Batavia, Wheaton N. meet in marquee matchup of DuKane opening night
By Bob Narang
Wheaton North veteran girls soccer coach Tim McEvilly is not afraid of high expectations.
With a team full of talented and diverse attackers, the Falcons are primed to stamp themselves as a team to beat in the DuKane Conference, McEvilly said.
“We're pretty confident coming into this season,” he said. “We can be dangerous offensively. We have a large number of offensive-minded, technical and fast players. You don’t get blessed with that very often on the high school level. We have four girls on this team who could be double-digit scorers.”
So far the Falcons, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, have lived up to McEvilly’s preseason predictions. The Falcons defeated Metea Valley 4-1 in their opener and beat West Chicago 7-0 Sunday.
The Falcons (2-0-0) open their DuKane Conference season hosting Batavia (0-1-0) for at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Rexilius Field. McEvilly said he has the upmost respect for Bulldogs coach Mark Gianfrancesco and his program.
“I don’t know a lot about them now, but they're always well prepared,” McEvilly said. “I’ve got four girls who return who have played high school varsity soccer. He also has a younger roster. I know his kids will be organized and put a lot of pressure on the ball quickly. As a team, you have to be moving as a unit or Batavia will take you part.”
McEvilly said newcomer Julia Simon, a Louisville recruit, joins a talented group of returnees that includes Kayla Shebar (Purdue Fort Wayne signee), Olivia Moreno and Macy Hutchinson
“Kayla is about as fast as a player that I’ve coached,” he said. “She plays with an offensive focus. She gets behind defenders and has great technical ability. She’s got more tools in the toolbox now. Olivia scored about 15 goals in her freshman year. She doesn’t have much diversity. She has one purpose: to get behind people and score goals. She’s very talented.
“Macy is athletic and can distribute and score in the air and from distance. This is Julia’s first year with us. She played club the last three years. She’s one of the top forwards in the state of Illinois, but we’re playing her as an attacking midfielder. She can create opportunities for other people and herself. She’s a great addition to our team. She’s fun to watch. She will open space for the other three players.”
The Bulldogs, who were ranked 35th in the First 50 state-wide poll, dropped their season opener to then no. 11 Neuqua Valley on two late goals Saturday. Gianfrancesco said he saw some encouraging signs in the defeat.
“I thought we did a nice job acclimating to the game and matching their physicality and intensity,” he said. “We would like to continue with that and begin to connect more passes to create more chances on goal. Wheaton North looks to be a physical group. They have several players that are good one versus one and like to run in behind. We will need to defend well as a team and keep connected. If we can attack their back four and finish our chances, we should have some success.”
Gianfrancesco said he’s expecting senior midfielder Ashley Whelpley, sophomore midfielder Riley DiBiase and junior defender Mia Anzalone to be leaders and key contributors this season.
“Ashley has a high work rate and can anchor our middle,” he said. “Riley is a quality distributor who can score goals. Mia is leading our backline and keeps us organized as a unit.
“We have a tremendous mix between all four grade levels. We have to keep working hard to build relationships, on and off the field, to create a cohesive unit to compete with some of the best teams in the state. As the season progresses, those relationships and the understanding of what it takes to perform at the varsity level should provide a springboard to building toward the state series.”
By Bob Narang
Wheaton North veteran girls soccer coach Tim McEvilly is not afraid of high expectations.
With a team full of talented and diverse attackers, the Falcons are primed to stamp themselves as a team to beat in the DuKane Conference, McEvilly said.
“We're pretty confident coming into this season,” he said. “We can be dangerous offensively. We have a large number of offensive-minded, technical and fast players. You don’t get blessed with that very often on the high school level. We have four girls on this team who could be double-digit scorers.”
So far the Falcons, ranked 17th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, have lived up to McEvilly’s preseason predictions. The Falcons defeated Metea Valley 4-1 in their opener and beat West Chicago 7-0 Sunday.
The Falcons (2-0-0) open their DuKane Conference season hosting Batavia (0-1-0) for at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Rexilius Field. McEvilly said he has the upmost respect for Bulldogs coach Mark Gianfrancesco and his program.
“I don’t know a lot about them now, but they're always well prepared,” McEvilly said. “I’ve got four girls who return who have played high school varsity soccer. He also has a younger roster. I know his kids will be organized and put a lot of pressure on the ball quickly. As a team, you have to be moving as a unit or Batavia will take you part.”
McEvilly said newcomer Julia Simon, a Louisville recruit, joins a talented group of returnees that includes Kayla Shebar (Purdue Fort Wayne signee), Olivia Moreno and Macy Hutchinson
“Kayla is about as fast as a player that I’ve coached,” he said. “She plays with an offensive focus. She gets behind defenders and has great technical ability. She’s got more tools in the toolbox now. Olivia scored about 15 goals in her freshman year. She doesn’t have much diversity. She has one purpose: to get behind people and score goals. She’s very talented.
“Macy is athletic and can distribute and score in the air and from distance. This is Julia’s first year with us. She played club the last three years. She’s one of the top forwards in the state of Illinois, but we’re playing her as an attacking midfielder. She can create opportunities for other people and herself. She’s a great addition to our team. She’s fun to watch. She will open space for the other three players.”
The Bulldogs, who were ranked 35th in the First 50 state-wide poll, dropped their season opener to then no. 11 Neuqua Valley on two late goals Saturday. Gianfrancesco said he saw some encouraging signs in the defeat.
“I thought we did a nice job acclimating to the game and matching their physicality and intensity,” he said. “We would like to continue with that and begin to connect more passes to create more chances on goal. Wheaton North looks to be a physical group. They have several players that are good one versus one and like to run in behind. We will need to defend well as a team and keep connected. If we can attack their back four and finish our chances, we should have some success.”
Gianfrancesco said he’s expecting senior midfielder Ashley Whelpley, sophomore midfielder Riley DiBiase and junior defender Mia Anzalone to be leaders and key contributors this season.
“Ashley has a high work rate and can anchor our middle,” he said. “Riley is a quality distributor who can score goals. Mia is leading our backline and keeps us organized as a unit.
“We have a tremendous mix between all four grade levels. We have to keep working hard to build relationships, on and off the field, to create a cohesive unit to compete with some of the best teams in the state. As the season progresses, those relationships and the understanding of what it takes to perform at the varsity level should provide a springboard to building toward the state series.”