By Tomas Moran, Wheaton Warrenville South student journalist

LOMBARD -- The playoffs are a game of tight margins, and the smallest details often determine the final result. Wheaton Warrenville South learned that the hard way against Geneva in the Class 3A Glenbard East Regional title game May 17.

After going down to the wire through regulation and 20 minutes of extra time in a scoreless stalemate, the Tigers and Vikings found themselves in the most dramatic face-off in sports: a penalty shootout. Both teams confronted the moment of truth, which is always be cruel to one side. A single kick can make or break the season.

The Tigers (12-6-3), who played without head coach Guy Callipari on the sideline due to a family matter, lost 4-2 from the penalty spot after 100 minutes of scoreless soccer.

“You want a battle that’s gonna go to the very end, that’s gonna go both ways. In the end we fell just a tiny bit short,” said Wheaton Warrenville South assistant coach Aaron Press. “Nothing to be ashamed of, extremely proud of everything our girls left on the field and everything they did the entire season to get us to this point.”

Fifth-seeded Geneva managed to pull off what was technically a minor upset against their fourth-seeded foes. The result did not resemble the teams earlier DuKane Conference regular-season contest, which ended in a 3-1 Wheaton Warrenville South win. Geneva used the momentum they built in the latter half of the season, during which they went 6-2-2 including a 4-0 defeat of regional host Glenbard East 4-0 in a semifinal.

“We’ve definitely been working on specific things and coming together as a group,” said Geneva defender Caroline Madden, who earned the Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match honor for her play. “We’ve been executing the things that we’ve been needing to, and we have a lot of energy.”

This title was Geneva’s second-consecutive regional championship.

“We’ve been working for this the whole season,” said Geneva forward Evyn Shokora. “Back-to-back regional championships is a big deal for us. At the beginning of the season, we had a lot of new people. As we’ve gone on, (we’ve) figured out how we all play, how to work with each other and come together as quickly as possible.”

The idea of a regional championship might have been met with skepticism after a 3-4-0 stretch during the season, but the Vikings demonstrated that they are more than worthy of the mantle of regional champion. They went toe-to-toe with Wheaton Warrenville South and had a response every time it seemed the Tigers gained the upper hand.

“I’m feeling very proud of my team,” said Geneva head coach Megan Owens. “They really gritted it out. It’s really tough to play through overtime and get the job done. We had a game plan, they executed it well. Wheaton Warrenville South played an excellent game. They were a great opponent.”

The match was hard-fought and physical from the beginning, with both teams creating goal-scoring opportunities to no avail. Wheaton Warrenville South found its footing after 10 minutes, pressing Geneva, however the Vikings didn’t crack. Aerial play was the weapon of choice as both sides attempted to bombard the defenses with long balls.

“The ball was played in the air a lot and (Geneva) was trying to skip the middle and play it through the air,” said Wheaton Warrenville South captain Ava Walsh. “The game was very aggressive, and we kept getting stopped for fouls. I thought they were really strong. They kept getting the ball back up.”

Wheaton Warrenville South star forward Ashlyn Adams nearly broke the deadlock at the end of the first half on a counterattack that very well could have altered the fate of the contest. But her shot swerved just wide of the right post from 15 yards out.

“There were a lot of plays that were up in the air for sure,” said Wheaton Warrenville South captain Molly Spayth. “Definitely there was a lot more on the line.”

The second half and extra time resembled each other, a sense of urgency mixed with defensive caution that set in across the pitch. Once again, both squads found themselves knocking on the door of the goal and were incredibly unlucky. 

Geneva found the most success from long-distance, threatening goalkeeper Wheaton Warrenville South keeper Marilyn Dixon’s goal multiple times, including shots off the crossbar and post. 

Meanwhile, the Tigers continued to pressure in the midfield and generate counterattacks that were never fully realized. The wear and tear of the game became more apparent as the game progressed, however the intensity was only heightened as the stakes for each individual play increased.

“We’ve worked on fitness,” said Owens. “We’ve been kind of short-handed all season in terms of players that we had to come off the bench, so we knew that we had the fitness to go the distance. They just really gritted it out and played hard.”

Madden played a crucial role for Geneva’s defense, leading the way in a dynamic structure that kept the Tigers under wraps.

“I think it was a lot of mental focus, mental toughness in the back knowing that we had to limit our mistakes,” said Madden. “Trusting everyone who’s behind you and trusting Jordan (Forbes) in the goal, we got the job done.”

As evidenced by the 100-minute clean-sheets, the defense from both sides held up. The teams’ organization remained intact throughout the match.

“(The defense) did really well off a high kick or a punt,” said Wheaton Warrenville South captain Mia Harbert. “They did very well at taking them out.”

“The defense did a great job shutting them down, feeding our offensive players,” said Owens. “They just played solid across the board and really limited all their opportunities.”

Once open play was over, it was time to decide who would advance. 

After Dixon saved Geneva’s initial penalty from Leyna Yonehara, the Vikings went four for four to secure a 4-2 advantage and claim the regional plaque. The Tigers missed their final two penalties, the former hitting the crossbar and the latter going over. Shokora executed the penalty that finalized the Vikings’ victory.

“We’ve been practicing penalty kicks basically since the beginning of the season to prepare for this moment,” said Shokora. “It definitely paid off for us.”

The three Wheaton Warrenville South seniors expressed nothing but gratitude for the soccer program after their final match representing the orange and black.

“The coaches and the girls are all so supportive of each other and lift each other up,” said Walsh.

“I’m just so thankful to be able to have been part of such an amazing team and amazing program these past four years,” said Spayth.

“The program is great,” said Harbert. “Everyone on the team is always super supportive. It’s gonna be a hard program to leave.”

The Tigers may have lost earlier than expected in the state tournament, but they went down in a courageous battle against a fierce opponent. 

Wheaton Warrenville South will return 10 starters next season. The Tigers will come back with a chip on their shoulder with many lessons learned. The best teacher is experience, and this season proved to be a trial by fire.

“This team has accomplished so much. They’ve grown so much from the start of the season until now,” said Press. “There are so many things that you’re not gonna see from the record that we had, by a game log, by stats. There’s so much growth from every single player on this team from beginning to end that’s made this season an incredible run.”

Geneva (13-8-2) saw its season end May 21 with a 1-0 loss to top-seeded Wheaton North in a South Elgin Sectional semifinal.

Starting lineups

Wheaton Warrenville South
GK-Marilyn Dixon
D-Brooke Ittersagen
D-Chloe Trinkl
D-Kayla Waterman
D-Lily Petrie
MF-Ella Byrnes
MF-Emma Gronlund
MF-Kelsey Clousing
F-Ava Walsh
F-Lucy Jethani
F-Ashlyn Adams

Geneva
GK-Jordan Forbes
D-Lilly Coats
D-Hope Ieler
D-Caroline Madden
D-Cami Bishop
MF-Leyna Yonehara
MF-Madison Rees
MF-Ashley Marquardt
F-Evyn Shokora
F-Audrey Stredde
F-Ella Howard

Chicagoland Soccer MVP of the Match: Caroline Madden, sr., D, Geneva

Scoring summary

First half
No scoring

Second half
No scoring

First overtime
No scoring

Second overtime
No scoring

Shootout (Geneva wins PKs 4-2)

Geneva
Leyna Yonehara (saved)
Lilly Coats (scored)
Caroline Madden (scored)
Audrey Stredde (scored)
Evyn Shokora (scored)

Wheaton Warrenville South
Brooke Ittersagen (scored)
Ashlyn Adams (scored)
Ella Byrnes (hit crossbar)
Marilyn Dixon (over)