Eagles open St. Francis tournament with a win
By Matt Le Cren

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Jacobs is still learning how to best utilize its arsenal of offensive weapons.

When it does, watch out.

The Golden Eagles, a veteran team that returns most of its scoring from last year’s 20-win season, have shown flashes of potential while learning a new, more aggressive style.

That was on display Monday afternoon when Jacobs blanked Sycamore 2-0 in the first round of the St. Francis Springfest tournament at Olympic Park in Schaumburg. The Golden Eagles (2-1) advanced to Tuesday’s quarterfinals, where they will take on York (2-0), which beat Maine West 6-0, at 10:45 a.m.

“We’re trying a little new system that we want to put together where we are a little more aggressive, a little more dynamic,” Jacobs coach A.J. Cappello said. “The girls are a little apprehensive to buy in just yet, so we’re just fine-tuning some things.

“We just need a little bit more of that killer instinct, that want-to-be-the-hero, that want-to- put-the-ball-in-the-net type of mentality.”

Thanks to a rock-solid performance by its midfield, Jacobs dominated possession and outshot Sycamore (1-2) by a 16-3 margin. But though the Golden Eagles got off plenty of shots from long-range, they had a little more trouble working the ball inside the Spartans’ penalty area.

When they did get it inside, the results came. Senior Cassidy Sherman scored in the 24th minute of the 60-minute contest and senior Lauren Grady converted in the 54th minute, both on hard runs into the box.

“We had to use our combination passes and through balls,” Sherman said. “We had been working on that the whole game and a couple times it just went through and worked for us.”

Jacobs had already put six shots on or near the frame when Sherman tallied her fourth goal of the season. Her sister, Catie, who earlier had just missed on a 25-yard shot and had an 18-yard drive saved by the Sycamore keeper, sent a pass from the midfield that sprung Cassidy free on the right side.

Sherman dribbled around a challenge from the keeper before rolling in a 10-yard shot.

“She does a real nice job coming out of the middle of the field and getting the ball,” Cappello said. “She can hit a ball from 25 yards right foot or left foot. She’s a special player. A lot of these girls are.”

Cassidy Sherman is one of 10 seniors on the squad, four of whom will play in college. The Southern Illinois-Edwardsville recruit scored 14 goals last spring, tying the Lewis-bound Grady for the team lead.

Sherman got the assist on Grady’s goal, which put the game away after Sycamore had put some brief pressure on the Jacobs’ defense. The lead pass from midfield found Grady sprinting up the right wing, and Grady dribbled almost to the end line trying to shake a defender before somehow sneaking a six-yard shot between the goalie and the right post from a sharp angle.

“I wanted to score so I was like, ‘now or never,’ so I decided to go for it,” Grady said. “I think we were a lot more organized [in the second half] and we played the ball on the ground more and made runs.”

Grady made a lot of things happen on offense, several times using nifty footwork to get away from defenders in the right corner before sending dangerous crosses through the middle of the box. One of them found Catie Sherman open about eight yards in front of the left post in the 47th minute but the junior midfielder was unable to strike it flush and sent a shot harmlessly wide to the left.

Eight minutes before that, Grady would have had a goal but her hard shot in the box was punched over the crossbar.

“Lauren’s got that goal scorer’s instinct,” Cappello said. “She hadn’t scored in the first two games yet, so she was thinking a little too much about it, so it was nice to see her get on the score sheet with a nice composed finish.

“She’s a nice player. She does a lot of things real nice. She’s one of the ones who’s maybe getting caught up in the new system a little bit more than others where she’s maybe trying to do a little too much. She’s just got to kind of trust her instincts.”

It appears the Jacobs defense can be trusted. Senor goalie Alyssa Koeppler had to make only two routine saves in recording her second straight shutout behind the back line of Nichols State recruit Erin Flores, her senior teammates Molly Leopold and Jessica Tennant, and junior Margaret Rivera. Midfielders Lizzie Travis, a St. Joseph signee, and Kelly Grady also helped out with the chores in the back.

“Margaret Rivera and Erin Flores do a nice job of organizing, then you’ve got Dani Blanchard and Molly Leopold and Jess Tennant [who] will hold their own on the outsides,” Cappello said. “They’re a great group of kids.”

The Golden Eagles will play twice on Tuesday. If they beat York, they will take on the winner of  the Glenbard East/Burlington Central match in the semifinals on Field 1 at 2:15 p.m. A loss means they would play the Glenbard East/Burlington Central loser on Field 2 at the same time.