For many reasons, Naperville Central, Naperville North set to play one for the ages
By Matt Le Cren
If they are brave enough to endure the expected cold and windy weather, soccer fans will be in for a treat Monday night.
Naperville North and Naperville Central resume their tremendous rivalry with a DuPage Valley Conference match at 7 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
While the stakes won’t be nearly as high as a postseason tilt, this game will feature arguably the greatest collection of talent ever seen in a crosstown game. Ten players have already committed to play in college, including seven at Division I programs; and several more are being recruited.
In addition, the teams enter with a combined record of 18-1-1. Naperville North, which is ranked at no. 3 in the latest Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, is 9-1-1 overall, while newly second-ranked host Naperville Central comes in at 9-0-0. Both are 2-0-0 in DVC play.
Only North’s loss on penalty kicks to new no. 1 Lyons in Saturday’s Lou Malnati’s Deep Dish Classic semifinals prevented both teams from entering the cross-town game undefeated.
Naperville Central coach Ed Watson, who notched his 450th career win when the Redhawks beat Downers Grove South 3-0 on Saturday, is looking forward to it.
“It will be fun -- two teams that are pretty familiar with each other,” understated Naperville Central coach Ed Watson.
Indeed, North and Central have played each other more often than they have anyone else. North is one of only five schools to have a winning record against Central. The Huskies lead the overall series 40-23-12 and have not lost to the Redhawks in 10 years. That streak included two ties and a win in the COVID-19-shortened 2021 season that saw Central take the DuPage Valley Conference title with a 7-0-3 record. North got revenge with a 1-0 win in a sectional title match.
But all that history goes out the window once the game starts.
“This is always a game that, regardless of record, will be a hard-fought, one-goal game,” Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. “I think it’s something that all the kids and the Naperville soccer community looks forward to.
“With the records being what they are right now it probably adds a little more excitement for the outsiders. But I know in our program, our kids are always focused on the game and know that this is one that is a lot of fun to showcase the talent at the two schools.”
No matter which team you are rooting for, or even if you’re just a neutral enthusiast of the sport, there will be an enormous amount of talent on display.
For the first time in a decade, the Redhawks come in with the more-heralded lineup. They have five Division I commits in the starting lineup and two other players who could reach that level.
The headliner is junior Megan Norkett, the Northwestern-bound midfield maestro who is following up a tremendous sophomore season with an even better one. Staking her claim as one of the best players in the state, Norkett already has racked up nine goals and seven assists.
Norkett is the bridge between Valparaiso-bound senior striker Molly O’Rear, who has seven goals and three assists, and defenders Sophia Skoubis (Missouri), Sarah McCracken (North Dakota), Sam Sharp (Air Force) and Ella Burke and senior goalkeeper Abby O’Connor (Division III Carnegie Mellon).
This is the deepest team Central has fielded during Watson’s reign, which began in 1993 and concludes at the end of this season.
“Everybody knows that Megan Norkett makes them go, and they’ve got a great complement of attacking players in O’Rear and (sophomore Lauren) Thorne and the list goes on,” Goletz said. “Their defense is very good.
“They’ve got a ton of Division I kids on their team and for Ed’s last year it’s a great piece for him to have a super talented group to be excited about, making his last season a special one.”
The same can be said of the Huskies, who return nine starters from a team that lost in the supersectionals to eventual state champion O’Fallon.
North Alabama-bound senior forward Olivia Anderson paces North’s attack with eight goals and two assists. Defensive midfielder Madison Korosec has a team-high five assists.
The rest of the Huskies’ 22 goals are spread out among 13 players. Senior center backs Lucy Iverson and Norah Barry tied for third on the team scoring list with three goals apiece, one behind senior Cam Dinkla.
Yet for all of the offensive weapons each squad can bring to bear, it will be the defenses that likely decide the winner, if there is one. Both regular season meetings last season ended in double-overtime draws of 1-1 and 0-0.
A 0-0 final is not out of the question considering that cracking these defenses this year has been either, in the case of North, exceedingly difficult, or in the case of Central, impossible. The Huskies have allowed three goals; the Redhawks have yet to concede any.
“We have dramatically different approaches to playing defense, but in the end, both teams do a pretty good job of it,” Watson said. “North tends to keep the ball in front of them, tries to shrink the field behind them.
“We play a more aggressive style where we’re trying to win the ball back earlier and keep the ball on the other end of the field. It’s not right or wrong.
“You certainly can’t argue with what they’ve done. They’ve had great success over the last few years. It’s just what you’re comfortable with, I guess. It helps if you have good goalkeeping and make teams beat you with great shots.”
Both teams have top-notch goalies. O’Connor and North’s Abby Haskell were teammates as freshmen at Naperville Central before Haskell, a SIU-Edwardsville commit, transferred to North.
In addition, O’Connor, Burke, Sharpe and Norkett all play on the same club team with Iverson, whose heady play in the back is continuing the family tradition set by her brother Colin, who played the same position on three state championship boys teams and was the Chicagoland Soccer boys Player of the Year in 2018.
