Team preview: Rochelle Zell
By Bill McLean
The number nine is fine for a couple of reasons for Rochelle Zell’s girls soccer program.
That’s how many starting Tigers from last spring’s Chicago Prep Conference championship squad returned for a 2020 season that is delayed because of COVID-19 concerns.
It’s also the combined number of goals — in 14 contests — allowed by Rochelle Zell’s superb defense in the 2019 regular season.
“We expect to compete for another conference championship,” said Tigers seventh-year coach David Martinez, who also serves as the athletic director and a PE/health teacher at the school.
Rochelle Zell was scheduled to open its season at Holy Trinity on March 16. That match and seven others (through Hope on April 2) have been cancelled.
“It’s been interesting,” Martinez said of this in-limbo stretch of spring. “However, it’s also been sad, tough. I hear questions all the time, questions like, ‘When will we get to play?’ and, ‘What are the chances we’ll play?’ You want to keep their hopes up, but I don’t have a definitive answer.
“I wish I did.”
Rochelle Zell finished 13-2-1 last season, going 8-0-0 in CPC action and reaching a Class A regional title match against eventual state runnerup North Shore Country Day.
The CPC title was the program’s third in five seasons.
Martinez welcomes back a couple of high-scoring Noas: junior midfielder and co-captain Noa Steinbach and junior forward Noa Saxton. Steinbach paced the Tigers with a 21-goal, three-assist season, and Saxton tallied 19 goals to go with a pair of assists.
They ranked 1-2 in points among teammates. Each earned all-Chicago Prep Conference honors.
“They’re looking forward to making an impact for the team,” said Martinez, whose club blanked Schaumburg Christian 2-0 in a North Shore Country Day regional semifinal in ’19.
Steinbach, a third-year varsity member, entered Rochelle Zell with a wealth of FC United club experience. Her shot is accurate and powerful. Martinez counts on the savvy Steinbach to dictate a match’s mph.
“She controls the game,” Martinez said. “If we need to play quickly, she recognizes that need. More possession-based? She knows how to lead and control that style of play, too.”
Saxton dribbles on basketball courts in the winter and on soccer pitches in the spring. Her soccer shot has improved markedly since her rookie season in 2018. Her defense rattles foes.
“She’s also a great scorer and defender in basketball, her main sport,” Martinez said of Saxton, who didn’t play a minute of club soccer in middle school. “I like her speed and her ability to beat soccer players with a strong move. Noa’s shot is at a high level now, because she’s coachable and learns quickly.”
The Tigers’ top returners in the back third of the pitch are senior goalkeeper Lucy Rowe and senior sweeper Elitsa Sklar. Rowe, also a volleyball player, is versatile enough to play in the midfield.
“We count on her in goal, where she’s always happy to play for us,” Martinez said. “She’s loves jumping, diving around, stopping shots.”
Martinez recruited Sklar to give soccer a try as a sophomore after Sklar had competed in cross country and basketball as a freshman.
“There are a lot of responsibilities,” Martinez said of sweeper duties. “You have to have patience and toughness and communication skills back there. But Elitsa eventually handled those responsibilities well, in part because she fell in love with the sport as a sophomore and loved being a part of the team right away.”
Rochelle Zell’s other co-captain this spring is senior midfielder Abby Becker, a fourth-year varsity booter and consummate leader who cares deeply about team dynamics and her teammates’ attentiveness.
“Abby,” Martinez said, “is open, very open, with everyone. At the same time she expects people to listen to her and to listen to other seniors for guidance. She wants her teammates to be on time, to eat right at home.
“Her teammates,” the coach added, “respond well to her energy.”
Returning Tigers sophomore Janie Levitan, like Steinbach, played practically every minute of every match in the midfield last spring.
“[Steinbach] was great with Janie last year,” Martinez said. “Took Janie under her wing. I was fortunate, having those two establish chemistry the way they did. Janie is a great passer. Defensively, she’s a rock.”
And Rochelle Zell’s club likes to roll — in transition. Its counterattack disrupts and deflates foes.
“That’s what opposing teams dislike the most when they face us,” Martinez said. “We like to show them tight defense, and when we transition we’re at the other end in 5-10 seconds, looking to score.”
Footnotes
Steinbach’s father, Morry, serves as Martinez’s varsity assistant coach. … Martinez, a Niles North graduate, is in his sixth year as Rochelle Zell’s AD. His office is located near the school’s main gym. “I love being an AD at a small school like ours,” he said. “From my office, I get to watch freshmen, some of them unsure about their skills, develop confidence through the years and then share their wisdom with the younger athletes. I love that, love watching seniors demonstrate guidance.” … Martinez, a back in high school, played at forward/midfielder for one soccer season at North Park University on the North Side of Chicago. … Rochelle Zell does not cut girls soccer aspirants. Thirty came out for the team this spring; 22 usually suit up for road games.
