Talia Kaempf nets two goals to help Wheaton North beat St. Charles North to open DuKane Conference play

WHEATON — Wheaton North senior Talia Kaempf wanted to match the energy coach Tim McEvilly had with his pre-game speech.

With the reigning DuKane Conference champions about to take the field against St. Charles North to start conference play, McEvilly told his players the importance of playing with a strong attitude, even despite entering the game with a 1-3-1 record to start the season.

Kaempf embraced that mantra, and showed it on the pitch.

“Coming out with a strong attitude can really change the game, and a lot of times it just comes down to who works harder,” Kaempf said. “I think we all came out strong and showed we wanted to win after a rough start to the season.”

The senior finished the game with two goals and added an assist to help the Falcons to a 4-0 victory over the North Stars to begin conference play.

“Tonight was about starting the season over and recognizing that we’ve grown together,” McEvilly said. “I told them that they’re the returning DuKane Conference champions, let’s play like it and make someone steal it from us. They did a great job going out there and playing confidently and playing on the front foot

Kaempf, who had 23 goals for the Falcons (2-3-1, 1-0 DuKane Conference) last season, set the tone early, scoring her first goal just 39 seconds into the contest after senior Calah Strong found her sneaking behind the defense on a free kick before sinking the ball into the bottom corner of the net.

“Whenever she gets like 40 yards out on a set piece, I know we have a scoring opportunity,” Kaempf said. “We’ve played together for a long time and I trust her a lot. She’s such a talented player that I knew standing on the line that we had a chance.”

Kaempf found the back of the net again, this time just two minutes into the second half. After finding herself in a one-on-one with the goalkeeper 30 yards out from the goal, the senior tapped the ball past the goalie, and easily sunk the ball into the bottom of the net.

It was a welcome sight for McEvilly, especially against the team that ended their season in the sectional finals last year.

“She remembers that, but she also remembers what she’s possible of as a player,” McEvilly said. “One thing that she does better than any other high school player is that she recognizes her body position and is patient slotting a ball home instead of making a panic play. It’s that patience that leads to kids to score 20 goals a season.”

Sophomore Ellie Schomig and freshman Felicity Haworth added onto the scoring later into the second half, further securing the victory for the Falcons.

“Being conference champs, we hold that standard very highly,” Kaempf said. “With a few losses to start the season and a few younger players on the roster, those can get into their heads quickly. But we have such good camaraderie, and winning and losing with them just builds us. We’re just going to keep working hard.”

St. Charles North (3-3, 0-1) also came out with plenty of pressure, putting up five shots on goal in the first half, but couldn’t find the back of the net. It was the North Stars’ first time being shutout in conference play since May 20, 2021 in a 2-0 loss to St. Charles East.

“Bottom line is Wheaton North came out strong and is a talented team,” North Stars coach Brian Harks said. “There were some moments where I thought we did some really nice things, but they capitalized on a few of our mistakes and made us pay. It was good on their end, but we’re going to work hard to correct those mistakes and move forward. Nobody’s throwing in the towel yet.”