“Their blueprint is the same on both the boys and girls sides,” Watson said. “They’ve had an Iverson who is very good at winning balls in the air.
“They both have found a way to be tough in the air. It helps to be tall, but there’s a lot of tall kids who aren’t very good in the air. There’s a knack to it.”
If there is one team that can come close to matching Central’s defensive prowess, it is North. Barry, who had two older brothers who were teammates of Colin Iverson on two of boys state title teams, are rock solid centerbacks.
The outside backs are less touted but talented. Senior Peyton Hegner replaced returning starter Leah Jacobs after Jacobs suffered a season-ending torn ACL against Downers Grove North in the third game of the season, while junior Maggie Fitzgerald is the lone non-senior on the backline.
“Peyton Hegner has stepped in really well out there,” Goletz said. “She’s a kid who played a bunch of different spots throughout her time here at North and is a great player.
“She’s so coachable, and I’m intrigued to see a kid like that have success. She waited her turn and played a role off the bench and played some big minutes last year. She’s definitely stepped up with the opportunity.”
So has Fitzgerald, who is in her second year as a starter.
“Maggie Fitzgerald has continued to get better and better,” Goletz said. “Maggie might be one of the most cerebral players I’ve coached in regards to being in the right spot and reading the game.
“Maggie will be the first one to tell you she’s not an elite-level speedy athlete, but she gets the absolute most out of what she has. That’s an absolute testament to her willingness to do the right things the right way defensively to put herself in the best position possible.”
With star players at seemingly every position, it’s hard to find unsung performers on either side, yet both teams do have lunch-pail kids who play vital if overlooked roles.
Fitzgerald fits that profile for North, while senior defensive midfielder Grace Granato does it for Central.
“She’s a glue-type kid, a player who is being asked to allow all those other girls to do what they do,” Watson said. “She knows her job.
“She tends to be asked to identify the opposition’s attacking mid and has played very well for us, but she’s not going to be put in positions where you can say, ‘Look at the assist that she had or look at the goal that she had.’
“We talk to the girls that play in that position, when you come off the field and we don’t have anything to say to you, that means you’re probably doing your job. It’s like how do you know when an umpire has had a good game? When you don’t remember any calls.”
There might not be any calls that will be remembered from Monday night’s game, but one thing is for sure -- the match itself will be memorable.
“People are going to enjoy watching this,” Goletz said. “These are the moments kids will remember.”
By Matt Le Cren
If they are brave enough to endure the expected cold and windy weather, soccer fans will be in for a treat Monday night.
Naperville North and Naperville Central resume their tremendous rivalry with a DuPage Valley Conference match at 7 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
While the stakes won’t be nearly as high as a postseason tilt, this game will feature arguably the greatest collection of talent ever seen in a crosstown game. Ten players have already committed to play in college, including seven at Division I programs; and several more are being recruited.
In addition, the teams enter with a combined record of 18-1-1. Naperville North, which is ranked at no. 3 in the latest Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, is 9-1-1 overall, while newly second-ranked host Naperville Central comes in at 9-0-0. Both are 2-0-0 in DVC play.
Only North’s loss on penalty kicks to new no. 1 Lyons in Saturday’s Lou Malnati’s Deep Dish Classic semifinals prevented both teams from entering the cross-town game undefeated.
Naperville Central coach Ed Watson, who notched his 450th career win when the Redhawks beat Downers Grove South 3-0 on Saturday, is looking forward to it.
“It will be fun -- two teams that are pretty familiar with each other,” understated Naperville Central coach Ed Watson.
Indeed, North and Central have played each other more often than they have anyone else. North is one of only five schools to have a winning record against Central. The Huskies lead the overall series 40-23-12 and have not lost to the Redhawks in 10 years. That streak included two ties and a win in the COVID-19-shortened 2021 season that saw Central take the DuPage Valley Conference title with a 7-0-3 record. North got revenge with a 1-0 win in a sectional title match.
But all that history goes out the window once the game starts.
“This is always a game that, regardless of record, will be a hard-fought, one-goal game,” Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. “I think it’s something that all the kids and the Naperville soccer community looks forward to.
“With the records being what they are right now it probably adds a little more excitement for the outsiders. But I know in our program, our kids are always focused on the game and know that this is one that is a lot of fun to showcase the talent at the two schools.”
No matter which team you are rooting for, or even if you’re just a neutral enthusiast of the sport, there will be an enormous amount of talent on display.
For the first time in a decade, the Redhawks come in with the more-heralded lineup. They have five Division I commits in the starting lineup and two other players who could reach that level.
The headliner is junior Megan Norkett, the Northwestern-bound midfield maestro who is following up a tremendous sophomore season with an even better one. Staking her claim as one of the best players in the state, Norkett already has racked up nine goals and seven assists.
