Notebook: Lincoln-Way Central/Evanston
By Curt Herron
Knights post best district finish since school split
Lincoln-Way Central's third place finish in Class 3A for Knights coach and alumnus Sean Fahey was not only the first trophy won by the program since 2007, but it was also the best showing by a school in Lincoln-Way High School District 210 since it first split into directional schools 20 years ago.
After Lincoln-Way took second place in both 1999 and 2000 in the one-class system, three teams from the district have finished fourth at state. They were Lincoln-Way Central in 2005 and 2007, and the since-closed Lincoln-Way North in 2014.
Lincoln-Way East qualified for the state finals in 2004 and 2006 but fell one win shy of placing. Lincoln-Way West's sectional title in 2017 is its best state tournament finish.
Knights hit record book for shutouts
When Evanston's Jocelyn Leigh scored a goal in the 78th minute of the Class 3A third place match, she left Lincoln-Way Central with 21 shutouts on the season. That's more than okay, because it still ranks as one of the stingiest campaigns ever.
The Knights allowed just five goals heading into the final weekend but yielded two to Metea Valley and one to Evanston for a total of eight against junior goalie Alexa Hadley.
The 21 shutouts ranks tied for 11th in state history with St. Charles (1999) and New Trier (2005). New Trier's 2004 group holds the record with 28 in 30 matches.
Barrington didn't allow a goal last weekend but fell in a shootout to Metea Valley in the title match. That gave the Fillies 20 shutouts, which left them in a tie for 15th place with nine other squads from six different schools. Barrington allowed only six goals this season.
Triad, the Class AA champion, shut out Benet 1-0 in the title match to join the group 21 clean-sheets. The Knights also allowed just six goals.
Evanston happy with state stop
When a school has a great athletic heritage, 128 state trophies, 35 championships and 43 second place finishes, it might seem that capturing a fourth place trophy might not be that big of a deal.
But don't tell that to the 13 seniors on Evanston who helped lead their program to capture an IHSA prize for the first time in 20 years, and just the second earned in the sport. The other was championship hardware from 2002.
The bakers’ dozen of graduates includes six players who were on the varsity since they were freshmen: midfielder Nahla Dominguez; defenders Lucinda Lindland, Carly Menocal and Sarah Sollinger; and forwards Nadia VandenBerg and Brealyn Viamille. The group has helped raise the bar for a program that posted a 51-13-6 record from 2019 through this season for fifth-year coach Stacy Salgado, whose teams are 80-27-12 in her tenure as Wildkits coach.
Joining the senior ranks this season were: defenders Shea Ackman, Sofia Borden Gomez and Ellie Oifl forwards Sofia Dailey and Brigid Zoltan; and midfielders Stella Tobin and Tate Lucas. The team's four captains were Dominguez, Menocal, Sollinger and Viamille.
While Evanston (21-4-1) fell short of equaling the school’s championship run headed by coach Marx Succes, a team that featured their head coach on the roster, they continued the run of now eight-straight regional titles. Then they defeated state powerhouse New Trier 2-1 in the sectional semifinals and the Loyola's strong program 5-1 for their second sectional title.
The Wildkits clinched their spot in this past weekend's IHSA Class 3A finals at North Central College in Naperville with a 2-0 win in overtime over Libertyville in the New Trier Supersectional to join Barrington, Lincoln-Way Central and Metea Valley in the Final Four. Metea Valley became the first school in the state's largest class to win a title in their initial Final Four since Evanston 20 years ago.
Despite falling 2-0 in the semifinals to Barrington and then dropping a 2-1 decision to Lincoln-Way Central in the third place match, the Wildkits hope their program is now in a position where they won't have to wait another 20 years to claim their next big trophy.
"I just feel like this season that a lot of us really clicked," Dominguez said. "Six of us had been here for four years and that's a lot for one class. Every other class has been part of the program, and we've been really welcoming and accepting so our team chemistry is amazing.
"Even though some of our teammates were injured, the people who stepped in, stepped up. And even though things didn't go our way in these past two games, I felt like a lot of us had the heart to play, and we put it all out there. Just saying that we got here for the first time in 20 years is something to be proud of."
The eight-straight regional titles tied a school-best accomplished from 2002-2009. This was the school's third sectional championship; the others came in 2001-02.
Gaining revenge over New Trier and Loyola was sweet for the Wildkits.
The Trevians had beaten them in sectional finals in 2016 and 2021 and also ended their season in 2018 in the sectional semifinals.
Loyola ended Evanston seasons in 2014, 2015 and 2017 in the sectional semifinals. The Wildkits got the better of the Ramblers in that same round in 2016 and 2021.
Sollinger got injured in the sectional finals match against Loyola and had to watch her team's final three matches from the sidelines.
"There's a reason that I'm crying," Sollinger said. "It's sad to leave this place, because it's a great program with great people. We're sad now, but I'm so proud that we made it so far. We got fourth and that's something huge, because our school hasn't done that in a really long time.
