Chicagoland Soccer Top 25
By Patrick Z. McGavin
The eight-week regular season for the AA and 3A classes is officially in the books.
We are now in the tournament phase among all three classes.
It is virtually impossible to fully assess the ramifications of the pandemic year on the boys’ soccer season.
Games matter in every sport, results count and create their own hierarchy and standards of excellence.
The first boys state tournament since 2019 is now upon is. The knock-out event is a wholly different beast. Upsets are inevitable; have a bad night and you are done.
In the girls spring season, it was more difficult to prognosticate the tournament because of the absence of in-season tournaments.
The now concluded boys’ regular season, with the return to in-season multi-team events, both made things clearer and largely played out according to form.
The small-school Class A field just concluded its regional rounds, and now moves to the sectionals.
The Class AA and 3A fields conducted some play-in games last Friday and Saturday. Those tournaments kick into high gear starting Tuesday.
University (Chicago), Benet and West Chicago are the reigning state champions in Class A, AA and 3A, respectively. However, University and Benet have each jumped up a class.
Look for southern powerhouse Althoff, ranked no. 3 in the final Illinois 10 poll, to rank as a favorite to reach the Class A title game at EastSide Centre in East Peoria on October 30.
A significant small-school result to track is the possible showdown of Wheaton Academy and Genoa-Kingston for the sectional title at Hinckley Big-Rock on October 23.
Seventeenth-ranked Wheaton Academy is the only Class A team in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. The Warriors have played mostly Class AA and Class 3A schools.
Genoa-Kingston features one of the greatest one-two scoring punches in state history with senior Eagan Reams and junior Jorge Leon.
Reams has 46 goals and 24 assists; Leon has 42 goals and 17 assists. The Cogs (20-1-0) have averaged nearly seven goals a game this season.
Things always have a way of shaking out. Past performance is not always an accurate predictor of future results. This season has marked a glorious, nearly full return for the high school game.
In the comment section below, the seeds refer to the Class 3A tournament unless otherwise specified. Metea Valley, who posted a strong win over Naperville Central on Tuesday, enters the poll this week.
The Mustangs, interestingly, are the lowest-seeded team, at no. 7, to be represented in the final regular season poll. As stated before, the poll is a conversation-starter; let the arguments begin.
Most Class 3A sectionals have multiple representatives in this final poll. Collinsville is the exception. It has only a few Chicago-based programs, though Joliet West and Minooka have each spent time in the poll or been listed in honorable mention during the season.
The state championships of the Class AA and 3A tournaments unfold at Hoffman Estates on the weekend of Nov. 5 and 6.
Now things get even more interesting.
Editor's note: this is the last Top 25 of the season. The Final 50 state-wide poll will be published after the Class AA and Class 3A finals weekend.
By Patrick Z. McGavin
The eight-week regular season for the AA and 3A classes is officially in the books.
We are now in the tournament phase among all three classes.
It is virtually impossible to fully assess the ramifications of the pandemic year on the boys’ soccer season.
Games matter in every sport, results count and create their own hierarchy and standards of excellence.
The first boys state tournament since 2019 is now upon is. The knock-out event is a wholly different beast. Upsets are inevitable; have a bad night and you are done.
In the girls spring season, it was more difficult to prognosticate the tournament because of the absence of in-season tournaments.
The now concluded boys’ regular season, with the return to in-season multi-team events, both made things clearer and largely played out according to form.
The small-school Class A field just concluded its regional rounds, and now moves to the sectionals.
The Class AA and 3A fields conducted some play-in games last Friday and Saturday. Those tournaments kick into high gear starting Tuesday.
University (Chicago), Benet and West Chicago are the reigning state champions in Class A, AA and 3A, respectively. However, University and Benet have each jumped up a class.
Look for southern powerhouse Althoff, ranked no. 3 in the final Illinois 10 poll, to rank as a favorite to reach the Class A title game at EastSide Centre in East Peoria on October 30.
A significant small-school result to track is the possible showdown of Wheaton Academy and Genoa-Kingston for the sectional title at Hinckley Big-Rock on October 23.
