Girls soccer: Strong second half lifts Wheaton Warrenville South

WHEATON – Ashlyn Adams was well aware of the challenge St. Charles North posed, but also confident that Wheaton Warrenville South had the talent to defeat the North Stars on Tuesday evening at Red Grange Field.

In a game which was moved up a couple hours to beat forecasted storms, Adams scored the game winning goal, as the Tigers overcome a halftime deficit, rallying to a 2-1 victory.

Adams buried the game-winner with 23 minutes left.

“Ir was a great ball from Lily Petrie, our outside defender,” Adams said. “She has an amazing touch and saw the vision of the through ball and played it perfect. I was able to run on and beat a defender and pass it right into the corner.”

St. Charles North (6-1-4, 1-1-1) has beaten Wheaton Warrenville South (6-1, 3-0) twice each of the last three seasons. The teams battled to a tie in 2019 while the North Stars prevailed in 2018 and 2010. That made the moment all the more significant for the Tigers.

“It was the perfect moment and it was big for our team, we got the momentum,” Adams said. “I knew we didn’t have a lot of opportunities so I knew I had to finish it and that’s what I did.”

The Tigers seemingly fed off the energy provided by the equalizer they scored just about five minutes earlier.

Kelsey Clousing made a run and Ava Walsh finished.

“Kelsey made a run through maybe three or four defenders and she broke through tackles and got in on the right side and hit it to the back post,” Tigers coach Guy Callipari said. “The goalie parried it down and Ava was contested with a defender but got to it first and put it into the open net to make it 1-1.”

Combining a fine touch from Kaitlin Glenn with the wind to curve in a corner kick, the North Stars enjoyed a 1-0 lead about midway through the first half and held it through halftime.

“Wheaton Warrenville South came out with a bit more intensity than us and we weren’t able to make adjustments quick enough,” North Stars coach Brian Harks said. “Laney Stark and Rian Spaulding fought hard up top, but their backline was disciplined and did a good job limiting our chances. Overall, it was a good game that highlighted some of the areas we need to be better at moving forward.”

While the Tigers now have Wheaton North to prepare for on Thursday, they certainly will enjoy the 1 in 1-8-1 in the 10 meetings between the schools in the past 14 years.

“It’s such a big team win,” Tigers junior defender Brooke Ittersagen said. “Playing Laney Stark in basketball, she’s such a stud up there. We knew what they were going to do. They like to take it down the end line and cut it back. That’s how they get their goals. But our defense stayed strong and our offense came through, which was good.”

Both teams are playing well this spring as the Tigers handed the North Stars their first loss.

“We are playing so together right now,” Ittersagen said. “All this young talent is coming together. We’re really focusing at practice. Getting to know each other better and our tendencies has been very key.”