Lady Knights tie 1-1 with Hersey
By Gary Larsen
Prospect scored, Hersey answered, and nothing happened thereafter to decide the game.
The Lady Knights and the Huskies played 100 minutes of soccer to a 1-1 draw in Monday’s MSL East contest, and Prospect coach Tom Froats figured that was about right.
“Hersey’s always a hard-working club and they battle every fifty-fifty ball, which they did,” Froats said.
“The result may have been fair considering how hard both teams battled.”
Prospect (4-1-2, 2-1-1 in MSL play) got a goal from Rachel Suarez while Casey Weyhrich scored for Hersey (4-2-2, 1-1-1), both in the first half of play.
From the middle of the first half to the middle of the second, Hersey used the run of play to create numerous corner kicks but couldn’t convert.
“We just couldn’t find the back of the net,” Hersey coach Brad Abel said. “Saturday our set pieces were our bread and butter, but not today. But it’s encouraging to see that we’re creating those chances.”
The game’s first good chance came at 11 minutes, when Prospect’s Allison McCabe beat a defender on the left side and sent a diagonal ball to the far post, with Suarez charging on and burying it.
“When we came out at the start I thought we were composed and were able to knock the ball around a little bit, and getting that one goal gave us a little bit of confidence,” Froats said. “We played with confidence for a while but then when (Hersey) scored that goal I think we got a little tentative and they had the run of play from the middle of the first half probably to the middle of the second.”
Hersey knotted the game at 36 minutes thanks to a fine bit of play between Kaitlyn Smetana and Casey Weyhrich. “Kaitlyn had a beautiful run,” Weyhrich said. “She beat that girl down on the (right) sideline and then she drop-balled it into the spot and I one-touched it in.”
Weyhrich’s goal at the near post sent the teams into halftime with a goal apiece. Through 40 minutes, Prospect sophomore Rosie Pettenuzzo battled well against Hersey senior Lauren Gierman, who set up both of Hersey’s goals in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Wheaton North.
“Rosie is very tough,” Froats said. “That was her assignment tonight and I think we were definitely fifty-fifty in the middle with her, if not on occasion getting possession.”
Weyhrich headed a ball just high at 52 minutes, then sent a shot wide from distance at 56 minutes. The Huskies’ senior has five goals on the year, for a Hersey team that went into Monday’s game with a four-game winning streak.
That winning streak included three shutouts, and came after a pair of losses that saw Hersey uncharacteristically give 8 goals.
“After those losses we really woke up and opened our eyes, and realized we needed to focus more and step it up at practice,” Weyhrich said. “Everyone stepped it up and it has made a big difference.”
Hersey headed a shot off the crossbar at 64 minutes and Prospect keeper Eileen McTigue saved a shot from Hersey’s Sarah Mulroe at 67 minutes. McTigue fielded a long one-hopper from Gierman at 68 minutes, and Gierman sent in consecutive corner kicks at 71 minutes that Prospect cleared.
McTigue saved a Weyhrich shot from the right side in the box at 74 minutes and Mulroe sent a good chance just high of frame at 78 minutes.
Hersey’s second-half pressure didn’t pay off, but it was another step in a positive direction for the Huskies, after a rocky start to the season.
“We have our system but we realized we can still pass the ball and play, and hold true to the system,” Abel said. “I think the challenge was presented and the girls stepped it up. We’re not a hundred percent satisfied with a draw but Prospect’s a very good team and they’ve had good results this year.
“I thought Lauren and Casey played well, Amy Kappelman on the outside, Kaitlyn Smetana – and Sarah Mulroe stepped in in the second half and she was phenomenal for us on the outside. And Jessica Schmidt stepped in on the backline and that was good to see in another tough game.”
Prospect’s attack came to life in the first overtime period, and Martina Kowalczuk busted up the left side past a defender and fired a shot at 86 minutes, but Hersey keeper Morgan Harris dove to make the stop.
“I thought we dominated the first overtime and we played composed,” Froats said. “We moved the ball around and kept it simple. At times we can get frenetic and play kick-and-run, and although we have some athletes that can do that, we can’t do that all the time.
“I thought Rachel (Suarez) played well tonight, she was able to help us get possession and do smart things with the ball at her feet tonight. I thought Andi Marfilius battled hard and tried to get into the attack a little bit, and defensively Elena (Cukurs) is always solid at right back. And until she got hurt, Trish (Benson) was our quarterback in the back.”
Prospect center back Benson left the game late in the second overtime and did not return. The Lady Knights play at Hoffman Estates on Wednesday before hosting the annual 8-team Knights’ Invitational on Friday and Saturday.
Monday’s game was Hersey’s third in a stretch of six games in seven days, with games Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday ahead due to MSL games interspersed with Pepsi Showdown games. The Huskies play at Plainfield North on Tuesday.
“We just have to stay mentally focused,” Weyhrich said. “I’m sure we’ll all be slower tomorrow (vs. Plainfield North) but we’ve got to worry about our conference games and just do the best we can in games outside the conference.”
