MOUNT PROSPECT — Julia Valentini’s cleats aren’t just orange.

They’re bright, traffic-cone orange.

The Prospect senior forward wore them in Wednesday's late afternoon Mid-Suburban League match against visiting Wheeling. Had the moon somehow passed her blinding kicks at any point in the 80-minute match at George Gattas Memorial Stadium, spectators would have grumbled, “Should’ve brought my solar eclipse glasses.”

Right after his Knights’ 4-0 victory — the team’s first this spring — Prospect coach Michael Andrews had to deal with human-generated radiance that nearly damaged his retinas.

“It was nice to finally see a lot of faces with smiles,” Andrews said after his club improved to 1-4-2 overall, 1-2-1 in the MSL. “We got off to a rough start this season, against outstanding competition. And there had been games, lately, where the score did not reflect how well we had played.

“We needed this. I’m happy and so are my players.”

Valentini, fittingly, was brilliant against Wheeling’s Wildcats (2-5-1, 0-4-0) on Wednesday, scoring a goal and providing three assists, including a hockey helper on freshman back Addison Coval’s tally that stretched the lead to 3-0 in the 31st minute.

“She’s fantastic,” Andrews said of Valentini, a highly talented co-captain who plays with tenacity and pure joy as soon as her wheels hit the pitch.

It’s gotta be the shoes, right? Nope. Not in Valentini’s case.

Her sensational laser-cross to senior forward Maddy Mann in the 25th minute required vision and strength and timing, not outsoles or neon-orange heel counters or studs. Mann one-timed the spot-on delivery, chopping down a right-footed shot that bounced past the left hand of Wheeling junior goalkeeper Melissa Ballesteros (18 saves) and opened the scoring.

Mann returned the favor six minutes later, sending a 15-yard, near-post pass that Valentini headed home from about three yards.

Forty seconds later, Valentini dribbled from Wheeling’s 40 to the 10 before booting another textbook cross, this one landing in the vicinity of senior midfielder Fiona Chojdecki, who redirected the ball to Coval.

The freshman, one of two starting for the Knights, completed the bang-bang-bang sequence from the goal’s doorstep to up the advantage to 3-0.

“The first 25 minutes we defended quite well as a team,” Wildcats coach Kevin Lennon said. “I saw a lot of good stuff, a lot of positives, at the start.

“We did wear down a bit at the end of the first half.”

Valentini lofted a far-post corner kick to set up the final goal of the game. The ball bounced once amid a scrum of players in the 46th minute. Prospect senior midfielder and Chicagoland Soccer All-State Watch List selectee Abby Davis, a co-captain stationed a few yards from the busy Ballesteros, then elevated slightly to nod the ball toward twine.

“We’d been in so many tight games,” said Valentini, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match. “But we just weren’t finishing. This feels good, getting a win today.”

“This was nice, coming out on top after we’d competed as hard as we did in losses … losses that didn’t reflect how close we were to winning,” Mann added.

The early portion of Prospect’s schedule was difficult to say the least. The Knights lost to Barrington, New Trier and Stevenson before spring break. Those crews are ranked second, ninth and 20th, respectively, in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.

The Knights also settled for ties vs. Cary-Grove and Rolling Meadows, before falling 3-0 to Buffalo Grove after a scoreless first half on April 5.

“We had a discussion with our girls, emphasizing that possessing the ball well doesn’t win games,” said Andrews, the Knights’ boys coach and first-year girls head coach who served under longtime Prospect coach Tom Froats, who helmed the program from 1994-2023. “You have to break through in the final third, attack and finish. Winning corner kicks helps, too.”

Andrews lauded the performances of starting freshman back Maddie Bielecki and reserve senior back Jane Klostermeyer,

“Maddie,” he began, “has played a lot of positions for us; she’s all-purpose. She’s also technical and aggressive — a rare combination.

“I moved Jane from defender to the middle, to get her out of her comfort zone. And she came through for us, attacking and wanting it. She stood out, showed pure grit.”

Lennon received valiant efforts from Wheeling midfielders Nicole Schreiner, a junior, and Evelyn Simon, a sophomore, and a defensive quartet —  senior Leslie Romero and juniors Scarlette Patricio, Mia Waszczak and Isabella Sanchez — who were understandably exhausted near the end of the School District 214 battle.

“The girls gave it their all and showed tremendous growth,” Lennon said. “I liked how well-organized our defense was in the second half. Our defenders were hurting there at the end, but they kept playing hard and showed their toughness.”

Schreiner’s match-long work in the middle essentially screamed, “You’re going to have to earn your way into the final third, Prospect!”

“Nicole,” Lennon said, “is tireless, and she reads well off the ball. She continued to show growth today.”

Wednesday’s first 25 minutes heartened Schreiner.

“Not giving up a goal for that long was a big step for us,” she said. “We came out strong and stayed strong for a while.”

Victorious goalkeeper Sarah Bradbury, a Prospect junior, did not have to make a save in the shutout. Her lone goal kick came at the 21-minute mark.

Next up for Prospect is an Mid-Suburban League match at no. 22 Fremd at 7 p.m. Friday, followed by a makeup home game with Schaumburg that was moved to Forest View Stadium in Arlington Heights at 6:45 p.m. Monday. Wheeling visits conference opponent Palatine — an honorable mention team in the Top 25 — at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

Footnotes

Schreiner, on her roles for Wheeling this spring: “I try to keep everyone motivated, lead by example and make sure everyone stays on their mark.” … After scoring the first goal Wednesday, Mann nearly netted another goal, on a close-range chance, less than a minute later. Too bad. It would have been in the running for Briskest Brace Ever.

Starting lineups

Wheeling
GK Melissa Ballesteros
D Scarlette Patricio
D Mia Waszczak
D Isabella Sanchez
D Leslie Romero
MF Suly Hernandez
MF Evelyn Simon
MF Annette Villa
MF Thania Hinostroza
MF Nicole Schreiner
F Amelia Cecot

Prospect
GK Sarah Bradbury
D Addison Coval
D Mia Whiteman
D Maddie Bielecki
MF Sienna Murray
MF Maeve Morris
MF Ella Sommers
MF Abby Davis
F Elena Katsogianos
F Julia Valentini
F Bianca Walker

Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Julie Valentini, sr., F, Prospect

Scoring summary

First half
Prospect — Maddy Mann (Julie Valentini), 25’
Prospect — Valentini (Mann), 31’
Prospect — Coval (Fiona Chojdecki, Valentini), 31’

Second half
Prospect — Davis (Valentini), 46’