Norkett is the bridge between Valparaiso-bound senior striker Molly O’Rear, who has seven goals and three assists, and defenders Sophia Skoubis (Missouri), Sarah McCracken (North Dakota), Sam Sharp (Air Force) and Ella Burke and senior goalkeeper Abby O’Connor (Division III Carnegie Mellon).
This is the deepest team Central has fielded during Watson’s reign, which began in 1993 and concludes at the end of this season.
“Everybody knows that Megan Norkett makes them go, and they’ve got a great complement of attacking players in O’Rear and (sophomore Lauren) Thorne and the list goes on,” Goletz said. “Their defense is very good.
“They’ve got a ton of Division I kids on their team and for Ed’s last year it’s a great piece for him to have a super talented group to be excited about, making his last season a special one.”
The same can be said of the Huskies, who return nine starters from a team that lost in the supersectionals to eventual state champion O’Fallon.
North Alabama-bound senior forward Olivia Anderson paces North’s attack with eight goals and two assists. Defensive midfielder Madison Korosec has a team-high five assists.
The rest of the Huskies’ 22 goals are spread out among 13 players. Senior center backs Lucy Iverson and Norah Barry tied for third on the team scoring list with three goals apiece, one behind senior Cam Dinkla.
Yet for all of the offensive weapons each squad can bring to bear, it will be the defenses that likely decide the winner, if there is one. Both regular season meetings last season ended in double-overtime draws of 1-1 and 0-0.
A 0-0 final is not out of the question considering that cracking these defenses this year has been either, in the case of North, exceedingly difficult, or in the case of Central, impossible. The Huskies have allowed three goals; the Redhawks have yet to concede any.
“We have dramatically different approaches to playing defense, but in the end, both teams do a pretty good job of it,” Watson said. “North tends to keep the ball in front of them, tries to shrink the field behind them.
“We play a more aggressive style where we’re trying to win the ball back earlier and keep the ball on the other end of the field. It’s not right or wrong.
“You certainly can’t argue with what they’ve done. They’ve had great success over the last few years. It’s just what you’re comfortable with, I guess. It helps if you have good goalkeeping and make teams beat you with great shots.”
Both teams have top-notch goalies. O’Connor and North’s Abby Haskell were teammates as freshmen at Naperville Central before Haskell, a SIU-Edwardsville commit, transferred to North.
In addition, O’Connor, Burke, Sharpe and Norkett all play on the same club team with Iverson, whose heady play in the back is continuing the family tradition set by her brother Colin, who played the same position on three state championship boys teams and was the Chicagoland Soccer boys Player of the Year in 2018.
“Their blueprint is the same on both the boys and girls sides,” Watson said. “They’ve had an Iverson who is very good at winning balls in the air.
“They both have found a way to be tough in the air. It helps to be tall, but there’s a lot of tall kids who aren’t very good in the air. There’s a knack to it.”
If there is one team that can come close to matching Central’s defensive prowess, it is North. Barry, who had two older brothers who were teammates of Colin Iverson on two of boys state title teams, are rock solid centerbacks.
The outside backs are less touted but talented. Senior Peyton Hegner replaced returning starter Leah Jacobs after Jacobs suffered a season-ending torn ACL against Downers Grove North in the third game of the season, while junior Maggie Fitzgerald is the lone non-senior on the backline.
“Peyton Hegner has stepped in really well out there,” Goletz said. “She’s a kid who played a bunch of different spots throughout her time here at North and is a great player.
“She’s so coachable, and I’m intrigued to see a kid like that have success. She waited her turn and played a role off the bench and played some big minutes last year. She’s definitely stepped up with the opportunity.”
So has Fitzgerald, who is in her second year as a starter.
“Maggie Fitzgerald has continued to get better and better,” Goletz said. “Maggie might be one of the most cerebral players I’ve coached in regards to being in the right spot and reading the game.
“Maggie will be the first one to tell you she’s not an elite-level speedy athlete, but she gets the absolute most out of what she has. That’s an absolute testament to her willingness to do the right things the right way defensively to put herself in the best position possible.”
With star players at seemingly every position, it’s hard to find unsung performers on either side, yet both teams do have lunch-pail kids who play vital if overlooked roles.
Fitzgerald fits that profile for North, while senior defensive midfielder Grace Granato does it for Central.
“She’s a glue-type kid, a player who is being asked to allow all those other girls to do what they do,” Watson said. “She knows her job.
“She tends to be asked to identify the opposition’s attacking mid and has played very well for us, but she’s not going to be put in positions where you can say, ‘Look at the assist that she had or look at the goal that she had.’
“We talk to the girls that play in that position, when you come off the field and we don’t have anything to say to you, that means you’re probably doing your job. It’s like how do you know when an umpire has had a good game? When you don’t remember any calls.”
There might not be any calls that will be remembered from Monday night’s game, but one thing is for sure -- the match itself will be memorable.
“People are going to enjoy watching this,” Goletz said. “These are the moments kids will remember.”