CHICAGO — Catherine Cupps has played almost every field position, and experienced the game from just about every perspective.

The Payton standout was unnerved early in the first half with ominous storm clouds and electric flashes in the skies. It recked havoc with her state of mind.

“It was definitely weird seeing the lightning, and not knowing whether they were going to stop play or not,” Cupps said. “Everyone felt a little strange about what was going on.

“I was just glad we were able to continue and keep going.”
   
Though the mood was eerie and atmospheric, Payton maintained its composure and sustained its torrid streak with another excellent two-way performance.

Cupps smashed home a header in the 12th minute to key the Grizzlies’ 2-0 victory over Taft in the quarterfinals of the Chicago Public League Tournament on Thursday at Winnemac Stadium.

Midfielder Felicity Cole, who set up Cupps' goal with the perfectly played corner kick, then put the game away with a 79th-minute score off a counter.

For their superb play, Catherine Cupps and Felicity Cole shared the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor.

Payton (12-6-1) won its ninth-consecutive game, and will move to the semifinal round on Monday against the winner of the delayed game between Lane, which is ranked 13th in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25, and Lincoln Park that kicks off at 9 a.m. Saturday at Diversey Field off Lake Shore Drive.

The top-seeded Champions are heavily favored to reach the semifinal bracket and take the title.

Payton captured the only city championship in program history in 2009. The Grizzlies have twice reached the city title game. The most recent was against Lane in 2021, the freshmen season for the Grizzlies current 12 seniors.

The win against Taft was Payton’s second of the season. The Grizzlies also took a 2-0 win April 19 in Premier Division North play.

“I thought the start was pretty evenly matched, and they’re a strong team,” Cupps said. “I’m glad we played them earlier this season. We saw how they liked to play a similar style.”

Payton offset the early Eagles’ run by pushing the ball forward, and generating a corner kick from the right edge. Cole played a beautiful ball into the box that Cupps elevated and drilled into the net with a clean and decisive header. 

The trajectory and timing were perfect.

Cupps scored two goals on corner kicks from Cole in the 5-0 first-round victory over Lake View on April 29. At nearly 5-foot-9, she combines great size with athleticism, range and reach. She was able to get to a ball in a crowded box that no other player could meet.

“We’ve been connecting really well recently,” Cupps said. “Felicity has been taking some really important kicks, and we’ve just been finding each other.

“I’ve gotten a lot more confident from the way we’ve been able to score this year. I also scored on a corner in a game against Northside, and a couple times in our game Tuesday. I think it has become a real strength of our attack.”

Cupps and Cole have also experimented with changing roles, and now Cole has taken over the primary role of corner kick specialist.

“I think having someone like Cate with her presence in the box is so great for us, and I just feel like I’m getting more consistent with my kicks, and just being able to deliver them to her,” Cole said.

“I think we have really started to capitalize on those chances, and get a lot of set pieces every single game.”

Cupps began her career playing the same central midfielder role of her older brother Bobby Cupps, an All-State talent. He scored 34 goals and added 16 assists for the boys’ city championship team that reached a Class AA supersectional in 2021.

“Centerback is the position that I feel the most comfortable at,” Cupps said. “I like seeing the crowd behind my team. I enjoy setting and things like that, but I really enjoy being able to see my team, and watch everything as it happens.”

Cupps’s goal took on heightened meaning moments later when the game was suspended in the 15th minute due to lightning. As the teams waited out the mandatory 30-minute delay, Payton had the comfort and advantage of playing from in front.

The balance of the first half featured strong back-and-forth play, with the Grizzlies’ size operating in sharp contrast to the quickness of the Eagles (9-8-1).

Starting keeper Chloe Guzik played the first half and was replaced by sophomore Emily Sprenger in the second half. The two combined for six saves as Payton registered its seventh-consecutive shutout.

Two outside backs, Samantha Pilgrim and Caylie Kromelow, worked exceptionally hard to control the outside speed of Taft’s top threat, exciting freshman forward Juliette Popelka, who came into the game with 11 goals and seven assists.

