DuPage Valley lead not only thing Naperville Central and North are fighting for
By Matt Le Cren
Whenever Naperville North and Naperville Central face each other on the soccer field, fans get a chance to see a hard-fought game between friendly rivals.
When the teams meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday night at Memorial Stadium, they will also have an opportunity to support a meaningful cause.
Players from both teams will be wearing special shirts in support of funding to find a cure for pediatric cancer. The cause has special meaning for Naperville North coach Jim Konrad, whose nephew Mitch recently finished nine months of treatment for Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.
Mitch Konrad, 21, who was a star defender on his uncle's 2016 and 2017 state championship teams, underwent surgery in January to remove a malignant tumor in his leg. Nearly half of his tibia was removed.
Despite that, Mitch is walking normally and will do the coin flip before the game.
“It’s going to be a good game as always,” Jim Konrad said. “The big thing is we’re honoring Mitch and fighting pediatric cancer.
“I think we’ve raised a good chunk of money. The shirts say ‘Red and Blue come together to support the goal.’
“That is exciting to see two Naperville schools coming together.”
Naperville Central coach Troy Adams agreed.
“Having people be aware of COVID is a big deal,” Adams said. “But there’s still a lot of other things we want to make sure we’re taking care of.”
The product on the field should be even more exciting than usual because both teams are playing well. The Huskies (8-2-2, 2-0-0 DuPage Valley Conference) will be looking to bounce back from Saturday’s 1-0 home loss to Fremd, which snapped their 10-game unbeaten streak.
The Redhawks (9-4-0, 2-0-0) are on a roll, having scored 19 goals in their last three matches in wins over downstate Althoff 7-0, Neuqua Valley 7-1 and St. Charles North 5-1.
Naperville North, which is ranked 4th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, edged the Redhawks 2-1 in the Best of the West final on Sept. 4 on this same field. But the Redhawks have surged up the rankings and now stand 13th after their offensive explosion, which was in stark contrast to their previous two matches when they were shut out by Minooka, and Oak Park and River Forest.
“Either you don’t score a goal or you score them in bunches,” Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. “That happens a lot with a team that is, I don’t know if you’d call it a younger team but a team without an established core. Sometimes it takes a little while until they start to click.”
What makes the recent outburst more impressive, and perhaps more concerning to opponents, is the involvement of so many players in the production. Six different players scored in each of the wins over Althoff and Neuqua, while five players found the back of the net against St. Charles North.
While Sean O’Reilly leads the Redhawks in goals and fellow junior midfielder Josh Weigel is the top playmaker, Nathan Kwon has scored four goals in the past three games. Joey LoDuca has found the back of the net three times, and Ben Tietjen has tallied twice.
“It’s been all over the place, and we kind of knew it was going to be that way with this team,” Adams said. “We don’t necessarily have a kid that’s going to step up and score 30, but at the end of the season we could have three or four that are in double digits.
“I don’t think you can key on any one kid.”
Naperville North is a little more predictable. The Huskies offense runs through senior forwards Alex Barger and Cam Radeke, who both have a team-high four goals and four assists. Radeke, who committed to Wright State last week, missed the Fremd game while visiting his newly chosen college, leaving Barger to often forage alone up-top.
Barger, who committed to Indiana on Monday, still created chances even while facing double- and triple-teams. Barger tallied the game-winner in the previous meeting and will be the top talent on the field.
Naperville North has gone five years since they lost to Central. That’s why the Redhawks recent form has been important in Adams’ attempt to change the narrative.
“You hope that confidence carries over and the belief in the teammates,” Adams said. “That’s always the hardest thing sometimes is getting kids to believe that all of their teammates are on the same page, and they’re all kind of fighting for the same thing.
“That takes a while. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Both sides will be fighting once again for DVC supremacy. The winner will have sole possession of first place, a half-game ahead of Metea Valley, and a huge leg up in the league race.
“Obviously, it’s a big game for DVC play,” Jim Konrad said. “Both teams have done well so far.
“They’re very good. It seems like they’ve found a way to score some goals, so it should be a good match. Hopefully our boys are ready to go.”
There should be no doubt about that.
“As I told my kids, these are the ones you want to play,” Adams said. “You want to play against your crosstown rival, and the thing is both have had a good year. That makes it even better.”
While the players understandably will be psyched up for the game, the coaches are just as excited.
“It’s the part of high school soccer that is truly special,” Adams said. “It’s why I enjoy coaching high school soccer.
“It’s that pageantry and the stuff that goes with it, the ability to have a game where we can reach out to people and tell them there are places we can make the world better. All that stuff is just so neat to be a part of.”
