Girls soccer wins regional, falls at sectional

HUNTLEY — Huntley’s girls soccer squad took the momentum of a Class 3A Regional tournament title into battle against top-10 ranked Barrington.

On a blustery May 21 at Red Raider Stadium, which included a 20-MPH wind, the contest was concluded only after a two-overtime Barrington win over Huntley, 1-0. The Fillies (18-1-2) winning goal occurred on a long shot with about eight minutes left in the second OT. Barrington moved on to the Class 3A Huntley sectional final May 24.

In the semifinal battle, Huntley used stellar defense led by goalie Maddie Lackovic, who stopped a Barrington offense which had scored 79 goals this season. She finished with nine saves. She tipped some shots over the net, dove for others, or let the back line block them. She had to come out of the game after taking a spill but came back two minutes later.

“We were competitive,” Huntley coach Matt Lewandowski said. “All 22 players put everything on the line and battled. We wanted it more, but soccer is a weird sport, their shot got up in a 20-MPH wind.”

Barrington coach Ryan Stenson praised the Red Raiders’ game plan to halt his team’s potent offense. “They worked real hard, and did what they needed to do in their game plan,” he said.

One Red Raider senior standout summed up the season.

“I’ll remember the team bonding of all age groups, freshmen to seniors,” Lackovic said.

The Red Raiders concluded their season at 15-5-4. Achievements for the squad included the Machesney Park Harlem regional title and runner-up in the Fox Valley Conference with a 7-2 record.

Regional championship

It took two hours of play to determine whether Huntley or Mundelein would claim the Class 3A Machesney Park Harlem regional championship May 17.

The Red Raiders claimed their second straight regional championship with a 1-0 victory. The win over the Mustangs came down to penalty kicks and freshman Iztel Martinez scored the match winner, on her first high school goal. Also tallying goals in penalty kicks were Sophie Bator, Peyton Kohn, Gabi Farraj and Maizie Nickle.

“We had a few more chances than they did through the run of play, mostly from the left side of the field, in both regulation and overtime,” Lewandowski said.

The Red Raiders celebrated after their championship.

“We set out at the beginning of the season with a regional championship as a goal,” Lewandowski said. “Once you get past that, anything can happen. No doubt Barrington is probably the toughest match-up we could have at this point, but soccer is a fickle sport and the underdog often finds ways to compete.”

Lewandowski had high praise for senior goalie Lackovic, who made six saves.

“Lackovic has been invaluable to us in goal. Not to take anything away from Ashlyn Grabs, she has made some incredible saves as well. But to have a senior that lives and breathes in nothing else but a competitive spirit is such an asset. Lackovic is an absolute gamer and loves penalty shootouts it seems. She’s more than willing to rise up to the occasion.”