Neuqua Valley, Benet serves as litmus test
By Matt Le Cren
At first glance, little will be at stake when Benet visits Neuqua Valley for Monday’s nonconference match.
The teams play in different conferences and different sectionals and the playoff pairings have already been announced. They would not face each other in the postseason until the state semifinals.
“It’s not a must-win game,” Neuqua Valley coach Joe Moreau said.
Still, this is an intriguing match-up that will provide both sides with a chance to show what they’ve got and polish their skills a week before the state tournament begins.
Benet (13-0-0)will try to stay perfect against a team that has three Division I players in junior playmaker Brooke Miller, senior midfielder Katelyn Nardulli (Xavier) and senior goalkeeper Tara Tesmond (Indiana State).
The host Wildcats (5-8-1) have a chance to score a signature win against a Benet team that earned the top seed at the Morton Sectional and is ranked second in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 poll.
“It’s always nice to get a good test before the state tournament,” Benet coach Gerard Oconer said. “So this is another great opportunity for us to see where we’re at at this point in the season.
“We’re just continuing to keep the momentum going, just keep progressing with some of the things we’ve been working on in practice, so we’ll be prepared for the state tournament.”
Moreau likely will use the match to get as many players as possible some playing time. But it doesn’t mean the Wildcats won’t go for the win. They want to build on their 2-1 victory over Waubonsie Valley on Thursday, which avenged an earlier 5-4 overtime loss.
“Against Waubonsie we had three kids come in and contribute in the second half,” Moreau said. “Two of them had played maybe 30 minutes all season.”
Those two were sophomore forward Carli Holobowski and junior midfielder Bailey Herboldt. The third player, sophomore midfielder Anna Yuccas, assisted on Miller’s second goal of the game, which turned out to be the game-winner.
“They’re not expecting to play, and boom they’re in,” Moreau said. “And they were able to produce.”
Miller has scored a team-high eight goals, and Nardulli haS registered four goals and a team-high six assists for Neuqua, which has scuffled at times with injuries and inconsistent play. The Wildcats have lost four one-goal games and were beat 5-0 by Metea Valley three days after a win over Wheaton Academy and two days before the triumph over Waubonsie Valley.
Moreau has tinkered with the lineup, keeping his 4-2-3-1 alignment but moving senior midfielder Arohi Mehta up-top and junior striker Abby Michalczyk to left outside midfielder.
But the biggest challenge for the Wildcats on Monday will be slowing down Benet’s high-powered offense led by fleet-footed wingers Jaimee Cibulka and Anna Casmere.
Tesmond has been spectacular between the pipes, making 76 saves, but has a 2.50 goals-against average. That’s because a leaky defense has been giving up way too many shots.
Senior Maddy McGrath’s return from injury and the play of junior Kassie Salviola have stabilized the situation somewhat, but it is still not a top-flight backline. Moreau said the condensed schedule might have played a role in that.
“We’ve got kids with tired legs,” Moreau said. “We’ve been playing three times a week, which is too much.
“This is the first week where we had only two games, which is nice.”
Fresh legs are a must when you’re playing the likes of Cibulka. The Loyola recruit is having a sensational senior season with 16 goals and six assists. Casmere, a sophomore, has been dangerous on the other wing, producing eight goals and six assists. She had a hat-trick in Thursday’s 5-1 win over Saint Viator.
The Redwings have been especially deadly in the second half, when they often turn tight games into blowouts.
“With the kind of speed that we have, it’s very hard to play with us for 80 minutes,” Oconer said. “So at some point, teams are going to wear down, especially because we’re able to rotate bodies in.”
Benet has a rock-solid midfield with juniors Mariana Pinto (six goals, five assists) and Katie Lewellyan (three goals, five assists) and sophomore Nicole Burns (nine goals, five assists) proving proficient on both offense and defense. Even senior defender Brooke Pullen has marked up the scoresheet with three goals and three assists.
Those are impressive statistics, but it as an intangible quality that most impresses Oconer.
“Probably the thing I’m most pleased about this season is whenever we have adverse situations in games, either giving up the first goal of the game to Naperville Central and Metea or giving up a PK goal against Joliet Catholic to tie it, pretty much within five or 10 minutes after that happened, we came right back and scored a goal and just kept rolling after that,” Oconer said. “The resiliency of this group to not put their heads down and bounce right back.