"I liked the people. Everybody just works so hard, and everybody tries. We had a really strong senior presence on this team since there are 13 of us. And I think that having people who have been in these big games and knew what to do helped. We didn't have to push each other, everybody was already pushing themselves."
While the Wilkits will miss their seniors, the future looks bright with some of their leading scorers -- sophomore forward Jocelyn Leigh, sophomore midfielder Sydney Ross, and junior midfielder Adriana Merriam -- returning. Junior keeper Ariel Kite, who was injured in the semnifinal, will also return. Kite, Leigh and Ross were all-Central Suburban League South Division picks along with Menocal, Oif and Sollinger.
Prior to the last weekend, the Wildkits had only lost to one Illinois team, Naperville North, and played one draw against a team from this state, Young. Being able to win two matches apiece against programs like New Trier, Loyola and Libertyville this season, and claiming a win over a Deerfield team that was third in Class AA, makes this season one that will be long remembered on the North Shore.
"Just getting down here was a battle," said Salgado, who was assisted by Franz Calixte, Ryan Berkley and Harold Bailey. "Starting from our regionals all the way to our sectionals and supersectional, we had to play some really good teams. It's always a hard road. The girls showed up, and they did really well.
"The outcome didn't go our way this weekend, since we didn't really play as strong as we've played in the past. That's a little bit unfortunate, but that's soccer for you. It was a great group of seniors, and I think that they kind of instilled the culture that we expect from this program. They've really taught the younger players what it takes to get here.
"It was a fun year, and it was a good ride. It's hard to play that many games back-to-back. Playing so many challenging teams in a couple of weeks takes a toll, and unfortunately we suffered a few injuries. I'm really excited with what the underclassmen can do now from what they've learned."
Lincoln-Way Central wins with youth
Not many teams had a roster this season that included a total of 11 freshmen and sophomores and just three seniors. But one that did finished third in the state. Lincoln-Way Central got things done with a heavy influx of youth. In contrast to the other teams in the Class 3A Final Four: Metea Valley had seven (five sophs); Barrington had five (four sophomores); and Evanston had four (three sophs).
As far as seniors on the rosters go, Benet was the only comparable team playing on the final weekend of the season. The Class AA runnerup had four members of the Class of '22.
The senior players on Lincoln-Way Central were defender Grace Grundhofer and midfielders Jenni Andjelic and Sarah Borsellino. Two of the Knights top scorers figure to return next season: now-senior defender Christine Erdman and now-sophomore forward Madi Watt.
By Curt Herron
Knights post best district finish since school split
Lincoln-Way Central's third place finish in Class 3A for Knights coach and alumnus Sean Fahey was not only the first trophy won by the program since 2007, but it was also the best showing by a school in Lincoln-Way High School District 210 since it first split into directional schools 20 years ago.
After Lincoln-Way took second place in both 1999 and 2000 in the one-class system, three teams from the district have finished fourth at state. They were Lincoln-Way Central in 2005 and 2007, and the since-closed Lincoln-Way North in 2014.
Lincoln-Way East qualified for the state finals in 2004 and 2006 but fell one win shy of placing. Lincoln-Way West's sectional title in 2017 is its best state tournament finish.
Knights hit record book for shutouts
When Evanston's Jocelyn Leigh scored a goal in the 78th minute of the Class 3A third place match, she left Lincoln-Way Central with 21 shutouts on the season. That's more than okay, because it still ranks as one of the stingiest campaigns ever.
The Knights allowed just five goals heading into the final weekend but yielded two to Metea Valley and one to Evanston for a total of eight against junior goalie Alexa Hadley.
The 21 shutouts ranks tied for 11th in state history with St. Charles (1999) and New Trier (2005). New Trier's 2004 group holds the record with 28 in 30 matches.
Barrington didn't allow a goal last weekend but fell in a shootout to Metea Valley in the title match. That gave the Fillies 20 shutouts, which left them in a tie for 15th place with nine other squads from six different schools. Barrington allowed only six goals this season.
Triad, the Class AA champion, shut out Benet 1-0 in the title match to join the group 21 clean-sheets. The Knights also allowed just six goals.
Evanston happy with state stop
When a school has a great athletic heritage, 128 state trophies, 35 championships and 43 second place finishes, it might seem that capturing a fourth place trophy might not be that big of a deal.
But don't tell that to the 13 seniors on Evanston who helped lead their program to capture an IHSA prize for the first time in 20 years, and just the second earned in the sport. The other was championship hardware from 2002.
The bakers’ dozen of graduates includes six players who were on the varsity since they were freshmen: midfielder Nahla Dominguez; defenders Lucinda Lindland, Carly Menocal and Sarah Sollinger; and forwards Nadia VandenBerg and Brealyn Viamille. The group has helped raise the bar for a program that posted a 51-13-6 record from 2019 through this season for fifth-year coach Stacy Salgado, whose teams are 80-27-12 in her tenure as Wildkits coach.
