BLUE ISLAND—Throughout the school day Thursday and then on the bus en route to Eisenhower High School, Alaina Hernandez and her Reavis teammates felt good vibes with regard to what the outcome of their South Suburban Conference Red Division showdown against the host Cardinals would be.

“We were talking about the game and bringing energy the whole day,” said senior forward and team captain. “We were ready for them. We were training for them yesterday (Wednesday). In past years, it’s really been an intense game, so we really brought it (pre-game) today and then also on the field.” 

That they did.

Hernandez, a Benedictine University recruit, had two assists, while classmates Alyssa Juarez and Isabel Lopez each scored twice as the Rams gained sole possession of first place in the division with a convincing 5-1 victory.

The Cardinals came into the contest with a 4-1 Red Division record and led the Rams (5-2 in division play prior to Thursday) by percentage points. Reavis seeks its third-straight league title

“I think our mentality and approach to the game was better than what we had on Tuesday,” said Reavis coach Konrad Dziedzic, who referred to the 2-0 Reavis triumph over Oak Lawn. “I think we were focused and ready to play hard, ready to win, have some fun.”

The Rams (9-8-1, 6-2-0) now sit in the driver’s seat for the Red Division crown. Their final three conference games are against Shepard on April 30, Argo on May 2 and Richards on May 7. Of these three squads, only Richards has a winning record in the conference. Shepard has won just two conference matches, and Richards is winless.

Dziedzic said his club is feeling good.

“We had the mentality (Thursday) of, ‘Look, we’ve got to take care of business,’” he said. “It opened up a lot more opportunities for us to create chances to score today.”

The Rams put pressure on the Cardinals from the get-go. Two minutes into the match, Juarez took a cross from Hernandez and found herself in front of the Eisenhower goal, but keeper Amber Valentine raced out of the net and grabbed the ball before Juarez could get off a shot.

However, the Rams wouldn’t be kept off the scoreboard for long. In the eighth minute, freshman midfielder Isabella Lopez feathered a pass to senior forward Isabel Lopez, who broke past the Eisenhower defenders and stuck the ball in the left corner of the net for a 1-0 lead.

Dziedzic said Isabella Lopez has fit well into a veteran lineup upfront.

“They’ve showed very good chemistry so far this year,” he said. “It’s the same forward-midfield we’ve had for the past two years, with the addition of Isabella Lopez who’s a freshman. It maybe took a week or two to get her into the groove, and now they’re free-flowing. It helps because she plays club so making adjustments is very easy for her.”

At the 36-minute mark, Hernandez broke down the far sideline and put a shot on net. Valentine made the save, but the ball slipped out of her hands. Valentine tried to regain possession, but Juarez pounced on the loose ball and tapped it in for a 2-0 Rams lead.

“Honestly, I thought my leg was going to break because the goalie dove in for it too, but I just tapped it in with my toe,” said Juarez.

Two minutes into the second half, Hernandez fed Juarez in front of the goal, and the forward slipped the ball past Valentine, giving the Rams a 3-0 advantage.

Juarez, the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match, said communication has been a key to the Rams’ current three-game winning streak. Prior to that, Reavis dropped consecutive games to Lemont and Centennial April 18 and 19 and were outscored 11-2 in the process.

“Before, we had weak points, and talking was definitely at the top of the list,” she said. “I feel like now we’re a little more close, and we’re doing good as a team.”

Hernandez agrees.

“There was a lot of communication (today) which was really good,” Hernandez said. “Communication is a huge thing. If someone (on the team) is not playing to their potential, we’ll go up to them and be like, ‘C’mon.’”

Eisenhower coach Iran Rodriguez said it was easy to see why his team fell to Reavis. He said the Cardinals “weren’t prepared to play today.”

“I didn’t prepare them to play today,” he said. “This was a wake-up call, and I told them we’ve got to forget about it, because we have a game tomorrow.”

The Cardinals played to a 2-2 draw at conference cross-over foe Bremen on Friday.

Reavis put its foot on the gas pedal against Eisenhower.

“They outplayed us,” said the Eisenhower coach. “They were physical. They were more anticipating the next play.

“They have a lot of girls that are quick. We didn’t come out with a lot of intensity or effort, and it showed. Out of the five goals, four of them were our mistakes. Silly mistakes. It’s demoralizing when you do that and when you allow that. It’s hard for anyone to come back.

“When we don’t come out to play, this is what the score’s going to be.”

Reavis junior defender Marlene Gutierrez made it 4-0 on an unusual goal in the 61st
minute. Her shot from around 25 yards bounced several feet in front of Valentine and bounded over her and into the goal.

Isabel Lopez tallied the Rams’ final goal seven minutes later after a free kick serve from
senior defender Olivia Smycz.

“We worked on our defensive shift a little bit and tried to bait them into doing some things that went in our favor, in terms of pressuring (them) from goal kicks to building out of the back,” Dziedzic said. “I think the girls got it down today very good. Where right away, it’s counter, counter, counter.”

Junior forward Galilea Esparza scored the lone Eisenhower goal in the 75th minute.

“I think Reavis played strong. All their players played rough, but not in a bad way,” Esparza said. “They just kept their defense up, and they had a good goalie.”

Reavis goalkeeper Delyanna Arocho, a sophomore, faced six shots. She made several key saves, diving to stop an Esparza shot in the first half and then denied senior forward Yazmin Solis after the intermission.

“When we let a goal in eight minutes into the game, it’s tough, but we had our chances,” Rodriguez said. “We just couldn’t connect that one last pass to finish, and the game just got out of hand with mental mistakes. Just silly mistakes, and that hurt us. They just capitalized. And it’s hard to recover when you’re down 2- or 3-0.”

Eisenhower (6-7-0) has dealt with injuries recently, and the situation didn’t improve Thursday. Two additional players had to leave the game in the second half. Sophomore Morelia Medina limped off the field with an ankle sprain. Then, junior mid Ayleen Villanueva suffered what Rodriguez said might be a knee injury later during the half.

“The trainer told me she might be out for a while,” he said. “We just want to be cautious with her.”

Starting lineups

Reavis
GK – Delyanna Arocho
D – Mariam Gutierrez
D – Emily Grochola
D – Olivia Smycz
D – Marlene Gutierrez
MF – Jasmine Juache
MF – Isabella Lopez
MF –Malia Shen
F – Erica Divizio
F – Isabel Lopez
F – Alaina Hernandez

Eisenhower
GK – Amber Valentine
D – Stephanie Gallegos
D – Jasmine Almazan
D – Morelia Medina
D – Kimberly Santos
MF – Annallyah Ortiz
MF – Carrington Blackman
MF – Jocelyn Garcia
MF – Galilea Esparza
F – Nevaeh Sandoval
F – Tania Frausto

Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Alyssa Juarez, sr., MF, Reavis

Scoring summary

First half

Reavis – Isabel Lopez (Isabella Lopez), 8’
Reavis – Alyssa Juarez (Alaina Hernandez), 36’

Second half
Reavis – Alyssa Juarez (Alaina Hernandez), 42’
Reavis – Marlene Gutierrez (Unassisted), 61’
Reavis – Isabel Lopez (Olivia Smycz), 68’
Eisenhower – Galilea Exparza (Unassisted), 75’