Marist has Lenz on win vs. Saint Viator
By Mike Garofola
If you're going to have a highly competitive team, you need a strong center back.
The best are formidable in both strength and guile, but also blessed with the instinct to time tackles, the anticipation to make correct and quick decisions, and a high soccer IQ.
Add an elegance of play with or without the ball and you have a player who stands apart.
Michelle Lenz fits this description to a tee.
The Marist senior will encourage her teammates to perform at peak level Saturday when they travel to meet perennial East Suburban Catholic Conference power Saint Viator in an important league contest at 10 a.m. at Forest View Educational Center in Arlington Heights.
The RedHawks (9-9-2, 3-3-0 in the ESCC) get a chance to play the role of spoiler in their league finale. Saint Viator needs a win to keep pace with rivals Carmel and Benet Academy.
When the shrill of the referee's whistle opens play at Robert Morris Field, the Lions hope to stay on course for a tenth conference championship, and first since they shared the 2014 crown with Benet.
Currently, Carmel stands atop the table with a perfect 5-0-0 record followed closely by Benet at 4-0-1. Saint Viator (8-5-2 overall) will play its final four league games in the next eight days and currently sits tied for fifth with seven points and a 2-0-1 mark.
"I know all of us are looking forward to playing Saint Viator," said Lenz, now in her third season with the big club.
"They have so much soccer tradition, and they are always one of the teams we target to beat at the start of the season. We'll have to come out and play hard for 80 minutes in order to do so."
Lenz enjoyed a cup of tea with the RedHawks varsity during its marvelous postseason run in 2015 when it lifted the first sectional championship trophy in program history. It was the same year her older sister Alex was named all-state for the second-consecutive season.
"Alex was injured right at the end, so I was brought up to take her place on the roster," said Michelle, who has followed in her sister's footsteps to become a top-flight center back for Marist manager Chris Roe.
"Michelle has been our best player all season long, constantly stopping threats, while organizing our backline and helping our young players to get used to the speed of play and physical nature of playing varsity soccer," said Roe.
"We are so young in spots, and that's why I believe we struggled at times. But lately, the chemistry on the field has really come along, and you're seeing it in the way we've played during the last few games."
The RedHawks began the spring at 2-4-2, then bounced back with three-straight impressive results at the PepsiCo Showdown to earn a spot in the finals of the Air Force Bracket against Latin.
"We suffered a little bit of a letdown in that game which led to a 3-2 loss, but I think all of us learned a lot about ourselves in that game and the three others in the tournament," said Lenz.
The RedHawks captain likes what she's seen of late when her club rebounded from a three-game skid against Carmel, Latin and Benet to overwhelm a trio of opponents by a combined 14-3 margin.
"Benet was just better than us on that day, and we were so worn down. We played much of our reserves against Latin the next day," said Roe. "We did hold Benet to one goal for sixty minutes, then we ran out of gas. They smelled blood and buried us."
"We've simplified things since then, and it's resulted in three-straight wins."
Roe is pleased with the progress of his two freshmen: Cece Light and Ciara Bridges, as well as the senior duo of Amanda Rizzo and Ally Corcoran. But it still all comes back to Lenz for the RedHawks manager, who has leaned on his veteran through thick and thin.
"I like the role that I have on this team and to be a part of a program that has been getting better and better with each season," said Lenz.
That pride in RedHawks soccer will stay with Lenz when she leaves next fall to attend Texas A&M University in College Station.
"I looked at Illinois and Purdue, but A&M's engineering program is first class, and the weather is so much better all year long," Lenz said with a laugh.
Lenz, who may consider playing club soccer in college, carries a 5.87 GPA on a 5.0 scale.
The RedHawks will face a Saint Viator club which has quality in its three stars: seniors Anna Johnston and Brinley McVeigh; and junior Payton McDonnell.
Johnston, who will play next fall at the University of New Hampshire, is having an all-state season thus far between the sticks for the Lions. McVeigh, who returned from club to play her final year for Mike Taylor, has been deployed in several positions thus far. The best spot has been at attacking midfielder alongside McDonnell, a starter from the very moment she arrived on campus.
Marist will finish up the regular season on the road at Shepard, then Mother McAuley next week, before preparing for its regional opener at home against Bremen.
Anointed the no. 4 seed in the Lemont Sectional, the Redhawks have to leap over the top three seeds respectively, Lemont, Providence and Oak Forest, in order to advance to the supersectionals.
