Chicagoland Soccer Top 25
By Patrick Z. McGavin
Bill Lanspeary could not really celebrate.
The veteran Lyons’ coach just watched his third-ranked players take down previous no. 2 Naperville North in a penalty shootout Saturday at New Trier to qualify for the championship of the 4th Annual Lou Malnati’s Deep Dish Classic.
Nine of the 12 teams in the field were ranked at the start of group play.
In the space of a week, Naperville North played no. 13 Evanston (4-0 win), no. 1 Libertyville (0-0) and Lyons.
That is the equivalent of a Final Four.
Lyons’ reward for winning Saturday is a championship matchup with Loyola, who they beat 1-0 Wednesday in group play.
“This has been great to come out and play these quality teams,” Landspeary said. “It’s why you do it, in order to play these tough and competitive games.
“I think you could take 10 of these teams, mix them up and put them in the top 10 in any order.”
For soccer nerds, this week is soccer nirvana, with an incredible game in Naperville on Monday night between DuPage Valley Conference foes no. 2 Naperville Central and no. 3 Naperville North.
Naperville Central (9-0-0) is unscored upon for the season. Naperville North (9-1-1) has surrendered three goals.
The end of the week welcomes back -- after an excruciating three-year absence -- the Naperville Invitational. We have said it before in this space. It’s harder some years to win this tournament than a state championship.
The teams that have lined this Top 25 poll decorate the matchups of the Naperville Invitational.
Bolingbrook and no. 12 Warren joined the field this year. The Blue Devils’ inclusion brings the total to 12 ranked teams out of 24 total.
Twenty-seven of the 32 Class 3A state champions since 1988 are programs that played in the Naperville Invitational.
The Deep Dish Classic dominated the discussion, but it was hardly the only tournament of note. It was joined by tournaments in Plainfield and Lockport.
The winners of those tournaments are also new participants in the rankings this week.
The tournaments illustrate a palpable absence of a year ago, the loss of in-season tournaments as a way to adjudicate order and meaning to records and rankings
The tournaments are back with a vengeance, and high school soccer is better for it.
By Patrick Z. McGavin
Bill Lanspeary could not really celebrate.
The veteran Lyons’ coach just watched his third-ranked players take down previous no. 2 Naperville North in a penalty shootout Saturday at New Trier to qualify for the championship of the 4th Annual Lou Malnati’s Deep Dish Classic.
Nine of the 12 teams in the field were ranked at the start of group play.
In the space of a week, Naperville North played no. 13 Evanston (4-0 win), no. 1 Libertyville (0-0) and Lyons.
That is the equivalent of a Final Four.
Lyons’ reward for winning Saturday is a championship matchup with Loyola, who they beat 1-0 Wednesday in group play.
“This has been great to come out and play these quality teams,” Landspeary said. “It’s why you do it, in order to play these tough and competitive games.
“I think you could take 10 of these teams, mix them up and put them in the top 10 in any order.”
For soccer nerds, this week is soccer nirvana, with an incredible game in Naperville on Monday night between DuPage Valley Conference foes no. 2 Naperville Central and no. 3 Naperville North.
Naperville Central (9-0-0) is unscored upon for the season. Naperville North (9-1-1) has surrendered three goals.
The end of the week welcomes back -- after an excruciating three-year absence -- the Naperville Invitational. We have said it before in this space. It’s harder some years to win this tournament than a state championship.
The teams that have lined this Top 25 poll decorate the matchups of the Naperville Invitational.
Bolingbrook and no. 12 Warren joined the field this year. The Blue Devils’ inclusion brings the total to 12 ranked teams out of 24 total.
Twenty-seven of the 32 Class 3A state champions since 1988 are programs that played in the Naperville Invitational.
The Deep Dish Classic dominated the discussion, but it was hardly the only tournament of note. It was joined by tournaments in Plainfield and Lockport.
The winners of those tournaments are also new participants in the rankings this week.
The tournaments illustrate a palpable absence of a year ago, the loss of in-season tournaments as a way to adjudicate order and meaning to records and rankings
The tournaments are back with a vengeance, and high school soccer is better for it.
| Rk | LW | Team | W | L | T | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Lyons | 8 | 0 | 0 | Riley Wengerd sparks the attack |
| 2 | 4 | Naperville C | 9 | 0 | 0 | Sam Sharp is an electric stopper |
| 3 | 2 | Naperville N | 9 | 1 | 1 | Olivia Anderson has come into her own |
| 4 | 13 | Evanston | 8 | 1 | 1 | Jocelyn Leigh is creative with the ball |
| 5 | 1 | Libertyville | 5 | 1 | 1 | Jenna Krakowski is dynamic in space |
| 6 | 5 | Glenbrook N | 10 | 0 | 0 | Maine South showdown Tuesday |
| 7 | 7 | Barrington | 8 | 1 | 0 | Piper Lucier is a great addition to deep roster |
| 8 | 14 | Loyola | 9 | 3 | 1 | Elliana Seeley is super tough on 'D' |
| 9 | 9 | St. Charles N | 7 | 1 | 0 | Juliana Park is a superb talent |
| 10 | 10 | St. Charles E | 10 | 2 | 0 | Kara Machala ignites the middle attack |
| 11 | 8 | Stevenson | 7 | 1 | 0 | Injuries are mounting |
| 12 | 6 | Metea Valley | 8 | 2 | 1 | Jocelyn Grabow is a fantastic talent |
| 13 | 11 | Maine South | 9 | 1 | 1 | Athletic and very talented |
| 14 | 12 | Warren | 6 | 1 | 2 | Addison Stanciak is rising freshman star |
| 15 | 15 | Oswego E | 7 | 1 | 0 | Sam McPhee is an elite keeper |
| 16 | 16 | Deerfield | 9 | 1 | 1 | Ally Linn is a two-way force |
| 17 | 18 | Benet | 8 | 2 | 0 | Annastacia Thiel is great on set pieces |
| 18 | 25 | OPRF | 7 | 2 | 0 | Dueled Benet in classic friendly |
| 19 | 24 | Batavia | 6 | 1 | 2 | Riley DiBiase is a thrilling offensive talent |
| 20 | 20 | L-W Central | 9 | 1 | 0 | Defense has been rock solid |
| 21 | NR | Plainfield N | 8 | 3 | 2 | Captures Plainfield Classic |
| 22 | 19 | Geneva | 7 | 2 | 0 | Caroline Madden is offensively skilled |
| 23 | NR | Wheaton N | 5 | 3 | 0 | GK Zoey Bohmer ignites Lockport Cup title |
| 24 | HM | Glenbard W | 7 | 3 | 0 | Emily Roberts is a player to watch |
| 25 | 17 | New Trier | 5 | 4 | 2 | Elizabeth Marquardt is skilled young talent |
Look out for: Young, Lane, Carmel, Joliet Catholic, Lockport, Fenwick, Wheaton Warrenville South, Fremd, Crystal Lake Central, Lake Zurich, Lincoln-Way East, Andrew, Saint Viator, Plainfield East, Dundee-Crown.
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