Seventeenth-ranked Wheaton Academy is the only Class A team in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25. The Warriors have played mostly Class AA and Class 3A schools.
Genoa-Kingston features one of the greatest one-two scoring punches in state history with senior Eagan Reams and junior Jorge Leon.
Reams has 46 goals and 24 assists; Leon has 42 goals and 17 assists. The Cogs (20-1-0) have averaged nearly seven goals a game this season.
Things always have a way of shaking out. Past performance is not always an accurate predictor of future results. This season has marked a glorious, nearly full return for the high school game.
In the comment section below, the seeds refer to the Class 3A tournament unless otherwise specified. Metea Valley, who posted a strong win over Naperville Central on Tuesday, enters the poll this week.
The Mustangs, interestingly, are the lowest-seeded team, at no. 7, to be represented in the final regular season poll. As stated before, the poll is a conversation-starter; let the arguments begin.
Most Class 3A sectionals have multiple representatives in this final poll. Collinsville is the exception. It has only a few Chicago-based programs, though Joliet West and Minooka have each spent time in the poll or been listed in honorable mention during the season.
The state championships of the Class AA and 3A tournaments unfold at Hoffman Estates on the weekend of Nov. 5 and 6.
Now things get even more interesting.
Editor's note: this is the last Top 25 of the season. The Final 50 state-wide poll will be published after the Class AA and Class 3A finals weekend.
Rk | LW | Team | W | L | T | Comment |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | New Trier | 15 | 1 | 1 | No. 2 seed at own sectional |
2 | 2 | Morton | 16 | 1 | 3 | Top seed at own sectional |
3 | 3 | Barrington | 13 | 3 | 2 | No. 2 seed at own sectional |
4 | 4 | Fremd | 15 | 2 | 1 | Top-seed at Barrington |
5 | 6 | Naperville N | 17 | 5 | 2 | Top seed at Plainfield North |
6 | 5 | Evanston | 13 | 2 | 4 | Top seed at New Trier |
7 | 7 | OPRF | 15 | 3 | 0 | No. 3 seed at New Trier |
8 | 8 | Lyons | 15 | 5 | 1 | No. 3 seed at Morton |
9 | 9 | York | 16 | 2 | 0 | Top seed at Addison Trail |
10 | 10 | Notre Dame | 19 | 1 | 2 | Top seed at AA Noble Sectional |
11 | 12 | Loyola | 10 | 3 | 2 | No. 4 seed at New Trier |
12 | 14 | Benet | 12 | 5 | 1 | No. 2 seed at Morton |
13 | 13 | Lake Zurich | 12 | 2 | 4 | No. 3 seed at Barrington |
14 | 15 | LW Central | 15 | 1 | 2 | Top seed at Sandburg |
15 | 16 | Lockport | 14 | 1 | 1 | No. 2 seed at Sandburg |
16 | 11 | St. Charles E | 15 | 4 | 0 | No. 2 seed at Addison Trail |
17 | 17 | Wheaton A | 14 | 4 | 1 | Top-subsectional seed at A HBR sectional |
18 | 25 | Payton | 18 | 1 | 3 | Top seed at AA St. Laurence |
19 | 20 | Oswego E | 15 | 4 | 1 | No. 2 seed at Plainfield North |
20 | 19 | Rolling Meadows | 12 | 3 | 3 | No. 4 seed at Fremd |
21 | HM | Huntley | 16 | 2 | 2 | No. 2 seed at own sectional |
22 | 21 | CL South | 15 | 3 | 2 | Top seed at AA Vernon Hills |
23 | 24 | Mount Carmel | 12 | 3 | 1 | No. 5 seed at Morton |
24 | 20 | Warren | 12 | 4 | 4 | No. 6 seed at Barrington |
25 | NR | Metea Valley | 10 | 7 | 2 | No. 7 seed at Plainfield North |
Look out for: Naperville Central, Hinsdale Central, Stevenson, Glenbrook South, Niles North, West Aurora, East Aurora, West Chicago, Plainfield East, Romeoville, Glenbrook North, Plainfield North, Timothy, Elk Grove, Libertyville
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