Rams score twice to win 4-3 over West Aurora
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By D.J. Wanberg
The current television season is winding up with cliffhanger episodes and the words "To be continued" at the bottom of the screen.
On Thursday night the cliffhanger concept also applied to the West Aurora at Glenbard East girls’ soccer game.
With 5:43 left in the first half and at approximately 7:14 p.m. lightning was spotted with the western sky looking like a dark ink pad. The teams left the field and the fans needed very little reminder that lightning and sitting on metal bleachers don't mix.
As the teams waited out the delay inside the school, a heavy rain started and lightning could still be seen. At approximately 7:50 p.m., coaches from both teams, after meeting with the game's officials and athletic department staff from East, announced to their teams that the game would resume Friday at 4:30 p.m. in Lombard, right where the contest left off.
When play resumed on Friday, West Aurora took a 3-2 lead in the second half when Reilly Kulakowski intercepted a clearance attempt and finished from just beyond the 18.
"Defensive mistakes continue to haunt us," Glenbard East coach Kent Overbey said. "That is the only the second time all season we have given up more than two goals, the other coming to Naperville North. We pride ourselves on how well we defend and we need to tighten up again in the back."
That's when Jordyn Hargreaves and Sadie Moore came to the rescue for the Rams, with Megan Nelson and Alex Ruffer setting them up. Hargreaves collected a pass from Nelson and ripped a shot just under the cross bar from the 18 to tie the game in the second half.
The Rams continued to pressure over the last 5 minutes and with 30 seconds remaining, the freshman Ruffer took a West Aurora player on down the left sideline, got around the corner and sent a ball in to the near post. Freshman Moore buried a volley from inside the 6 yard box to close out the game 4-3.
On the Rams' senior night, this game was about offense as both teams aggressively attacked the net and came up with shots that the goalkeepers had no chance on to save.
The Blackhawks (8-6-7, 0-3-2 in DVC play) scored just 1:13 left in the game, after the Ram defense whiffed on two chances to clear the ball from in front of its net. West Aurora's Jessica Saffell got around a defender, had three-fourths of an open net all to herself, and made good on the chance.
West Aurora had a great opportunity to make it 2-0 with just less than 32 minutes left in the half when Brynn Lehman got on a breakaway to only about 10 yards from Glenbard East goalkeeper Veronica Fairbairn (two saves). But the Rams' Nicole Darga just got to her in time and skillfully forced Lehman away from the ball and grabbed it herself.
Glenbard East's Lindsey Paganucci paced the Ram offense before the contest was suspended. At the 28:27 mark, her shot hit the net's crossbar and went in to tie the game after some particularly good, sustained pressure on the Blackhawk net by the Rams.
Soon after, her 20-yard shot forced West Aurora goalkeeper Felicia Dattolo (three saves) to leap in the air for a diving save. West Aurora got its second goal at the 15:02 mark on Saffell's shot from just inside the penalty box.
"We're pressuring their defense and forcing them to make mistakes and we've scooped up the turnovers," West Aurora coach Laura Wagley said.
About 19 minutes later, Paganucci's shot from 15 yards made into the far corner of the net to deadlock the game at 2-2.
"I like what we are doing offensively, but we have to step it up defensively," Overbey said. "Offensively, we were pretty happy with our play this week. We scored 11 goals in two contests and we are finally finishing some balls out of the air. We have a tough game against a dangerous Wheaton North team on Tuesday."
With the win, the Rams improved to 9-6-3 overall and 2-2-1 in DVC play.
