St. Charles game bigger
than rivalry to East, North
By Steve Nemeth
What makes the St. Charles East at St. Charles North match Tuesday special?
Believe it or not, it’s really not the crosstown aspect.
“It’s most important because it’s the next game,” St. Charles East senior tri-captain Shannon Gatehouse said of the 6:30 p.m. game before mentioning other considerations.
From players on both sides to seventh-year Saints boss Paul Jennison or St. Charles North first-year head-coach Brian Harks, the 4.02 miles between schools was lower on the list of themes than: a) opposition quality; b): continued improvement; and c) conference aspirations.
“Any time we play a quality opponent, it’s an opportunity to learn, improve and get a notable win,” Harks said.
That is an interesting view of the battle of St. Charles considering that in their last game the North Stars (8-2-0) posted a 1-0 victory that stunned a previously undefeated New Trier squad that was ranked no. 1 nationally, according to USA Today, and locally in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
In contrast to the North Star’s momentum boost, St. Charles East (9-1-0) is ironically facing the reverse scenario, having lost for the first time (2-0 at Naperville North) and giving up its first goals of 2016.
“Being 9-0 without giving up any goals, there were expectations that might have weighed on us, so now we’re excited for the opportunity to show we’ve regrouped and put that in the past,” St. Charles East East junior forward Claire Rasmussen explained. “(North) is a great team as well and one of the best in the Upstate Eight, so the winner gets a big edge in that race.”
St. Charles North senior forward Morgan Rerko looked past the rivalry aspect.
“Playing East is hyped around the community and in the hallways, but it’s really another Tri-Cities and division foe to beat,” said Rerko, who was mindful of the longstanding competitions between Batavia, Geneva and both St. Charles programs.
Each school in that quartet begin the week 1-0-0 in the Upstate Eight Conference River Division.
“People on the outside looking in make more of the game,” Jennison noted. “That’s not to say it’s any less of a rivalry, but we’re fortunate to have four really strong programs in the Tri-Cities in the same division of the conference, which creates the intensity.”
Ultimately, the two schools share the strong victorious roots from St. Charles High School, which became the state’s first powerhouse with 10 Final Fours from 1990-2000 (eight state titles: 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996-2000, plus third place finishes in 1993 and 1995). The school set the foundation for its historic run with six Final Fours in the '80's (four second place finishes and two third place finishes).
Jennison and the Saints added another runner-up trophy to that legacy in 2014 while North --- led by coach Ruth (Poulin) Vostal, a St. Charles Hall of Famer --- took second place in 2004 and 2012, and third place in 2010.
In terms of a meeting between the senior classes from each school, it can't get much closer than the last four games -- a win and a loss apiece, two ties, and four goals scored per team.
St. Charles North was a 1-0 winner in 2013. A 1-1 tie in 2014 was followed by a 2-1 St. Charles East sectional semifinal victory. Last year ended in a 1-1 stalemate that ultimately made them co-winners of the River Division.
“Truthfully, every year both sides are almost completely new teams in terms of strengths individually and as a team,” Rasmussen said. “There’s always familiarity as well, either as teammates or foes for club programs.
"Bottom line for us, all the time is going to be ... focusing on getting better one practice at a time, one game at a time.”
“That’s the only way the loss (to Naperville North) is a positive,” Saints teammate Julia Peterson added. “We learned lessons about focus, fitness and what to work on which meant our last practices had a higher intensity.”
“We did have two great practices,” Jennison agreed. “Honestly we had to face the realization that (Naperville North) was the best team start to finish and we didn’t raise our level.”
For the North Stars, the objective is to maintain its intensity post upset.
“We’ve done a nice job figuring out how to connect on and off the field as a team and the (New Trier) win was close to being a complete 80-minute effort,” Harks said. “Now the aim is to continue moving forward as a team and never be complacent.”
"There’s something special about beating the defending state champion, but it simply means we’ve set the bar higher as to how we want to play,” Rerko added. “They’re another Tri-Cities team, so it’s definitely important, and we want every advantage we can get for the conference race.”
So far both programs have only been kept off the scoreboard once, but it’s the defensive end that has been instrumental in their respective success.
“Our backline has really clicked well, especially the Laurens (Neslund and Willis) in the middle,” Harks said. “But the great thing about our team has been the ability to look to our bench for quality minutes.”
The North Stars have outscored their foes 22-8, and goalie Samantha Sample --- who earned raves from Harks, especially for stopping a penalty kick versus New Trier --- has chalked up five shutouts. Offensively, Gia Wahlberg tops the squad with 11 goals (plus 4 assists) while fellow sophomore Hailey Rydberg has 4 goals and 5 assists.
St. Charles East's defense has been outstanding, except for the stumble against Naperville North.
“Coming into the season we thought we’d be able to put the ball in the net regularly, but we’re pleasantly surprised by how solid our defense has been as a collective unit,” Jennison said of the Saints. “They’ve really bought in, combining different strengths and backgrounds into a solid core.”
Peterson, Hayley Popiel, Victoria Schumann, Allison Strauss plus Morgan Kull have all worked effectively with veteran goalie Alison Chesterfield as evidenced by clean sheets through the first nine games.
Offensively the Saints feature the multiple-threats attack of Rasmussen (6 goals, 7 assists), Chantel Carranza (11 goals, 3 assists), Hannah Kolb (5 goals, 5 assists) and Megan O’Neal (4 goals, 3 assists).
Both teams have ranked among Chicagoland Soccer’s top 11 teams through six weeks. The Saints currently sit a no. 4 while the North Stars are sixth.
than rivalry to East, North
By Steve Nemeth
What makes the St. Charles East at St. Charles North match Tuesday special?
