Geneva seeks return to win
column, Batavia stands in way
Injury-plagued hosts welcome Bulldogs in DuKane action
By Chris Walker
Geneva has been battling injuries, which has made it difficult for the Vikings to find success lately. On the flipside, Batavia has been playing its best soccer as of late.
What will happen when those two teams meet again on Thursday at Geneva’s Burgess Field in DuKane Conference play? Stop by at 7 p.m. to see how things unfold.
“We beat Batavia the first-time around (3-2 May 1), but the wind was atrocious,” Vikings coach Megan Owens said. “We are looking forward to playing them without tornado-like winds. We are a lot more confident than the first time we played them and have learned the importance of hard work and leadership on the field. Our team chemistry and energy has improved as well.”
Geneva (7-6-0, 6-5-0) has lost four-straight games, dropping decisions to Wheaton Warrenville South, Bartlett, no. 11 St. Charles North and top-ranked St. Charles East.
Batavia (5-9-0, 4-7-0) won three in a row before dropping a tough 1-0 DuKane Conference game against Wheaton Warrenville South on Tuesday evening.
“With four classes representing on the varsity for this weird year, it is taking a little bit of time getting them up to speed,” Bulldogs coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I think you can’t take a ton of stock into (beating some teams), but it was a confidence-builder beating Metea Valley (2-1 Saturday), which capped a pretty good week and provided a nice boost.”
Batavia fell 4-1 to Wheaton Warrenville South on April 29 but battled them down to the wire 48 hours ago. The progress the team continues to make is notable, and they’ll look to do the same tonight in their rematch against Geneva.
“It was a tight match (against Wheaton Warrenville South), and I wish the result was better but we’re improving,” Gianfrancesco said. “In the whole grand scheme of things these are all practices in my opinion, opportunities to build confidence for the playoffs.”
Both squads are young. Since last year was a wash, even the most experienced teams in the state are unlike those that came before them; they too are missing an entire season of experience from their respective resumes. But the young players are learning about varsity soccer by constantly being on the field this spring.
“While the tight set up of the schedule isn’t as tight as the boys it’s still three games a week, and I’ve got six freshmen. I haven’t taken in six in 10 years,” Gianfrancesco said. “Them getting acclimated to playing, especially playing three games a week, and me being cognizant of the lineup and depth and rest, we’re really shooting for playoff time. I’ve been saying it for years we’ve got the toughest sectional in the state in my opinion.”
And before they get there the Bulldogs will finish up conference play next week against St. Charles East and St. Charles North, two teams that shut them out earlier this season.
It appears that the Bulldogs are catching Geneva while its vulnerable. But Geneva has shown they can compete despite injuries that have left shorthanded.
“We started off going 7-2-0 and beat some top-quality teams like St. Charles North, Wheaton North and Batavia,” Owens said. “Due to the grind of three games a week every week, we have picked up some injuries that have left us a little shorthanded and required us to pull up some JV players over the past week. We should be back at full strength for the playoffs though. We have been playing well, although struggle to be focused on Saturday games and sometimes lack consistency in our play/intensity due to our youth.”
The Vikings even scored a goal against St. Charles East, something only three teams have been able to accomplish this spring.
“Aside from St. Charles East, most of our games we have lost have been very close,” Owens said. “Overall, we are handling the grind of the season very well. It's been tough with injuries, but my players have done a great job of adjusting to new lineups and changes due to players being out injured or quarantined. Overall, this season has been a lot of fun.”
A sweep of the rival Bulldogs would be even more fun, but Batavia has other plans.
column, Batavia stands in way
Injury-plagued hosts welcome Bulldogs in DuKane action
By Chris Walker
Geneva has been battling injuries, which has made it difficult for the Vikings to find success lately. On the flipside, Batavia has been playing its best soccer as of late.
What will happen when those two teams meet again on Thursday at Geneva’s Burgess Field in DuKane Conference play? Stop by at 7 p.m. to see how things unfold.
“We beat Batavia the first-time around (3-2 May 1), but the wind was atrocious,” Vikings coach Megan Owens said. “We are looking forward to playing them without tornado-like winds. We are a lot more confident than the first time we played them and have learned the importance of hard work and leadership on the field. Our team chemistry and energy has improved as well.”
Geneva (7-6-0, 6-5-0) has lost four-straight games, dropping decisions to Wheaton Warrenville South, Bartlett, no. 11 St. Charles North and top-ranked St. Charles East.
Batavia (5-9-0, 4-7-0) won three in a row before dropping a tough 1-0 DuKane Conference game against Wheaton Warrenville South on Tuesday evening.
“With four classes representing on the varsity for this weird year, it is taking a little bit of time getting them up to speed,” Bulldogs coach Mark Gianfrancesco said. “I think you can’t take a ton of stock into (beating some teams), but it was a confidence-builder beating Metea Valley (2-1 Saturday), which capped a pretty good week and provided a nice boost.”
Batavia fell 4-1 to Wheaton Warrenville South on April 29 but battled them down to the wire 48 hours ago. The progress the team continues to make is notable, and they’ll look to do the same tonight in their rematch against Geneva.
“It was a tight match (against Wheaton Warrenville South), and I wish the result was better but we’re improving,” Gianfrancesco said. “In the whole grand scheme of things these are all practices in my opinion, opportunities to build confidence for the playoffs.”
Both squads are young. Since last year was a wash, even the most experienced teams in the state are unlike those that came before them; they too are missing an entire season of experience from their respective resumes. But the young players are learning about varsity soccer by constantly being on the field this spring.
“While the tight set up of the schedule isn’t as tight as the boys it’s still three games a week, and I’ve got six freshmen. I haven’t taken in six in 10 years,” Gianfrancesco said. “Them getting acclimated to playing, especially playing three games a week, and me being cognizant of the lineup and depth and rest, we’re really shooting for playoff time. I’ve been saying it for years we’ve got the toughest sectional in the state in my opinion.”
And before they get there the Bulldogs will finish up conference play next week against St. Charles East and St. Charles North, two teams that shut them out earlier this season.
It appears that the Bulldogs are catching Geneva while its vulnerable. But Geneva has shown they can compete despite injuries that have left shorthanded.
“We started off going 7-2-0 and beat some top-quality teams like St. Charles North, Wheaton North and Batavia,” Owens said. “Due to the grind of three games a week every week, we have picked up some injuries that have left us a little shorthanded and required us to pull up some JV players over the past week. We should be back at full strength for the playoffs though. We have been playing well, although struggle to be focused on Saturday games and sometimes lack consistency in our play/intensity due to our youth.”
The Vikings even scored a goal against St. Charles East, something only three teams have been able to accomplish this spring.
“Aside from St. Charles East, most of our games we have lost have been very close,” Owens said. “Overall, we are handling the grind of the season very well. It's been tough with injuries, but my players have done a great job of adjusting to new lineups and changes due to players being out injured or quarantined. Overall, this season has been a lot of fun.”
A sweep of the rival Bulldogs would be even more fun, but Batavia has other plans.