Young, Lane battle begins
homestretch of CPL league play
By Michael Wojtychiw
It's crazy to think that the girls soccer 2021 campaign is less than four-weeks old and already many conferences, including the Chicago Public League, are getting into the thick of conference play.
Look no further for proof than Wednesday's game between Young and Lane at 4:30 p.m. at Lane Stadium. It starts a stretch for both teams that will not only decide the conference title but help them figure out what to work on as they prepare for the city and state playoffs.
"Our focus is about getting closer to a finished product," Young manager Ross LeBeaux said. "Every time we're going out there, we're looking to train hard, learn new concepts, apply them to the game, watch the film and see what we've been doing well and what we can work on.
"It's good when you can do that against quality teams like Lane Tech, Payton, Jones. It gets us prepared for the city playoffs."
The Dolphins (5-3-0 overall) come into the matchup already 3-0-0 in conference play after a forfeit win over Solorio Monday. Even though the season is still young, LeBeaux has already started to implement some new tactical moves to help his squad have even more success than it's had, especially in the middle of the field, a move that will help the squad be more potent on the attack.
"Initially we had Celeste (Garton) playing as a center back, which is where she plays more with her club team," he said. "But we knew we had someone else who could also play that position. We thought if we moved Celeste to a role where we can get her more touches on the ball and connect our team that it would allow Alexis (Sassower) to move out wide. Her ability to take care of the ball, give us that needed possession and flair she can exhibit, that's now helped our team."
When the two teams last met in 2019, the Indians pulled out two wins over Young, including a 4-0 win in the city championship game.
Like Young, Lane started its season with four nonconference games to help prepare it for the Premier Division season.
The Indians lost three of those matches to ranked teams – Loyola, Glenbrook North and then no. 1 New Trier. Despite the setbacks, the Indians gained valuable lessons that they parlayed into their first city contests – big wins over Hancock and Von Steuben.
The five-time defending city champions know that if they want to make it six, they're going to have to go take down the league teams making noise. That includes Jones, which they play Friday, and Payton, with whom the Indians close conference play May 14.
homestretch of CPL league play
By Michael Wojtychiw
It's crazy to think that the girls soccer 2021 campaign is less than four-weeks old and already many conferences, including the Chicago Public League, are getting into the thick of conference play.
Look no further for proof than Wednesday's game between Young and Lane at 4:30 p.m. at Lane Stadium. It starts a stretch for both teams that will not only decide the conference title but help them figure out what to work on as they prepare for the city and state playoffs.
"Our focus is about getting closer to a finished product," Young manager Ross LeBeaux said. "Every time we're going out there, we're looking to train hard, learn new concepts, apply them to the game, watch the film and see what we've been doing well and what we can work on.
"It's good when you can do that against quality teams like Lane Tech, Payton, Jones. It gets us prepared for the city playoffs."
The Dolphins (5-3-0 overall) come into the matchup already 3-0-0 in conference play after a forfeit win over Solorio Monday. Even though the season is still young, LeBeaux has already started to implement some new tactical moves to help his squad have even more success than it's had, especially in the middle of the field, a move that will help the squad be more potent on the attack.
"Initially we had Celeste (Garton) playing as a center back, which is where she plays more with her club team," he said. "But we knew we had someone else who could also play that position. We thought if we moved Celeste to a role where we can get her more touches on the ball and connect our team that it would allow Alexis (Sassower) to move out wide. Her ability to take care of the ball, give us that needed possession and flair she can exhibit, that's now helped our team."
When the two teams last met in 2019, the Indians pulled out two wins over Young, including a 4-0 win in the city championship game.
Like Young, Lane started its season with four nonconference games to help prepare it for the Premier Division season.
The Indians lost three of those matches to ranked teams – Loyola, Glenbrook North and then no. 1 New Trier. Despite the setbacks, the Indians gained valuable lessons that they parlayed into their first city contests – big wins over Hancock and Von Steuben.
The five-time defending city champions know that if they want to make it six, they're going to have to go take down the league teams making noise. That includes Jones, which they play Friday, and Payton, with whom the Indians close conference play May 14.