WAUKEGAN — Desire is the great equalizer of sports. It can be hard to describe, but it’s impossible to ignore.

Even with the deck stacked against it, Wheaton Warrenville South and midfielder Emma Gronlund never lost hope or focus.

“We stayed really tough out there, and we never gave up because we really wanted this game,” she said. “We wanted to keep our winning streak going, and we never stopped fighting.”

Gronlund led a late surge that came up just short as the Tigers, ranked 12th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, saw their perfect start to the season end in the 2-1 loss against Crystal Lake Central on Saturday in first round of the BodyArmor tournament at Waukegan Sports Park.

Her goal from a terrific slotted ball by midfielder Ella Byrnes in the 75th minute breathed new life into Wheaton Warrenville South (5-1-0).

She returned moments later for a couple of free kicks into the box that proved dangerous.

Crystal Lake Central (7-1-1) made the necessary clearances to escape a shootout.

Ranked second in the Class AA Super 7 poll, Crystal Lake Central has played an almost exclusively Class 3A schedule, and now has notched three solid results against elite teams of the DuKane Conference.

Crystal Lake Central defeated no. 25 St. Charles East and tied no. 12 St. Charles North.

Their only loss came in a rematch against the North Stars in the championship of the Rose Augsburg-Drach Invitational when they were missing several key players.

“They’re very good,” Wheaton Warrenville South coach Guy Callipari said. “They’re physical, well-coached, and very tough.

“They seemed to win every ball in the air. This goes back to every team I’ve ever coached, including as an assistant on a Libertyville team that won a state championship. The team that wins the ball in the air, that always translates to victory.”

Crystal Lake Central returns the bulk of its team that captured the first state trophy in program history with its third place Class AA finish last spring.

Besides All-State forward Brooklyn Carlson at the top of the attack, the team has multiple threats.

Most impressive, Crystal Lake Central nullified the wind advantage Wheaton Warrenville South enjoyed in the first half.

The all-grass natural surface fields at Waukegan Sports Park played a little slower than normal due to the early-week rain.

“We did not do a good job at the start of acclimatizing ourselves to the field or the conditions, but that’s not an excuse,” Callipari said.

In retrospect the best thing Crystal Lake Central achieved was getting through the first half without conceding a goal.

Crystal Lake Central features speed and quickness in the middle attack, and creative playmakers and shot-creators like Carlson, midfielder Olivia Anderson and forward Lizzie Gray.

 The players have the versatility to play all over the field.

Anderson had a shot from about 24 yards that hit off the bar at the start of the second half, underscoring an increasingly dangerous offensive team.

“Basically we always get a lot of shots, and sometimes they go in, but our team is always super resilient,” Crystal Lake Central’s Paiton Hulata said.

The defender delivered the lead in the 49th minute.

Working off a free kick from just outside the box, her first shot deflected off the wall.

Gray was the first person to the ball, and played it immediately back to Hulata.

From a virtually identical distance, her second shot was clean and pure, and escaped the reach of elite keeper Mar Dixon inside the far post.

“I was trying to go for it the first time,” Hulata said. “I think my nerves caught me. Just before she played it back to me, Lizzie actually smiled at me.

“I got that confidence back, and I just found the net.”

Sensing a dazed and slightly dejected opposition, Crystal Lake Central pounced again.

Moments later, Anderson drove hard at the Wheaton Warrenville South goal. Dixon got a touch on her first shot.

Forward Addison Schafer was the first player to the ball, and pushed it wide left to Anderson.

With  Dixon off her line, Anderson made a quick juke-step and played a left-footed ball from about 21 yards that was perfectly positioned beyond the keeper’s reach.

Her shot curled inside the far post in the 53rd minute for the stunning 2-0 advantage.

Wheaton Warrenville South had not trailed in about 450 minutes of play this season.

“The hardest part of soccer is to score that first goal,” Anderson said. “The earlier goal gave us great energy, and I think we took advantage of that to use the momentum to get the second goal.

“That’s just what we do.”

Anderson earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her distinctive play.

“Last year was the first time in school history that we got to state, and we want to make history and go even further this year,” Hulata said. “We want to show we’re strong enough.”

Victory is exhilarating, but adversity is the more illuminating of a team’s nature and character.

Wheaton Warrenville South was put in an atypical role and responded to the challenge.

The team is adaptive, and working in a mixture of youth, newcomers from club soccer and an established nucleus of returning players.

Gronlund, for instance, is a first-year varsity player after playing club last season.

“I knew a lot of the girls, which was very helpful,” the sophomore said. “They’re all very welcoming, and I think we are re just trying to make each other better.

“Having a lot of high-level girls on the team just helps us get better every day.”

Forward Ashlyn Adams, a three-year starter and Illinois recruit, is one of the best juniors in the state.

She forms a devastating fast, mobile attack at the top with Ava Walsh and Lucy Jethani.

“About nine of our starters play on the same club team, so we have a great bond and chemistry and awareness of how we like to play,” Adams said.

“They were a great team, and we’re going to learn from this experience and figure out what we need to do better for our next game.”

Callipari has highlighted the contributions of defenders Brooke Ittersagen, Lily Petrie, Sabrina Stransky and Kayla Waterman, midfielder Kelsey Clousing and forward Anna Ittersagen. 

A lanky and agile midfielder with great reach and athleticism, Byrnes had the best scoring chance in the first half.

She blasted a shot from 19 yards that Crystal Lake Central keeper Addison Cleary responded to with a spectacular diving stop.

Byrnes helped set up the Gronlund goal from 22 yards on the right wing that cut the deficit in half, creating a suspenseful close to the game.

“We’ve taken time to bond with each other, and we’ve worked hard, on and off the field,” Byrnes said.

“This was definitely our hardest game of the year, and we’re going to learn from our mistakes. We are going to take this experience to get better and keep working for our big conference games, and get in as much training and practice time as possible.”

Starting lineup

Crystal Lake Central
GK: Addison Cleary
D: Chelsea Iles
D: Kalissa Kaiser
D: Katelyn Hallum
D: Paiton Hulata
MF: Peyton McMahon
MF: Maddie Gray
MF: Sadie Quinn
MF: Jillian Mueller
F: Lizzie Gray
F: Brooklynn Carlson

Wheaton Warrenville South
GK: Mar Dixon
D: Berkley Dylla
D: Brooke Ittersagen
D: Kayla Waterman
D: Lily Petrie
MF: Ella Byrnes
MF: Emma Gronlund
MF: Kelsey Clousing
F: Lucy Jethani
F: Ava Walsh
F: Ashlyn Adams

Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Olivia Anderson, sr., MF, Crystal Lake Central

Scoring summary

First half
No scoring

Second half
Crystal Lake Central—Paiton Hulata (Lizzie Gray), 49’
Crystal Lake Central—Olivia Anderson (Addison Schaffer), 53’
Wheaton Warrenville South—Emma Gronlund (Ella Byrnes), 75’