Eagles can't hold off Barrington in regional final

 

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By Dan Santaromita

Barrington’s regional final win over Jacobs was a great example of how playoff games can be tense until one team breaks the ice and scores.

The host Fillies possessed the ball very well throughout the match against the Golden Eagles, but didn’t get on the board until the second half. Once they took the lead, the goals kept flowing and Barrington claimed the Class 3A regional trophy with a 3-0 win.

Molly Pfeiffer scored two goals, including the opener right out of halftime that started the scoring spree. Aimee Pierce scored the second goal and assisted on Pfeiffer’s first.

“I think for us as a team getting the first goal is a really big positive for us,” Pfeiffer said. “It gives us motivation to push forward. It shows how much energy and work rate we need to score that other goal.”

After a tentative start to the match, Sarah Fox came inches from scoring on the match’s first shot. In the tenth minute, Fox settled a ball just outside the box and lofted a shot over goalkeeper Monica Orjuela. Orjuela could only watch as the ball hit the crossbar and bounced back into play.

For the rest of the half, Barrington stayed on the front foot, but was unable to beat Orjuela (11 saves). That changed quickly.

Seconds into the second half, forward Emily Hyde displayed her vision and passing ability with a nice lob pass that found Pierce on the left wing. Pierce played the ball towards the goal and Pfeiffer directed it in.

“Normally I miss wide so it’s just natural for it to be a cross,” Pierce joked. “It was a really good finish by Molly. She worked really hard all game.”

Jacobs responded well to going down a goal, but when Pierce knocked in a Morgan Stachura cross to double the lead in the 62nd minute the Golden Eagles seemed disheartened.

“We haven’t been pressured like that since maybe Huntley… but even then we played without (Cassidy Sherman) so even then it’s a different look,” Jacobs coach AJ Cappello said. “We’re a real strong team, but when they press you that hard it’s tough to find a rhythm.”

Two minutes later Emmelie Hirdes flicked on a Mia Calamari corner kick towards Pfeiffer at the back post, who finished to make it three goals in less than 25 minutes.

“I think personally we’re a better second half team,” Pfeiffer said. “The work rate stepped up a lot and the will to put one away was in our mind and the fact that we didn’t want to wait until the end.”

 

The Fillies’ pressure kept the ball in Jacobs’ half for most of the match. Barrington ‘keeper Kelly Pedersen (3 saves) didn’t face any shots in the first half.

Lauren Grady was Jacobs’ best threat up top, but every time she was on the ball multiple defenders swarmed her. The Fillies back line of Hirdes, Stachura, Calamari and Emily Morin did very well to contain a physical Jacobs attack.

Despite the drastically different result, Stengren said nothing changed in the second half.

“Honestly we had a lot of good looks in the first half,” he said. “We hit the post and a lot of the looks we had we hit right at (Orjuela). The thing that I reminded them at halftime was not falling asleep because I’ve seen them knock the ball around. I didn’t want them to come down one time when we’ve had all these chances and score.”

In Wednesday’s regional semifinal Barrington fell down 2-0 to Lake Zurich, but was able to engineer a 4-2 comeback win. Stengren used his team’s depth on Friday with frequent subs out of concern that the comeback wore them out.

It is the Fillies’ third regional title in a row, but as Stengren said, regional titles are not the goal at a program like Barrington. In Tuesday’s sectional semifinal they will take on nationally ranked Huntley at Jacobs. Barrington (15-6-1) has knocked Huntley out of the playoffs the last two years.

“I don’t envy the position Huntley is in right now because they’re the sixth ranked team in the country,” Stengren said. “Their expectation is to go to state or it’s kind of a down year for them.

“The only people that probably expect us to win that game are the kids that are on my team.”

Jacobs (19-7) is disappointed not to be able to compete in its own sectional, but Cappello still called it a great year. His side loses only two seniors, Orjuela and Shannon Grady.

“We’re bringing back 18 girls so we’re happy,” Cappello said. “Remember this feeling for next year and build from there.

“With a young team sometimes you don’t know how to respond in pressure situations, but the girls wanted it. They left it out there.”