Lincoln-Way East, Lake Forest
hope to pop in PepsiCo Showdown
1-loss teams meet in opening round
By Steve Millar
After his team won its first seven matches of the season, Lincoln-Way East coach Brian Papa isn’t thrilled about the run the Griffins are on entering the PepsiCo Showdown.
The Griffins open tournament play against 12th-seeded Lake Forest in a first-round game in the Aquafina Bracket at 11:30 a.m. Saturday on Field 2 at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
East , 8-1-2 after a 4-0 win against Bolingbrook on Friday, suffered its only loss of the season Tuesday, a 2-0 setback at the hands of Sandburg. Before that, it played in consecutive 1-1 draws against Joliet Central and Lockport.
“After the way we played to start the season and now the way we played in those three games, it’s like ‘Did we peak already?,” Papa said. “That’s the big question. I certainly hope we haven’t. I know the (PepsiCo) Showdown is going to be a big test for us and hopefully we can get back to playing how we were at the start.”
Papa was disappointed with his team’s inability to finish in the loss to Sandburg.
“We had the run of play, we just never got anything on that third pass (in a sequence),” Papa said. “We had five corners, a free kick from the top of the box, and nothing. We weren’t very dangerous when we had a lot of chances to be dangerous.
“We’ve shown what we’re capable of doing, so when we don’t do it, it’s very frustrating.”
Papa has been pleased, however, with the play of senior captains Jill Kilrea, Lindsey Murphy and Hannah Dolan-Cook, who will all have to be on their game in order for the Griffins to make a run in the PepsiCo Showdown.
“Kilrea was the best player on the field (against Sandburg),” Papa said. “She’s the best player on the field every game we play for the most part. She’s been great. Lindsey Murphy has been playing great. We just need more contributions from other girls now.”
Lake Forest (4-1), the defending Class 2A state champion, won its first-round PepsiCo Showdown game last season against York before falling to Metea Valley in the second round, and finished 2-1-1 in the event.
The Scouts have won three straight since a March 17 loss to Carmel. Juniors Paige Bourne and Jenny McKendry are key players for Lake Forest, which has been strong defensively, posting three shutouts.
hope to pop in PepsiCo Showdown
1-loss teams meet in opening round
By Steve Millar
After his team won its first seven matches of the season, Lincoln-Way East coach Brian Papa isn’t thrilled about the run the Griffins are on entering the PepsiCo Showdown.
The Griffins open tournament play against 12th-seeded Lake Forest in a first-round game in the Aquafina Bracket at 11:30 a.m. Saturday on Field 2 at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.
East , 8-1-2 after a 4-0 win against Bolingbrook on Friday, suffered its only loss of the season Tuesday, a 2-0 setback at the hands of Sandburg. Before that, it played in consecutive 1-1 draws against Joliet Central and Lockport.
“After the way we played to start the season and now the way we played in those three games, it’s like ‘Did we peak already?,” Papa said. “That’s the big question. I certainly hope we haven’t. I know the (PepsiCo) Showdown is going to be a big test for us and hopefully we can get back to playing how we were at the start.”
Papa was disappointed with his team’s inability to finish in the loss to Sandburg.
“We had the run of play, we just never got anything on that third pass (in a sequence),” Papa said. “We had five corners, a free kick from the top of the box, and nothing. We weren’t very dangerous when we had a lot of chances to be dangerous.
“We’ve shown what we’re capable of doing, so when we don’t do it, it’s very frustrating.”
Papa has been pleased, however, with the play of senior captains Jill Kilrea, Lindsey Murphy and Hannah Dolan-Cook, who will all have to be on their game in order for the Griffins to make a run in the PepsiCo Showdown.
“Kilrea was the best player on the field (against Sandburg),” Papa said. “She’s the best player on the field every game we play for the most part. She’s been great. Lindsey Murphy has been playing great. We just need more contributions from other girls now.”
Lake Forest (4-1), the defending Class 2A state champion, won its first-round PepsiCo Showdown game last season against York before falling to Metea Valley in the second round, and finished 2-1-1 in the event.
The Scouts have won three straight since a March 17 loss to Carmel. Juniors Paige Bourne and Jenny McKendry are key players for Lake Forest, which has been strong defensively, posting three shutouts.