Lincoln-Way East defense
gets offensive in victory over Stagg
Griffins' 3-0 triumph pushes win streak to 5
By Steve Millar
FRANKFORT -- Lincoln-Way East’s defenders have done a great job of shutting down the opposition as witnessed by the the Griffins' .2 goals-against-average in 10 games this season. Thursday, the members of the backline showed off another dimension to their game, sparking the offense as the host Griffins rolled to a 3-0 win over Stagg in a SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover match.
Lincoln-Way East (9-1-0) had its first two goals created from the attack of defenders Hanna Dawczak and Lauren Sandberg, who each provided an assist.
“We work on practice in working our defenders up to get into the offense,” Dawczak said. “We’re getting better and better at it each game. We’re getting good crosses and good services.”
Dawczak helped the Griffins get going in the eighth minute when she intercepted a Stagg pass, sprinted towards the corner and sent a cross into the box.
“My head was just going right towards the endline, because that’s where I’m best at crossing it in,” Dawczak said. “We were all super hyped for this game, so when Emily (Scianna) headed it in, I just ran up and gave her a big hug. We were so excited.”
Scianna's shot tucked in under the crossbar to break the ice.
Dawczak gave the Chargers (5-2-1) fits all day with her ability to jump into the attack and set up her teammates. She also teamed with Sandberg, Emily Bicek and Jade Christensen to hold Stagg to two shots on goal.
Dawczak’s strong two-way play earned her Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors.
“A lot of times, we ask our outside backs to move forward and a lot of them just stay back,” Lincoln-Way East coach Brian Papa said. “This year, we made an adjustment. Hanna Dawczak was a forward last year, and we figured why not move her back and give her free reign to come up.
“If you’re going to attack from the back and make that part of your offense, you’ve got to keep the ball on the field. Stephanie Zobel did a great job keeping the ball in play and our center mids, Caroline (Kilrea) and Anna Power are clogging up the middle and allowing our defenders those opportunities to move up.”
The Griffins’ lead remained a tenuous 1-0 until 24:40 remained in the match. Sandberg carried the ball for 40 yards down the left side of the field before sending a cross to the middle of the box where Ciara Hughes took one touch and drilled the ball into the net.
“I was looking to push forward,” Hughes said. “I knew Lauren often dribbles out of the back. I knew she was going to look for me, and I just had to be ready to put it in the goal. I knew exactly where to put it in. When our defenders can get into the offense like that, it makes us dangerous.”
Stefani Cetera added the third goal with 1:23 left. It continued a red-hot streak for the senior, who had three goals and two assists in Monday’s win over Homewood-Flossmoor.
Since falling 1-0 to Lincoln-Way North in the championship of the Windy City Ram Classic, the Griffins have outscored their last five opponents 24-1, scoring at least three goals in each game.
“It’s very exciting,” Hughes said. “We’re connecting really well. We’re implementing what we do in practice into the games, and it’s really showing on the field. We’re keeping possession, we’re defending as a unit and we’re keeping pressure up.”
It’s all added up to a very successful formula for Papa’s team.
“Our teams in the past, we always played good defense,” he said. “We always were in games. We always possessed the ball. We were just always looking for that third pass. Now the third passes are going through. When we simplify things, the girls see the results. A lot of them said after this game, ‘That was fun.’ The girls are very coachable. Right now they’re buying in and we just have to keep it going.”
Peyton Vecchiet made two saves to record her eighth shutout of the season.
The Griffins gained a measure of revenge after Stagg ended their 2015 season with a 1-0 regional final defeat.
“Normally before games, we mess around sometimes,” Dawczak said. “This game was different, because they took us out in regionals last year. So we were really focused and determined.”
Stagg’s only two shots in the game came on a pair of first half free-kicks. Grace Javaras took shots on both of them, one from 35 yards and the other from 28, and Vecchiet was up to the task on both attempts.
The Chargers got a big effort from freshman goalkeeper Sydney Downs, who made five saves. Downs denied Scianna on a close-in attempt two minutes into the second half and stopped a Nicolette Gossage header moments later.
Downs was one of three freshmen who started for Stagg, along with six sophomores, and coach Chris Campos hoped his team learned some lessons from Thursday’s game.