By Mike Garofola
If you're going to have a highly competitive team, you need a strong center back.
The best are formidable in both strength and guile, but also blessed with the instinct to time tackles, the anticipation to make correct and quick decisions, and a high soccer IQ.
Add an elegance of play with or without the ball and you have a player who stands apart.
Michelle Lenz fits this description to a tee.
The Marist senior will encourage her teammates to perform at peak level Saturday when they travel to meet perennial East Suburban Catholic Conference power Saint Viator in an important league contest at 10 a.m. at Forest View Educational Center in Arlington Heights.
The RedHawks (9-9-2, 3-3-0 in the ESCC) get a chance to play the role of spoiler in their league finale. Saint Viator needs a win to keep pace with rivals Carmel and Benet Academy.
When the shrill of the referee's whistle opens play at Robert Morris Field, the Lions hope to stay on course for a tenth conference championship, and first since they shared the 2014 crown with Benet.
Currently, Carmel stands atop the table with a perfect 5-0-0 record followed closely by Benet at 4-0-1. Saint Viator (8-5-2 overall) will play its final four league games in the next eight days and currently sits tied for fifth with seven points and a 2-0-1 mark.
"I know all of us are looking forward to playing Saint Viator," said Lenz, now in her third season with the big club.
"They have so much soccer tradition, and they are always one of the teams we target to beat at the start of the season. We'll have to come out and play hard for 80 minutes in order to do so."
Lenz enjoyed a cup of tea with the RedHawks varsity during its marvelous postseason run in 2015 when it lifted the first sectional championship trophy in program history. It was the same year her older sister Alex was named all-state for the second-consecutive season.
"Alex was injured right at the end, so I was brought up to take her place on the roster," said Michelle, who has followed in her sister's footsteps to become a top-flight center back for Marist manager Chris Roe.
"Michelle has been our best player all season long, constantly stopping threats, while organizing our backline and helping our young players to get used to the speed of play and physical nature of playing varsity soccer," said Roe.
"We are so young in spots, and that's why I believe we struggled at times. But lately, the chemistry on the field has really come along, and you're seeing it in the way we've played during the last few games."
The RedHawks began the spring at 2-4-2, then bounced back with three-straight impressive results at the PepsiCo Showdown to earn a spot in the finals of the Air Force Bracket against Latin.
"We suffered a little bit of a letdown in that game which led to a 3-2 loss, but I think all of us learned a lot about ourselves in that game and the three others in the tournament," said Lenz.
The RedHawks captain likes what she's seen of late when her club rebounded from a three-game skid against Carmel, Latin and Benet to overwhelm a trio of opponents by a combined 14-3 margin.
"Benet was just better than us on that day, and we were so worn down. We played much of our reserves against Latin the next day," said Roe. "We did hold Benet to one goal for sixty minutes, then we ran out of gas. They smelled blood and buried us."
"We've simplified things since then, and it's resulted in three-straight wins."
Roe is pleased with the progress of his two freshmen: Cece Light and Ciara Bridges, as well as the senior duo of Amanda Rizzo and Ally Corcoran. But it still all comes back to Lenz for the RedHawks manager, who has leaned on his veteran through thick and thin.
"I like the role that I have on this team and to be a part of a program that has been getting better and better with each season," said Lenz.
That pride in RedHawks soccer will stay with Lenz when she leaves next fall to attend Texas A&M University in College Station.
"I looked at Illinois and Purdue, but A&M's engineering program is first class, and the weather is so much better all year long," Lenz said with a laugh.
Lenz, who may consider playing club soccer in college, carries a 5.87 GPA on a 5.0 scale.
The RedHawks will face a Saint Viator club which has quality in its three stars: seniors Anna Johnston and Brinley McVeigh; and junior Payton McDonnell.
Johnston, who will play next fall at the University of New Hampshire, is having an all-state season thus far between the sticks for the Lions. McVeigh, who returned from club to play her final year for Mike Taylor, has been deployed in several positions thus far. The best spot has been at attacking midfielder alongside McDonnell, a starter from the very moment she arrived on campus.
Marist will finish up the regular season on the road at Shepard, then Mother McAuley next week, before preparing for its regional opener at home against Bremen.
Anointed the no. 4 seed in the Lemont Sectional, the Redhawks have to leap over the top three seeds respectively, Lemont, Providence and Oak Forest, in order to advance to the supersectionals.