Girls soccer: DeKalb takes advantage of opportunity in win over rival Sycamore

DeKALB – With Sycamore dominating the run of play in Monday’s match, DeKalb knew it would have to maximize any scoring opportunities it was given.

The Barbs’ first corner kick of the contest halfway through the second half finally gave DeKalb a chance to break the scoreless deadlock.

Lindsey Bargiel booted the ball from the right side into a mob of players in front of the net. Ashley Diedrich timed her leap perfectly and headed the ball home for the only goal of the contest.

With its 1-0 win over Sycamore, DeKalb won the El Classicorn, a new traveling trophy sponsored by semi-pro soccer team DeKalb County United that goes to the winner of the annual grudge match between the two schools.

“I think quite a few of the girls played really well today,” DeKalb coach Nicole Fleming said. “All of my seniors wanted to go out with a win against Sycamore, so they were very excited and amped up about the game.”

The Barbs knew the corner kick would be a critical play.

“Obviously, we only were getting a few chances in the game, so the corner kick was a big one for us. Going into the kick, we all knew we had to get something on it,” Diedrich said. “It was kind of a jumble. I just jumped for it, and I was happy it went in.”

In the first half, most of the action took place on DeKalb’s side of the pitch. The Spartans, aided by a strong wind blowing toward the Barbs’ goal, had several scoring opportunities from set plays and four shots on goal. But the Barbs’ back line successfully thwarted Sycamore’s attacks. DeKalb (6-9-1) goalkeeper Elizabeth Meeks finished the game with six saves.

“When you have the wind at your back, you’ve got hope for some better results out of that,” Sycamore coach Kevin Bickley said. “It’s 0-0 at half, going into the wind, they get the one chance. They put a body on it, and now we are down a goal.”

Barbs defender Addison Elshoff credited a change in the back-line strategy for shutting down Sycamore’s offense.

“We worked on a formation change recently where we are more staggered, and I felt like it helps now that we are playing some tougher teams,” the junior said.

Fleming said Elshoff and fellow defender Isabella Schmerbach both had a “fantastic game.”

Play was more balanced in the second half.

“We weren’t exactly playing our game [in the first half]. We were under a little bit of pressure, we were just kicking the ball and not really connecting up top,” Fleming said. “At halftime, we talked about playing our game, connecting through the middle and connecting to feet up top and looking to keep possession just a little bit longer.”

Sycamore (10-9) needs to work on finishing attacks, Bickley said.

“We can possess, and then we get to the final third of the field and it breaks down. We don’t get a whole lot of chances,” the Spartans’ coach said. “It’s something that we have to continue to work on. We have been struggling with that in the games leading up to this one.”