“We’re a young, but that’s not an excuse,” Campos said. “There are a lot of young teams around. We have to take something away from losing to a really good team like Lincoln-Way East and figure out what adjustments to make going forward.
“A lot of credit to Lincoln-Way East. Coach Papa and (assistant coach Ryan) Decker are doing a great job. I’m wondering if we’re going to see them again (in the playoffs) and if we do, we’ll learn from this and put our best foot forward.”
The loss was Stagg’s first since March 17, when it fell to Fenwick.
“This is the first time we’ve had any kind of real pressure,” Campos said. “We lost to Fenwick, but that was so early. This loss is a good learning experience. Going forward, I think we have a lot of promise and a lot of depth.”
Stagg defender Emily Stefan said the loss would bring the Chargers together as they prepare to take on District 230 rival Andrew on Monday.
“We have a lot of young players, and I think this opens their eyes to see what kind of teams we’re going to play in the future,” she said. “I think next time we’re going to come out stronger. I feel like our team has gotten closer after this game. Now we know what we need to do in the future.”
The Griffins, meanwhile, will look to keep things rolling Saturday when they open up play in the PepsiCo Showdown against Downers Grove North.
“All the girls deserve a lot of credit,” Papa said. “It’s the whole team. Everybody on this team is doing the best they can right now and as long as you do that you’re going to be successful. Right now, we’re successful.”
Starting line-ups
Stagg
GK: Sydney Downs
D: Halim Malak
D: Grace Javaras
D: Emily Stefan
D: Julia Matusevicius
MF: Jazmin Castanon
MF: Asmaa Amara
MF: Erini Kosmas
MF: Kelsey Kelly
F: Veronika Stafira
F: Angelina Kosmas
Lincoln-Way East
GK: Peyton Vecchiet
D: Emily Bicek
D: Lauren Sandberg
D: Jade Christensen
D: Hanna Dawczak
M: Caroline Kilrea
M: Stephanie Zobel
M: Anna Power
M: Ciarra Hughes
M: Stefani Cetera
F: Emily Scianna
MVP of the Match: Hanna Dawczak, D, Lincoln-Way East
gets offensive in victory over Stagg
Griffins' 3-0 triumph pushes win streak to 5
By Steve Millar
FRANKFORT -- Lincoln-Way East’s defenders have done a great job of shutting down the opposition as witnessed by the the Griffins' .2 goals-against-average in 10 games this season. Thursday, the members of the backline showed off another dimension to their game, sparking the offense as the host Griffins rolled to a 3-0 win over Stagg in a SouthWest Suburban Conference crossover match.
Lincoln-Way East (9-1-0) had its first two goals created from the attack of defenders Hanna Dawczak and Lauren Sandberg, who each provided an assist.
“We work on practice in working our defenders up to get into the offense,” Dawczak said. “We’re getting better and better at it each game. We’re getting good crosses and good services.”
Dawczak helped the Griffins get going in the eighth minute when she intercepted a Stagg pass, sprinted towards the corner and sent a cross into the box.
“My head was just going right towards the endline, because that’s where I’m best at crossing it in,” Dawczak said. “We were all super hyped for this game, so when Emily (Scianna) headed it in, I just ran up and gave her a big hug. We were so excited.”
Scianna's shot tucked in under the crossbar to break the ice.
Dawczak gave the Chargers (5-2-1) fits all day with her ability to jump into the attack and set up her teammates. She also teamed with Sandberg, Emily Bicek and Jade Christensen to hold Stagg to two shots on goal.
Dawczak’s strong two-way play earned her Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors.
“A lot of times, we ask our outside backs to move forward and a lot of them just stay back,” Lincoln-Way East coach Brian Papa said. “This year, we made an adjustment. Hanna Dawczak was a forward last year, and we figured why not move her back and give her free reign to come up.
“If you’re going to attack from the back and make that part of your offense, you’ve got to keep the ball on the field. Stephanie Zobel did a great job keeping the ball in play and our center mids, Caroline (Kilrea) and Anna Power are clogging up the middle and allowing our defenders those opportunities to move up.”
The Griffins’ lead remained a tenuous 1-0 until 24:40 remained in the match. Sandberg carried the ball for 40 yards down the left side of the field before sending a cross to the middle of the box where Ciara Hughes took one touch and drilled the ball into the net.