Click here to see the Tigers team page!
By Bill McLean
The number nine is fine for a couple of reasons for Rochelle Zell’s girls soccer program.
That’s how many starting Tigers from last spring’s Chicago Prep Conference championship squad returned for a 2020 season that is delayed because of COVID-19 concerns.
It’s also the combined number of goals — in 14 contests — allowed by Rochelle Zell’s superb defense in the 2019 regular season.
“We expect to compete for another conference championship,” said Tigers seventh-year coach David Martinez, who also serves as the athletic director and a PE/health teacher at the school.
Rochelle Zell was scheduled to open its season at Holy Trinity on March 16. That match and seven others (through Hope on April 2) have been cancelled.
“It’s been interesting,” Martinez said of this in-limbo stretch of spring. “However, it’s also been sad, tough. I hear questions all the time, questions like, ‘When will we get to play?’ and, ‘What are the chances we’ll play?’ You want to keep their hopes up, but I don’t have a definitive answer.
“I wish I did.”
Rochelle Zell finished 13-2-1 last season, going 8-0-0 in CPC action and reaching a Class A regional title match against eventual state runnerup North Shore Country Day.
The CPC title was the program’s third in five seasons.
Martinez welcomes back a couple of high-scoring Noas: junior midfielder and co-captain Noa Steinbach and junior forward Noa Saxton. Steinbach paced the Tigers with a 21-goal, three-assist season, and Saxton tallied 19 goals to go with a pair of assists.
They ranked 1-2 in points among teammates. Each earned all-Chicago Prep Conference honors.
“They’re looking forward to making an impact for the team,” said Martinez, whose club blanked Schaumburg Christian 2-0 in a North Shore Country Day regional semifinal in ’19.
Steinbach, a third-year varsity member, entered Rochelle Zell with a wealth of FC United club experience. Her shot is accurate and powerful. Martinez counts on the savvy Steinbach to dictate a match’s mph.
“She controls the game,” Martinez said. “If we need to play quickly, she recognizes that need. More possession-based? She knows how to lead and control that style of play, too.”
Saxton dribbles on basketball courts in the winter and on soccer pitches in the spring. Her soccer shot has improved markedly since her rookie season in 2018. Her defense rattles foes.
“She’s also a great scorer and defender in basketball, her main sport,” Martinez said of Saxton, who didn’t play a minute of club soccer in middle school. “I like her speed and her ability to beat soccer players with a strong move. Noa’s shot is at a high level now, because she’s coachable and learns quickly.”
The Tigers’ top returners in the back third of the pitch are senior goalkeeper Lucy Rowe and senior sweeper Elitsa Sklar. Rowe, also a volleyball player, is versatile enough to play in the midfield.
“We count on her in goal, where she’s always happy to play for us,” Martinez said. “She’s loves jumping, diving around, stopping shots.”
Martinez recruited Sklar to give soccer a try as a sophomore after Sklar had competed in cross country and basketball as a freshman.
“There are a lot of responsibilities,” Martinez said of sweeper duties. “You have to have patience and toughness and communication skills back there. But Elitsa eventually handled those responsibilities well, in part because she fell in love with the sport as a sophomore and loved being a part of the team right away.”
Rochelle Zell’s other co-captain this spring is senior midfielder Abby Becker, a fourth-year varsity booter and consummate leader who cares deeply about team dynamics and her teammates’ attentiveness.
“Abby,” Martinez said, “is open, very open, with everyone. At the same time she expects people to listen to her and to listen to other seniors for guidance. She wants her teammates to be on time, to eat right at home.
“Her teammates,” the coach added, “respond well to her energy.”
Returning Tigers sophomore Janie Levitan, like Steinbach, played practically every minute of every match in the midfield last spring.
“[Steinbach] was great with Janie last year,” Martinez said. “Took Janie under her wing. I was fortunate, having those two establish chemistry the way they did. Janie is a great passer. Defensively, she’s a rock.”
And Rochelle Zell’s club likes to roll — in transition. Its counterattack disrupts and deflates foes.
“That’s what opposing teams dislike the most when they face us,” Martinez said. “We like to show them tight defense, and when we transition we’re at the other end in 5-10 seconds, looking to score.”
Footnotes
Steinbach’s father, Morry, serves as Martinez’s varsity assistant coach. … Martinez, a Niles North graduate, is in his sixth year as Rochelle Zell’s AD. His office is located near the school’s main gym. “I love being an AD at a small school like ours,” he said. “From my office, I get to watch freshmen, some of them unsure about their skills, develop confidence through the years and then share their wisdom with the younger athletes. I love that, love watching seniors demonstrate guidance.” … Martinez, a back in high school, played at forward/midfielder for one soccer season at North Park University on the North Side of Chicago. … Rochelle Zell does not cut girls soccer aspirants. Thirty came out for the team this spring; 22 usually suit up for road games.
Click here to see the Tigers team page!