Leskovar's late goal punctuates solid effort by North

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By Gary Larsen

Two years ago against Illinois’ top teams, Plainfield North walked. Last year the Tigers trotted, but tentatively.

This season they seem ready to stay at a dead run and let the chips fall where they may.

Confidence only comes after you’ve played top teams even, win or lose, and coach Jane Crowe’s side is doing just that in 2011.

Plainfield North (7-2-2) took another forward step in Thursday’s game against Loyola (9-0-2), losing in a shootout but putting a goal on the board against a Ramblers team that went into Thursday’s game having only given up one goal all season.

Crowe was pleased with what her girls gave her on Thursday.

“I think we played better today than we did in our last two games that we won,” Crowe said. “We played a good half and a bad half against both St. Ignatius and Lincoln-Way North. Today I thought we put together a pretty good game, against a very good team.

“We said going into this game that we wanted to come in and play well, and then whatever happens, happens. Yeah, we lost the game, but it’s a tie in regulation and after two overtimes. I think we showed that we can play with anybody.”

A 1-1 tie with Naperville Central. A 2-0 win over Wheaton Warrenville South. A 1-1 tie with Hinsdale Central. All perennially state-ranked programs, and the teams that could later stand in North’s way to a trip downstate.

Do the Tigers finally believe?

“I think so. I think a game like this, and a game like the Huntley game (a 1-0 loss) shows us that we can play with those teams,” Crowe said. “Those are the kinds of teams we weren’t quite ready to play with the last couple of years. And they’re disappointed after this loss, which shows that they now expect to be able to win games like this.”

The Tigers had to hold on to their hats through the game’s first 25 minutes, defending on an artificial field in Glenview that sloped downward to the south and with a strong north wind in their faces.

North fell behind 1-0 to the Ramblers at 30 minutes of their Pepsi Showdown quarterfinal match, when Loyola’s Carrie Schoenberger sent in her fifth corner kick and teammate Grace Smith finished on it after a scrum in the goalmouth.

“Against the wind it took us a while to adjust how we had to play,” Crowe said. “We had to keep the ball on the ground and not just pop it up in the air. Once we figured out what we needed to do against the wind, we played a lot better. Then it took us a little while in the second half to figure out how we were going to play with the wind.”

After Loyola’s goal, the Tigers settled in and battled. A big, physical Ramblers team used that size throughout the game, but the smaller Tigers stuck their noses into every tackle.

“I can’t be disappointed in how we played at all. We did a good job of finding people. Callie O’Donnell and Ashley (Handwork) were all over the place for us, keeping the possession,” Crowe said. “And I thought Haley Wegrzyn in the back did a very good job defensively.”

Emily Brodict and Paige Polonus split time in net, and in the first half Brodict made a nifty diving save at the post in the face of Loyola’s early pressure.

Plainfield North’s Kaela Leskovar has come close to scoring this year, and the sophomore picked a fine time to finish on Thursday. Loyola University-bound goalkeeper Carly Stevens is an all-stater, but with two minutes remaining in the game Leskovar hit a shot from the left side that beat her to tie the game.

Leskovar’s goal was not only just the second goal Stevens has given up this year. It was also the first goal scored in the run of play against the Ramblers.

“That was actually Kaela’s first goal of the year. She has had some great chances and just hasn’t been able to finish,” Crowe said. “She has a few assists but she has hit a number of crossbars. That was her first varsity goal so good for her.”

Handwork sent a shot wide and later broke in on Stevens and fired a shot saved to a corner kick, both in the first overtime, while the Tigers easily handled a few corner kicks and a few shots from distance from Loyola.

After two scoreless overtime periods, the Tigers fell victim to Stevens’ considerable gifts in net. Not only did the Loyola senior convert on her side’s first shootout attempt; she also stopped three consecutive attempts by the Tigers to seal the win for Loyola.

Go watch 50 shootouts and you’ll likely be able to count on one finger the number of times a keeper stops every penalty kick taken.

“She made some great saves,” Crowe said. “There’s not a whole lot you can say. I thought it was a very well-played game by both teams and you just hate to see it end on (penalty kicks).”