Forward Lily Sarli also presented problems on the perimeter against the Grizzlies.

“It’s really good to learn from everybody on the field, and use them as models, having the older players to learn from,” Kromelow said.

“They had some talented players, and I think our goal was just to mark the people running on the outside and obviously shift to help each other and always stay tight to make sure they didn’t have too much room or space.”

Sprenger is the younger sister of Young’s standout boys’ keeper Jackson Sprenger. She was put under duress several times and held her own, commanding the box and elevating for 50/50 balls.

Payton also earned strong and consistent play from other youngsters, such as freshman midfielder Magnolia Tryggestad and sophomore forward Zara Lau.

If the Grizzlies’ youth bolstered the lineup and brought energy and passion, the heart of the team remains its talented senior core of Cupps, Cole, forward Ajla Gradjan and midfielders Norah Cervenka and Isabelle Katz.

Gradjan had several tantalizing chances in the second half. An apparent second goal off a corner by Katz was nullified by an illegal touch.

Payton withstood the bursts of the Taft pressure before Cervenka and Cole ended the drama early with several minutes to go. As the Eagles pushed forward, Cervenka knifed between two Eagles’ for possession, and blasted a through-ball on the right wing.

Having pushed to the top midway through the second half, Cole put on the jets and was the first player there, driving hard before smashing a sidewinder home from about 18 yards.

Cole had three assists in the victory over Lake View on Tuesday.

“It was a great ball from Norah, and I made a good read,” Cole said. “We had a lot of chances, some goals called back, and stuff like that. 

“I like breakaways a lot. Maybe it wasn’t the best shot, but you have to score there, and we just needed that.”

Cervenka has been one of the “glue players,” a connective tissue between the young and experienced, and the back and the top of the attack.

“It was a little rocky at the beginning of the season, because we had a lot of seniors last year who were starters,” Cervenka said. “We played a lot of those very talented suburban teams in the beginning.

“Once we got focused, and found our best lineup and started switching positions around a couple of times, I think we were able to find some momentum. Now we have this great winning-streak.”

The Grizzlies know the city tournament runs through eight-time defending champion Lane. 

Lane beat Payton 4-0 on March 20. Cole was one of several starters who missed that game. Payton gave the Champions their toughest test in last year’s city semifinal, but Lane escaped with a late goal and 1-0 victory. 

Adding intrigue for Cervenka is that her younger sister, Sylvia, is a freshman midfielder at Lane.

“It was actually hard, because the last game we were on each other for a bit,” Norah Cervenka said. “I want to see her do well. Because she’s a freshman, I didn’t really go really hard at her.

“Then my coach would get mad and yell at me, so that part is hard. But it’s also fun to go up against her.”

Payton is ready to make its run.

“They’re probably the toughest team that we play besides some of the suburban teams like Evanston,” Cole said. “It’s always tough when we play them, but coming off last year and almost winning, we know what we can do.

“We just need to come in on Monday and just put it all out there, and not doubt ourselves because we have played good games against them before. They’re a good team, but we have the capability of winning.”

Starting lineups

Taft
GK: Riley Cholewa
D: Lejla Drndar
D: Asia Ling
D: Aria Lipa
D: Adi Robinson
MF: Ava Balmaseda
MF: Olivia Kennedy
MF: Abigail Meneses
F: Morgan Tucker
F: Lily Sarli
F: Juliette Popelka

Payton
GK: Chloe Guzik
D: Samantha Pilgrim
D: Catherine Cupps
D: Arielle Evans
D: Caylie Kromelow
MF: Isabelle Katz
MF: Norah Cervenka
MF: Felicity Cole
MF: Magnolia Tryggestad
F: Ajla Gradjan
F: Zara Lau

Chicagoland Soccer MVPs of the Match: Catherine Cupps, sr., D, Payton; Felicity Cole, sr., MF, Payton

Scoring summary

First half
Payton—Catherine Cupps (Felicity Cole), 12’

Second half
Payton—Cole (Norah Cervenka), 79’