“I was looking to push forward,” Hughes said. “I knew Lauren often dribbles out of the back. I knew she was going to look for me, and I just had to be ready to put it in the goal. I knew exactly where to put it in. When our defenders can get into the offense like that, it makes us dangerous.”
Stefani Cetera added the third goal with 1:23 left. It continued a red-hot streak for the senior, who had three goals and two assists in Monday’s win over Homewood-Flossmoor.
Since falling 1-0 to Lincoln-Way North in the championship of the Windy City Ram Classic, the Griffins have outscored their last five opponents 24-1, scoring at least three goals in each game.
“It’s very exciting,” Hughes said. “We’re connecting really well. We’re implementing what we do in practice into the games, and it’s really showing on the field. We’re keeping possession, we’re defending as a unit and we’re keeping pressure up.”
It’s all added up to a very successful formula for Papa’s team.
“Our teams in the past, we always played good defense,” he said. “We always were in games. We always possessed the ball. We were just always looking for that third pass. Now the third passes are going through. When we simplify things, the girls see the results. A lot of them said after this game, ‘That was fun.’ The girls are very coachable. Right now they’re buying in and we just have to keep it going.”
Peyton Vecchiet made two saves to record her eighth shutout of the season.
The Griffins gained a measure of revenge after Stagg ended their 2015 season with a 1-0 regional final defeat.
“Normally before games, we mess around sometimes,” Dawczak said. “This game was different, because they took us out in regionals last year. So we were really focused and determined.”
Stagg’s only two shots in the game came on a pair of first half free-kicks. Grace Javaras took shots on both of them, one from 35 yards and the other from 28, and Vecchiet was up to the task on both attempts.
The Chargers got a big effort from freshman goalkeeper Sydney Downs, who made five saves. Downs denied Scianna on a close-in attempt two minutes into the second half and stopped a Nicolette Gossage header moments later.
Downs was one of three freshmen who started for Stagg, along with six sophomores, and coach Chris Campos hoped his team learned some lessons from Thursday’s game.
“We’re a young, but that’s not an excuse,” Campos said. “There are a lot of young teams around. We have to take something away from losing to a really good team like Lincoln-Way East and figure out what adjustments to make going forward.
“A lot of credit to Lincoln-Way East. Coach Papa and (assistant coach Ryan) Decker are doing a great job. I’m wondering if we’re going to see them again (in the playoffs) and if we do, we’ll learn from this and put our best foot forward.”
The loss was Stagg’s first since March 17, when it fell to Fenwick.
“This is the first time we’ve had any kind of real pressure,” Campos said. “We lost to Fenwick, but that was so early. This loss is a good learning experience. Going forward, I think we have a lot of promise and a lot of depth.”
Stagg defender Emily Stefan said the loss would bring the Chargers together as they prepare to take on District 230 rival Andrew on Monday.
“We have a lot of young players, and I think this opens their eyes to see what kind of teams we’re going to play in the future,” she said. “I think next time we’re going to come out stronger. I feel like our team has gotten closer after this game. Now we know what we need to do in the future.”
The Griffins, meanwhile, will look to keep things rolling Saturday when they open up play in the PepsiCo Showdown against Downers Grove North.
“All the girls deserve a lot of credit,” Papa said. “It’s the whole team. Everybody on this team is doing the best they can right now and as long as you do that you’re going to be successful. Right now, we’re successful.”
Starting line-ups
Stagg
GK: Sydney Downs
D: Halim Malak
D: Grace Javaras
D: Emily Stefan
D: Julia Matusevicius
MF: Jazmin Castanon
MF: Asmaa Amara
MF: Erini Kosmas
MF: Kelsey Kelly
F: Veronika Stafira
F: Angelina Kosmas
Lincoln-Way East
GK: Peyton Vecchiet
D: Emily Bicek
D: Lauren Sandberg
D: Jade Christensen
D: Hanna Dawczak
M: Caroline Kilrea
M: Stephanie Zobel
M: Anna Power
M: Ciarra Hughes
M: Stefani Cetera
F: Emily Scianna
MVP of the Match: Hanna Dawczak, D, Lincoln-Way East
