title is now the 10th in school history, the fourth in Vale’s five-year history as the head coach. The group has eight seniors encompassing a range of experience, from a four-year starter like captain Izzy Oganovich to a first-year player like tenacious forward Rebeca Baciu. Twins Ayla and Ayser Guvener are two-year performers. Keeper Maggie Grossman, defenders Kinuko Mrozik and Leah Finkielsztein are three-year starters.
Oganovich, Jazzmin Jordan and goalkeeper Maggie Grossman became the first players to win four city titles. Oganovich scored the game-winner against Young her sophomore year.
“It’s so amazing just to know I have had such a solid team,” Oganovich said. “It’s the best feeling ever, especially making varsity my freshman year and coming in and having the senior mentors was a big deal, and they really helped me. Knowing I could be the same now for the younger girls is really important to me.
“I am really happy we ended it on a great note.”
Young countered every Lane action and contested everything. The game was as close as possible.
“We battle with them every year, and it’s always a one-goal game,” Mandakas said.
“Unfortunately, for this year, we came up on the other side of it. I feel for my seniors.
This is four years where they have had to see Lane lift the trophy.
“But it also gives a little inspiration for our younger players to work harder in the off-season to do the things that it means to be a champion so we can shine in these moments.”
Starting lineups
Young
GK: Mia Engelmann
D: Kyra Sobel
D: Carson Herman
D: Lauren Ehlers
D: Addie Schlensker
M: Sara Woods
M: Keila Vega
M: Mia Lisanti
F: Sophie Putrim
F: Sarah Heise
F: Olivia Putrim
Lane
GK: Maggie Grossman
D: Izzy Oganovich
D: Samantha Sorich
D: Leah Finkielsztein
D: Zehra Halilic
M: Alana Coffman
M: Camaron Niforos
M: Carlye Makuch
M: Ayla Guvener
F: Grace Dunaway
F: Ayser Guvener
Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Leigh Ann Lindgren, so., M, Lane
Scoring summary
Second half
Lane—Leigh Ann Lindgren (Lisa Rios), 71st minute