By Matt Le Cren
Whenever Naperville North and Naperville Central face each other on the soccer field, fans get a chance to see a hard-fought game between friendly rivals.
When the teams meet at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday night at Memorial Stadium, they will also have an opportunity to support a meaningful cause.
Players from both teams will be wearing special shirts in support of funding to find a cure for pediatric cancer. The cause has special meaning for Naperville North coach Jim Konrad, whose nephew Mitch recently finished nine months of treatment for Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.
Mitch Konrad, 21, who was a star defender on his uncle's 2016 and 2017 state championship teams, underwent surgery in January to remove a malignant tumor in his leg. Nearly half of his tibia was removed.
Despite that, Mitch is walking normally and will do the coin flip before the game.
“It’s going to be a good game as always,” Jim Konrad said. “The big thing is we’re honoring Mitch and fighting pediatric cancer.
“I think we’ve raised a good chunk of money. The shirts say ‘Red and Blue come together to support the goal.’
“That is exciting to see two Naperville schools coming together.”
Naperville Central coach Troy Adams agreed.
“Having people be aware of COVID is a big deal,” Adams said. “But there’s still a lot of other things we want to make sure we’re taking care of.”
The product on the field should be even more exciting than usual because both teams are playing well. The Huskies (8-2-2, 2-0-0 DuPage Valley Conference) will be looking to bounce back from Saturday’s 1-0 home loss to Fremd, which snapped their 10-game unbeaten streak.
The Redhawks (9-4-0, 2-0-0) are on a roll, having scored 19 goals in their last three matches in wins over downstate Althoff 7-0, Neuqua Valley 7-1 and St. Charles North 5-1.
Naperville North, which is ranked 4th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, edged the Redhawks 2-1 in the Best of the West final on Sept. 4 on this same field. But the Redhawks have surged up the rankings and now stand 13th after their offensive explosion, which was in stark contrast to their previous two matches when they were shut out by Minooka, and Oak Park and River Forest.
“Either you don’t score a goal or you score them in bunches,” Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. “That happens a lot with a team that is, I don’t know if you’d call it a younger team but a team without an established core. Sometimes it takes a little while until they start to click.”
What makes the recent outburst more impressive, and perhaps more concerning to opponents, is the involvement of so many players in the production. Six different players scored in each of the wins over Althoff and Neuqua, while five players found the back of the net against St. Charles North.
While Sean O’Reilly leads the Redhawks in goals and fellow junior midfielder Josh Weigel is the top playmaker, Nathan Kwon has scored four goals in the past three games. Joey LoDuca has found the back of the net three times, and Ben Tietjen has tallied twice.
“It’s been all over the place, and we kind of knew it was going to be that way with this team,” Adams said. “We don’t necessarily have a kid that’s going to step up and score 30, but at the end of the season we could have three or four that are in double digits.
“I don’t think you can key on any one kid.”
Naperville North is a little more predictable. The Huskies offense runs through senior forwards Alex Barger and Cam Radeke, who both have a team-high four goals and four assists. Radeke, who committed to Wright State last week, missed the Fremd game while visiting his newly chosen college, leaving Barger to often forage alone up-top.
Barger, who committed to Indiana on Monday, still created chances even while facing double- and triple-teams. Barger tallied the game-winner in the previous meeting and will be the top talent on the field.
Naperville North has gone five years since they lost to Central. That’s why the Redhawks recent form has been important in Adams’ attempt to change the narrative.
“You hope that confidence carries over and the belief in the teammates,” Adams said. “That’s always the hardest thing sometimes is getting kids to believe that all of their teammates are on the same page, and they’re all kind of fighting for the same thing.
“That takes a while. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Both sides will be fighting once again for DVC supremacy. The winner will have sole possession of first place, a half-game ahead of Metea Valley, and a huge leg up in the league race.
“Obviously, it’s a big game for DVC play,” Jim Konrad said. “Both teams have done well so far.
“They’re very good. It seems like they’ve found a way to score some goals, so it should be a good match. Hopefully our boys are ready to go.”
There should be no doubt about that.
“As I told my kids, these are the ones you want to play,” Adams said. “You want to play against your crosstown rival, and the thing is both have had a good year. That makes it even better.”
While the players understandably will be psyched up for the game, the coaches are just as excited.
“It’s the part of high school soccer that is truly special,” Adams said. “It’s why I enjoy coaching high school soccer.
“It’s that pageantry and the stuff that goes with it, the ability to have a game where we can reach out to people and tell them there are places we can make the world better. All that stuff is just so neat to be a part of.”