Joining the senior ranks this season were: defenders Shea Ackman, Sofia Borden Gomez and Ellie Oifl forwards Sofia Dailey and Brigid Zoltan; and midfielders Stella Tobin and Tate Lucas. The team's four captains were Dominguez, Menocal, Sollinger and Viamille.
While Evanston (21-4-1) fell short of equaling the school’s championship run headed by coach Marx Succes, a team that featured their head coach on the roster, they continued the run of now eight-straight regional titles. Then they defeated state powerhouse New Trier 2-1 in the sectional semifinals and the Loyola's strong program 5-1 for their second sectional title.
The Wildkits clinched their spot in this past weekend's IHSA Class 3A finals at North Central College in Naperville with a 2-0 win in overtime over Libertyville in the New Trier Supersectional to join Barrington, Lincoln-Way Central and Metea Valley in the Final Four. Metea Valley became the first school in the state's largest class to win a title in their initial Final Four since Evanston 20 years ago.
Despite falling 2-0 in the semifinals to Barrington and then dropping a 2-1 decision to Lincoln-Way Central in the third place match, the Wildkits hope their program is now in a position where they won't have to wait another 20 years to claim their next big trophy.
"I just feel like this season that a lot of us really clicked," Dominguez said. "Six of us had been here for four years and that's a lot for one class. Every other class has been part of the program, and we've been really welcoming and accepting so our team chemistry is amazing.
"Even though some of our teammates were injured, the people who stepped in, stepped up. And even though things didn't go our way in these past two games, I felt like a lot of us had the heart to play, and we put it all out there. Just saying that we got here for the first time in 20 years is something to be proud of."
The eight-straight regional titles tied a school-best accomplished from 2002-2009. This was the school's third sectional championship; the others came in 2001-02.
Gaining revenge over New Trier and Loyola was sweet for the Wildkits.
The Trevians had beaten them in sectional finals in 2016 and 2021 and also ended their season in 2018 in the sectional semifinals.
Loyola ended Evanston seasons in 2014, 2015 and 2017 in the sectional semifinals. The Wildkits got the better of the Ramblers in that same round in 2016 and 2021.
Sollinger got injured in the sectional finals match against Loyola and had to watch her team's final three matches from the sidelines.
"There's a reason that I'm crying," Sollinger said. "It's sad to leave this place, because it's a great program with great people. We're sad now, but I'm so proud that we made it so far. We got fourth and that's something huge, because our school hasn't done that in a really long time.
"I liked the people. Everybody just works so hard, and everybody tries. We had a really strong senior presence on this team since there are 13 of us. And I think that having people who have been in these big games and knew what to do helped. We didn't have to push each other, everybody was already pushing themselves."
While the Wilkits will miss their seniors, the future looks bright with some of their leading scorers -- sophomore forward Jocelyn Leigh, sophomore midfielder Sydney Ross, and junior midfielder Adriana Merriam -- returning. Junior keeper Ariel Kite, who was injured in the semnifinal, will also return. Kite, Leigh and Ross were all-Central Suburban League South Division picks along with Menocal, Oif and Sollinger.
Prior to the last weekend, the Wildkits had only lost to one Illinois team, Naperville North, and played one draw against a team from this state, Young. Being able to win two matches apiece against programs like New Trier, Loyola and Libertyville this season, and claiming a win over a Deerfield team that was third in Class AA, makes this season one that will be long remembered on the North Shore.
"Just getting down here was a battle," said Salgado, who was assisted by Franz Calixte, Ryan Berkley and Harold Bailey. "Starting from our regionals all the way to our sectionals and supersectional, we had to play some really good teams. It's always a hard road. The girls showed up, and they did really well.
"The outcome didn't go our way this weekend, since we didn't really play as strong as we've played in the past. That's a little bit unfortunate, but that's soccer for you. It was a great group of seniors, and I think that they kind of instilled the culture that we expect from this program. They've really taught the younger players what it takes to get here.
"It was a fun year, and it was a good ride. It's hard to play that many games back-to-back. Playing so many challenging teams in a couple of weeks takes a toll, and unfortunately we suffered a few injuries. I'm really excited with what the underclassmen can do now from what they've learned."
Lincoln-Way Central wins with youth
Not many teams had a roster this season that included a total of 11 freshmen and sophomores and just three seniors. But one that did finished third in the state. Lincoln-Way Central got things done with a heavy influx of youth. In contrast to the other teams in the Class 3A Final Four: Metea Valley had seven (five sophs); Barrington had five (four sophomores); and Evanston had four (three sophs).
As far as seniors on the rosters go, Benet was the only comparable team playing on the final weekend of the season. The Class AA runnerup had four members of the Class of '22.
The senior players on Lincoln-Way Central were defender Grace Grundhofer and midfielders Jenni Andjelic and Sarah Borsellino. Two of the Knights top scorers figure to return next season: now-senior defender Christine Erdman and now-sophomore forward Madi Watt.