Believe it or not, it’s really not the crosstown aspect.
“It’s most important because it’s the next game,” St. Charles East senior tri-captain Shannon Gatehouse said of the 6:30 p.m. game before mentioning other considerations.
From players on both sides to seventh-year Saints boss Paul Jennison or St. Charles North first-year head-coach Brian Harks, the 4.02 miles between schools was lower on the list of themes than: a) opposition quality; b): continued improvement; and c) conference aspirations.
“Any time we play a quality opponent, it’s an opportunity to learn, improve and get a notable win,” Harks said.
That is an interesting view of the battle of St. Charles considering that in their last game the North Stars (8-2-0) posted a 1-0 victory that stunned a previously undefeated New Trier squad that was ranked no. 1 nationally, according to USA Today, and locally in the Chicagoland Soccer Top 25.
In contrast to the North Star’s momentum boost, St. Charles East (9-1-0) is ironically facing the reverse scenario, having lost for the first time (2-0 at Naperville North) and giving up its first goals of 2016.
“Being 9-0 without giving up any goals, there were expectations that might have weighed on us, so now we’re excited for the opportunity to show we’ve regrouped and put that in the past,” St. Charles East East junior forward Claire Rasmussen explained. “(North) is a great team as well and one of the best in the Upstate Eight, so the winner gets a big edge in that race.”
St. Charles North senior forward Morgan Rerko looked past the rivalry aspect.
“Playing East is hyped around the community and in the hallways, but it’s really another Tri-Cities and division foe to beat,” said Rerko, who was mindful of the longstanding competitions between Batavia, Geneva and both St. Charles programs.
Each school in that quartet begin the week 1-0-0 in the Upstate Eight Conference River Division.
“People on the outside looking in make more of the game,” Jennison noted. “That’s not to say it’s any less of a rivalry, but we’re fortunate to have four really strong programs in the Tri-Cities in the same division of the conference, which creates the intensity.”
Ultimately, the two schools share the strong victorious roots from St. Charles High School, which became the state’s first powerhouse with 10 Final Fours from 1990-2000 (eight state titles: 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996-2000, plus third place finishes in 1993 and 1995). The school set the foundation for its historic run with six Final Fours in the '80's (four second place finishes and two third place finishes).
Jennison and the Saints added another runner-up trophy to that legacy in 2014 while North --- led by coach Ruth (Poulin) Vostal, a St. Charles Hall of Famer --- took second place in 2004 and 2012, and third place in 2010.
In terms of a meeting between the senior classes from each school, it can't get much closer than the last four games -- a win and a loss apiece, two ties, and four goals scored per team.
St. Charles North was a 1-0 winner in 2013. A 1-1 tie in 2014 was followed by a 2-1 St. Charles East sectional semifinal victory. Last year ended in a 1-1 stalemate that ultimately made them co-winners of the River Division.
“Truthfully, every year both sides are almost completely new teams in terms of strengths individually and as a team,” Rasmussen said. “There’s always familiarity as well, either as teammates or foes for club programs.
"Bottom line for us, all the time is going to be ... focusing on getting better one practice at a time, one game at a time.”
“That’s the only way the loss (to Naperville North) is a positive,” Saints teammate Julia Peterson added. “We learned lessons about focus, fitness and what to work on which meant our last practices had a higher intensity.”
“We did have two great practices,” Jennison agreed. “Honestly we had to face the realization that (Naperville North) was the best team start to finish and we didn’t raise our level.”
For the North Stars, the objective is to maintain its intensity post upset.
“We’ve done a nice job figuring out how to connect on and off the field as a team and the (New Trier) win was close to being a complete 80-minute effort,” Harks said. “Now the aim is to continue moving forward as a team and never be complacent.”
"There’s something special about beating the defending state champion, but it simply means we’ve set the bar higher as to how we want to play,” Rerko added. “They’re another Tri-Cities team, so it’s definitely important, and we want every advantage we can get for the conference race.”
So far both programs have only been kept off the scoreboard once, but it’s the defensive end that has been instrumental in their respective success.
“Our backline has really clicked well, especially the Laurens (Neslund and Willis) in the middle,” Harks said. “But the great thing about our team has been the ability to look to our bench for quality minutes.”
The North Stars have outscored their foes 22-8, and goalie Samantha Sample --- who earned raves from Harks, especially for stopping a penalty kick versus New Trier --- has chalked up five shutouts. Offensively, Gia Wahlberg tops the squad with 11 goals (plus 4 assists) while fellow sophomore Hailey Rydberg has 4 goals and 5 assists.
St. Charles East's defense has been outstanding, except for the stumble against Naperville North.
“Coming into the season we thought we’d be able to put the ball in the net regularly, but we’re pleasantly surprised by how solid our defense has been as a collective unit,” Jennison said of the Saints. “They’ve really bought in, combining different strengths and backgrounds into a solid core.”
Peterson, Hayley Popiel, Victoria Schumann, Allison Strauss plus Morgan Kull have all worked effectively with veteran goalie Alison Chesterfield as evidenced by clean sheets through the first nine games.
Offensively the Saints feature the multiple-threats attack of Rasmussen (6 goals, 7 assists), Chantel Carranza (11 goals, 3 assists), Hannah Kolb (5 goals, 5 assists) and Megan O’Neal (4 goals, 3 assists).
Both teams have ranked among Chicagoland Soccer’s top 11 teams through six weeks. The Saints currently sit a no. 4 while the North Stars are sixth.
