Kemerling's first goal forces tie with Naperville North
By Matt Le Cren
The few dozen fans who braved the wintry elements Friday night to attend the Naperville North-Waubonsie Valley match can say they saw two elite teams perform at a high level with a playoff-like intensity.
In the end, nothing much was decided. Naperville North got yet another goal from Abbie Boswell in the first half, but Waubonsie Valley controlled the run of play for much of the second and salvaged a 1-1 draw thanks to an historic goal from Morgan Kemerling.
Waubonsie Valley hosted the game, which was played at Metea Valley due to unplayable conditions at Waubonsie. The Warriors (6-1-1) had their six-game winning streak snapped, while Naperville North’s winning streak ended at five, though the Huskies remain unbeaten at 5-0-2.
“We both had a great game,” Boswell said. “Waubonsie is a great team, but we stepped it up a little bit today and we tied.”
Boswell continues to step up her game in the absence of All-American forward Zoe Swift, who is slated to return from a sprained ankle at next week’s Naperville Invitational. Friday’s goal gives her 10 thus far. The sophomore has scored in all but one game.
Boswell’s latest goal came with 6:27 remaining in the first half when she sprinted past Waubonsie star Jenna Romano on the left wing and sent a 14-yard shot skittering past goalie Emma Rigby to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead.
“Jenna Romano was marking me and [my teammates] got the ball up to me and then I did a tick-tock to the left and then dove to shoot the ball and it just went into the side corner,” Boswell explained. “[I just had] a burst of energy, so that was fun. I was really excited.”
Naperville North coach Steve Goletz is excited about the play of Boswell and is licking his chops in anticipation of what his offense might do when Swift returns.
“Abbie Boswell has been phenomenal for us up top,” Goletz said. “To be playing without our All-American in Zoe and still be able to generate chances obviously speaks volumes for the kids and we’re definitely looking to build on this and we’re definitely looking to get Zoe back and see where we are when we have all our pieces.”
The Huskies came close to increasing their lead early in the second half, but Christa Szalach had a 20-yard shot miss the right post by a yard with 38:10 to go and 11 minutes later Emily Bromagen rattled the crossbar with a drive from the top of the box.
The rebound of Bromagen’s shot ping-ponged around in front before Meghan Lee’s off-balance poke from 12 yards out went over the crossbar.
Naperville North was trying to become just the second team to score more than one goal against the Warriors this season. Waubonsie gave up two in a 2-0 season-opening loss to Lyons Township. Both of those goals came on free kicks, so scoring on the Warriors in the run of play is a big deal.
It didn’t happen in the second half as the back line of Romano, Rachele Armand, Rachel Brots and Maddie Pokora was superb in holding Boswell without a shot and the Huskies as a team to just four after intermission.
Romano, meanwhile, was making herself known at the other end with a series of dangerous set pieces. In the first five minutes of the second half alone she missed wide on an 18-yard free kick and saw another free kick from 37 yards out barely miss the head of teammate Kristen Dodson in front before it was caught by Naperville North goalie Fiona Baenziger.
Baenziger, a sophomore in her first varsity season, and Romano combined to star in a highlight reel play that ended up leading to Waubonsie’s tying goal.
Despite kicking into a stiff wind, Romano drilled a frozen rope of a free kick from 38 yards away that was ticketed for the upper left corner of the net. But Baenziger lunged to her right and, with both feet well off the ground, knocked the ball safely around the left post.
“I couldn’t even tell you [how she stopped it],” Baenziger said. “It was just lots of practice and instinct.”
“That was a phenomenal save by Fiona and those are the things you need against teams like Waubonsie,” Goletz said. “You need somebody to come up and make some big plays and I think that we did that a little bit tonight across the board.”
But the Huskies weren’t the only team making big plays. Baenziger’s denial of Romano only postponed Waubonsie’s breakthrough because Armand sent the ensuing corner kick straight to the head of sophomore Morgan Kemerling, whose floating nod from 10 yards out sailed over a scrum of players from both teams and over the head of Baenziger with 5:38 left.
The goal was Kemerling’s first at the varsity level and just the fourth surrendered by the Huskies.
“That was very intense,” Kemerling said. “I did not expect that. I was just in the moment.
“I was like, ‘I need to get a touch on it and I know someone on my team will finish it.’ And it just ended up going in.”
Baenziger actually got her fingers on the ball as it crossed the plane but was unable to stop it.
“I got a hand on it but I didn’t have enough power on it,” said Baenziger, who made five saves and has recorded three shutouts thus far. “Those are the ones you always [want to] reach up and push it over.”
The decision left both teams feeling good about their effort though less than fulfilled with the outcome. Naperville North could boast it had the better scoring chances but the Warriors can say they outshot the Huskies 18-8, including 12-4 in the second half against the wind.
The local rivals could meet twice more this season, with potential matchups at the Naperville Invitational and the Bolingbrook Sectional.
“We always want to come out with a win, but [we were] starting down a goal, which we usually do this season,” Kemerling said. “It’s not how we like to start but we ended up pulling a tie out, which is alright. So we’re happy with this.”
Were the Huskies happy?
“It was a fair result,” Boswell said, “but I’m still a little disappointed.”
“I’m pleased with the girls’ effort,” Goletz said. “It’s a tough team that we just played, especially [playing] three games [in three nights].”
