Lions drop home match to rival Carmel
By Mike Garofola

It wasn't a true crosstown soccer match – like, say, Man U versus City -- but it had the feel of one of those classic London derbies.

After all, it was Carmel – Saint Viator, two long-time ESCC rivals that usually need to go through each other for a chance to lift the conference trophy in early May.

The Corsairs entered this Saturday afternoon match in Arlington Heights with a spotless 5-0-0 overall record (2-0-0) in the ESCC, and Saint Viator went into it with a 3-1-0 record overall, 2-0-0 in the conference.

But the visitors had much more at stake than the home side.

"We hadn't beaten them in our three years here. Time was kind of running out on us," said Bri Carlson, who along with Carmel’s other seniors have had to endure two losses and a draw to the Lions since they’ve been at Carmel.

“This was an important game for all of the seniors," added Carmel’s Annie DiVenere, one of the players who wear the captain’s armband for manager John Halloran.

"Coach reminded us this week about us being 0-2-1 against Viator so it was out there, and now everyone knew, even if they weren't with the varsity when we first lost to them in in 2010," continued Carlson.

As one of the ten players who were around for that 2010 loss, Carlson had to do something about it.

"So Bri says before the game that we're going to win today, and what a prophetic statement that was because she was the one who won it for us," said Halloran, happy to get a win over Mike Taylor's club, which helped his side stay undefeated in ESCC play.

The win was also the 150th career victory for Halloran as coach of Carmel’s girls’ program, but he had to endure some nervy moments on Saturday to get there.

"We had some chances and they had some, too,” Halloran said. “We hit the post, so did Saint Viator. It was back and forth and a typical Carmel-Saint Viator soccer match, in less than terrific conditions with the wind, cold and (grass) field, but we did what we had to do to get the win and it truly was a team effort to do so.”

The Corsairs’ win not only finally let the ghosts out of their closet against the Lions. It also helped put them in fine shape in the conference, combined with last week’s win over Benet, with ESCC challengers Nazareth and Fenwick left to play.

Prior to Saturday’s match, Saint Viator had seen Mother Nature wreak havoc on its early-season schedule. Taylor was concerned about the energy and pace Carmel would bring, and just how his side would react to it with just a few matches under its collective belt.

"We had yet to play a club like Carmel. We hadn’t really played many games at all,” Taylor said. “We told the girls they had to match what Carmel would bring at us in the first and last 10 minutes of the first half, then let the middle of the half kind of take care of itself."

At least in the opening stages, the Lions (3-2-0, 2-1-0) did just that, albeit not without a few close calls.

When a Saint Viator defender miss-struck a ball in the back, DiVenere collected it and found teammate Meegan Johnston, who fired on frame to force keeper Samantha Stanley to save just four minutes into the match.

An aggressive offsides trap caught the Corsairs twice more after the Johnston strike, as the frantic, fast-paced play from the visitors appeared to rattle the Lions along the back, and give the Carmel faithful the hope that a goal was on the way.

However, Lions striker Chloe Luthringshausen was put through on the left side and if not for the post, the senior would have given her side a 1-0 lead at 11 minutes.

"For all that was going on at that point, if we come down and put one into the back of the net, who knows what happens," suggested Taylor.

A nice, looping serve to the spot from Carmel’s Jen Capparelli to an awaiting Carlson saw Stanley punch the ball up and over the woodwork at the quarter hour, for one of four first-half corners, and five minutes later Carlson's left-footed cracker found the bar.

With their confidence beginning to rise, the Corsairs poured forward. It took a nice tackle from a Lions defender to stop DiVenere from reaching a marvelous ball from Elizabeth Bream at the back post.

Two consecutive corners from Johnston resulted in nothing while another clear off the line by Viator’s Liz Graff kept the Corsairs from getting into the back of the net.

"We like to possess and knock the ball around, but on this surface (grass) which is still wet from the rain, we didn't do well with it," said Halloran. "Maybe we should have played more direct but we were still dangerous going forward, so we weren't about to change the way we were playing."

The best chance for the visitors came at 35 minutes, with Johnston standing over the ball with a freekick opportunity from just outside of the box. The Lions’ wall and Stanley gave the Corsairs’ star an open near post but her attempt went just wide.

Stanley would beat both DiVenere and Carlson to a ball at the six, and then just before intermission it was Luthringshausen who broke free to run down a ball out of the back before spraying a shot at Carmel keeper Jenna Bauer wide.

"Erin (Renee Murphy) was all over the place for us in the middle of the park in that first half, winning balls, playing strong on both sides of the ball and doing a great job of getting us forward when we needed to, which was especially important with us having trouble getting and staying organized in the back," Lions assistant T.J. King said.

"We had our chances in that first half and didn't finish, and if you've been playing long enough you know that can come back and get you later on," began DiVenere.

"We talked at half about keeping our focus and to continue playing hard, and coming out of the break I really felt like we did that for the most part, especially leading up to our goal."

It was the home side that in fact started the second half more brightly, with Luthringshausen serving up a lovely ball to Molly Ziegler that Carmel’s Emily Helle headed from danger.

Moments later, Viator’s Lauren Kohn went just wide after a Murphy helper.

"That little freshman (Kohn) showed a lot of poise out there today, and she is someone who will get better as we continue to get further into the season," said Taylor.

As fast as the Lions were out of the blocks after intermission, it was Carlson who struck what would be the eventual game-winner with a shot at the 53-minute mark.

"Kayla (Handel) gave me just a great ball," began Carlson, who beat a pair of defenders before slipping her attempt past a diving Stanley with a superb touch.

"Getting that first goal was big but in a game like this, and against Saint Viator, you never know if it's going to be enough," Halloran said. "In the end, I thought it was the play of our midfield and our backline of Handel, Leah (Lach), Claire (Ogrinc), Emily (Helle) and Jen Capparelli that made the difference.”

The Corsairs nearly doubled their lead on the hour with Sadie Jung on the end of a chance, but Viator’s Maria Petrillo -- back for the first time this season after a knee injury -- took the ball out of the area to keep her club close.

Despite their early trouble, the Lions’ back four found its form and did well to keep most everything in front of them during the final quarter hour of regulation, helping to give their club a chance to draw even.

Petrillo, Graff, and Kayne Stanley won balls and tackled efficiently, while Taylor received quality minutes off the bench from Sarah Cooney and Megan McCollum in the middle and up top.

But in the end, it wasn't enough. 

"We're disappointed with the result,” Taylor said. “We could have put a couple in. But they could have, also.

"We’ll see what this team is made of in the next twelve or thirteen days with eight games, mostly against very good 3A ball clubs. I know we have the talent here and that we’re capable of putting together a good run in the playoffs, so maybe this stretch of games is exactly what we need to get things together, put our rotation in place, and have the girls begin to play with some confidence in themselves, and their teammates."