"I think is the reason we’re undefeated right now.”
By Matt Le Cren
At first glance, little will be at stake when Benet visits Neuqua Valley for Monday’s nonconference match.
The teams play in different conferences and different sectionals and the playoff pairings have already been announced. They would not face each other in the postseason until the state semifinals.
“It’s not a must-win game,” Neuqua Valley coach Joe Moreau said.
Still, this is an intriguing match-up that will provide both sides with a chance to show what they’ve got and polish their skills a week before the state tournament begins.
Benet (13-0-0)will try to stay perfect against a team that has three Division I players in junior playmaker Brooke Miller, senior midfielder Katelyn Nardulli (Xavier) and senior goalkeeper Tara Tesmond (Indiana State).
The host Wildcats (5-8-1) have a chance to score a signature win against a Benet team that earned the top seed at the Morton Sectional and is ranked second in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25 poll.
“It’s always nice to get a good test before the state tournament,” Benet coach Gerard Oconer said. “So this is another great opportunity for us to see where we’re at at this point in the season.
“We’re just continuing to keep the momentum going, just keep progressing with some of the things we’ve been working on in practice, so we’ll be prepared for the state tournament.”
Moreau likely will use the match to get as many players as possible some playing time. But it doesn’t mean the Wildcats won’t go for the win. They want to build on their 2-1 victory over Waubonsie Valley on Thursday, which avenged an earlier 5-4 overtime loss.
“Against Waubonsie we had three kids come in and contribute in the second half,” Moreau said. “Two of them had played maybe 30 minutes all season.”
Those two were sophomore forward Carli Holobowski and junior midfielder Bailey Herboldt. The third player, sophomore midfielder Anna Yuccas, assisted on Miller’s second goal of the game, which turned out to be the game-winner.
“They’re not expecting to play, and boom they’re in,” Moreau said. “And they were able to produce.”
Miller has scored a team-high eight goals, and Nardulli haS registered four goals and a team-high six assists for Neuqua, which has scuffled at times with injuries and inconsistent play. The Wildcats have lost four one-goal games and were beat 5-0 by Metea Valley three days after a win over Wheaton Academy and two days before the triumph over Waubonsie Valley.
Moreau has tinkered with the lineup, keeping his 4-2-3-1 alignment but moving senior midfielder Arohi Mehta up-top and junior striker Abby Michalczyk to left outside midfielder.
But the biggest challenge for the Wildcats on Monday will be slowing down Benet’s high-powered offense led by fleet-footed wingers Jaimee Cibulka and Anna Casmere.
Tesmond has been spectacular between the pipes, making 76 saves, but has a 2.50 goals-against average. That’s because a leaky defense has been giving up way too many shots.
Senior Maddy McGrath’s return from injury and the play of junior Kassie Salviola have stabilized the situation somewhat, but it is still not a top-flight backline. Moreau said the condensed schedule might have played a role in that.
“We’ve got kids with tired legs,” Moreau said. “We’ve been playing three times a week, which is too much.
“This is the first week where we had only two games, which is nice.”
Fresh legs are a must when you’re playing the likes of Cibulka. The Loyola recruit is having a sensational senior season with 16 goals and six assists. Casmere, a sophomore, has been dangerous on the other wing, producing eight goals and six assists. She had a hat-trick in Thursday’s 5-1 win over Saint Viator.
The Redwings have been especially deadly in the second half, when they often turn tight games into blowouts.
“With the kind of speed that we have, it’s very hard to play with us for 80 minutes,” Oconer said. “So at some point, teams are going to wear down, especially because we’re able to rotate bodies in.”
Benet has a rock-solid midfield with juniors Mariana Pinto (six goals, five assists) and Katie Lewellyan (three goals, five assists) and sophomore Nicole Burns (nine goals, five assists) proving proficient on both offense and defense. Even senior defender Brooke Pullen has marked up the scoresheet with three goals and three assists.
Those are impressive statistics, but it as an intangible quality that most impresses Oconer.
“Probably the thing I’m most pleased about this season is whenever we have adverse situations in games, either giving up the first goal of the game to Naperville Central and Metea or giving up a PK goal against Joliet Catholic to tie it, pretty much within five or 10 minutes after that happened, we came right back and scored a goal and just kept rolling after that,” Oconer said. “The resiliency of this group to not put their heads down and bounce right back.
"I think is the reason we’re undefeated right now.”