WINNETKA — There’s something about Reese Meyers and season openers.

Something special.

The North Shore Country Day sophomore has played in two of them and scored the first goal in each.

But the midfielder’s second half tally Tuesday afternoon — in a 1-0 defeat of visiting Senn at Skokie Playfield — was the game-winner this time. Last spring the Raiders lost 7-1 to visiting Independent School  League foe Woodlands.

“She’s our backbone,” North Shore Country Day senior midfielder and captain Tommy Kalotis said of the swift, talented Meyers, a Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List selectee from a season ago. 

“Reese’s skills stand out. You pass her the ball, you smile and you think, ‘OK, yeah, she’s going to do something exciting so we’d better watch.’ Her speed is incredible. Fast wheels.

“She gets us to run in practice,” Kalotis added.

Meyers’ tally against Senn’s Bulldogs in gusty, mild conditions featured her splendid instincts rather than her head-yanking rapidity. She pounced on an eight-yard rebound that bounced off the lower body of Senn senior goalkeeper Karla Martinez (five saves) in the 63rd minute.

North Shore Country Day junior center midfielder Carly Lissner had blasted the initial shot of the possession against the wind from the top of the box. Meyers’ near-post delivery entered the goal just south of the upper 90.

Had Lissner been shod in skates and holding a stick, she would have been credited with a hockey assist.

“Carly’s shot initiated the chance and put the pressure on,” Raiders second-year coach Rebekah Kauffman said.

Meyers finished the chance resoundingly, thus earning Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honors. She’d earned the same recognition last spring when she recorded a hat-trick and a pair of assists in a 10-0 defeat of host Morgan Park Academy in an Independent School League contest.

“Reese,” Kauffmann said, “makes things happen, makes an impact. She does that often with her runs and ability to create space for herself. She’s also so good at surveying the field and getting her teammates involved.”

Winning keeper Izzy Greenstein, another North Shore Country Day sophomore, did not have to make a save in the nonconference game.

Raiders sophomore back and primary corner-kicker Zahra Omar took her club’s first shot of 2024 season about five minutes in; it traveled wide right. 

Shortly thereafter a pass from Meyers to junior forward Daisy Stone created a semi-dangerous moment.

Stone nearly broke the nil-nil game in the 49th minute on an opportunity from about seven yards. Martinez made the save of the day with a high stop on the well-struck shot.

Some three minutes later, Meyers dished a spot-on pass to sophomore midfielder Kate Connolly, whose ensuing close- range shot didn’t miss by much.

Senn’s offense is a work in progress.

“We need to work on our communication,” said Bulldogs coach Wendy Castro, whose squad played its second game in as many days Tuesday. “Adjusting from competing on fields in the city to ones in the suburbs will be important, too. I believe we have the players who will be able to adapt.”

Junior forward Madeline Cole, a transfer from Canada, did not start but emerged as a highly active, effective booter.

She led rushes, fed sharp crosses and executed an alert second half clear on one of North Shore Country Day’s 11 corner kicks.

“Team player,” Castro said of Cole, who dealt with soreness stemming from Monday’s season-opener, a 3-0 loss at Chicago Public League Premier Division-side Marine Leadership.

Canada vs. USA, “team player”?

“It’s a little different here,” a grinning Cole said. 

“I like our team’s strong leaders,” she added, alluding to senior center back and co-captain Lesly Sanchez and senior midfielder and co-captain Daniela Palacios.

Kaufmann likes North Shore Country Day’s youth — a whopping eight sophomores started for the Raiders on Tuesday — and collective fun-loving nature. But there’s also an inquisitive, serious side to her group.

“They’re so coachable,” she said. “They ask good questions and when you respond, their wheels turn. They rarely get down, but when one does, it doesn’t last very long and there’s always someone there to boost the teammate, to lift their spirits.

“I have fun around them, because they’re usually up for everything. We don’t have bad days.”

You could blame Kalotis’ entrenched positivity for that. A blue moon, after all, occurs more often than a hint of a Kalotis frown does.

“Tommy has such energy, such high spirits,” Meyers said. “She’s happy all the time. We’re all aware of her great attitude, and we all appreciate it. We love that she’s always supportive, always there for us.”

North Shore Country Day (1-0-0) hosts Northside of the CPL Premier Division North at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday; Senn (0-2-0) visits Schurz at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.

Footnotes

Senn has a busy four matches this week. The opening setback against Marine Leadership didn’t dishearten Castro in the least. “We played quite well against a strong team,” she said. And the Bulldogs played considerably better than they did in their 8-0 loss to Marine Leadership’s Bulldogs last spring. … North Shore Country Day is already two wins shy of matching its victory total in 2023 (3-7-1). … Buffalo Grove native Kauffman started her third year as North Shore Country Day’s assistant boys and girls athletic director to Patrick McHugh last fall. The former Stevenson and Trinity International University goalkeeper also served as a PE teacher at the Class A Winnetka school. “I enjoy investing in kids and in sports,” she said. … Meyers, on Kauffman: “She’s great the way she pushes us and encourages us. There’s nothing negative when you’re around her.” … North Shore Country Day out-corner-kicked Senn 11-0, with three of the set pieces occurring in the first four minutes of the second half.

Starting lineups

Senn
GK Karla Martinez
D Isabel Auffant
D Melanie Leon
D Lesly Sanchez
D Romy Dolgin
D Meskerem Tassie
MF Daniela Palacios
MF Hai Paw
F April Castrejon
F Alexa Palacios
F Alexa Delgado

North Shore Country Day
GK Izzy Greenstein
D Margaret Fitzgerald
D Isabel Roberts
D Dixie Oelerich
MF Kate Connolly
MF Reese Meyers
MF Callie Zhao
MF Zahra Omar
MF Marina Bullock-Puzon
MF Carly Lissner
F Daisy Stone

Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Reese Meyers, so., MF, North Shore Country Day

Scoring summary

First half
No scoring

Second half
North Shore Country Day — Meyers (unassisted), 63’