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By Darryl Mellema

For 40 minutes on Saturday night, St. Charles North looked unstoppable. The North Stars passed, moved, created opportunities and scored goals – and there seemed very little crosstown rival St. Charles East could do about it.

Then the teams broke for halftime and the visiting Saints scored 90 seconds into the second half – and the nature of the match changed completely,. St. Charles North still won the latest girls soccer version of the city's crosstown rivalry, but it had to work very hard in order to preserve the victory.

“We talked before the game and at halftime that they were a good team we were playing and that the momentum was going to shift,” St. Charles North coach Ruth Vostal said. “You've just got to weather the storm. There were some definite areas of weakness and areas we need to work on that were exposed in the second half.”

The North Stars (6-0, 4-0 Upstate Eight) tore into the Saints from the opening kickoff. Leah DeMoss worked at the top of the penalty area and shot wide after 60 seconds of play. In the 14th minute of play, Paige Dusek moved from the center of the field to her right at the top of the penalty area but put her shot high and wide.

That sustained pressure meant the ball was frequently in St. Charles East's half of play, and the pressure paid off in the 19th minute when the North Stars pounced on a poorly cleared ball, got it to DeMoss, and the senior scored.

“I thought in the first half, we switched the ball well and we got different people involved,” Vostal said.

That goal lifted the North Stars but St. Charles East clawed its way back – and forced a corner kick with 15 minutes to play in the half. Kristen Manski collected the ball and started a counter attack that led to DeMoss racing up the right sideline. She cut the ball back for Alyssa Peterson, who scored the game's second goal.

“Right before the game, (Vostal) said 'if you don't score, I'm going to sit you,'” DeMoss said. “That was going through my head as I was running down the field. I made that end line run. We worked on that all day (Friday) in practice. It was nice to have do have to do that in the game and to have it work.”

As comfortable as the North Stars appeared after DeMoss scored, they seemed to hit an even higher gear after Peterson's goal.

“It was a big lift for the whole team,” Peterson said. “A 1-0 game and basically anyone can win the game. A 1-0 lead isn't much of a lead. A to get that 2-0 sets more of a pace for the game. It gives us confidence to try to get another one and it kind of sets them back to know that they're down two goals.”

Needing a lift, St. Charles East got one less than two minutes into the second half when Cat Camic scored. The goal was the first allowed this year by the North Stars.

“I feel like in the first half, we kept our composure,” DeMoss said. “The second half it felt like a completely different game. We were all over the place.”

While all teams give up goals at some point, Camic's goal set the North Stars on their heels and their relaxed, passing style never really returned.

“I think it was a turning point in our season,” DeMoss said. “We were kind of taken back with the fact that (the ball) was in the net. It were like 'wow, that's what's going to happen against a real team.' It was a reality check.”

With the deficit halved, St. Charles East tore at the North Stars and the game assumed a frenetic pace. By the end of the match, possession time was counted more in seconds than in passes for either team. The game also became more of a midfield battle and neither offense was able to carve many chances. Saints goalie Zoe Samaan had to make a couple of key saves and Dusek hit a shot wide late in the half.

“In the second half, they came in with a lot more fire,” Peterson said. “I think that we didn't have as much fire as we did in the first half. By the end of the game, it was anybody's.”

The match gave the North Stars reworked defense a chance to show what it could do. Sophomore Lisa Manski is still fitting into the sweeper's role in front of senior sister Kristen, the team's goalkeeper.

“We're still trying to figure out where we're going to put people,” Vostal said. “But I told them that good teams that work hard have good things happen to them. We wanted to come out with a win and that's what happened.”

Of the attacking players who impressed was a newcomer to the varsity – sophomore Lauren Koehl, who played as an outside midfielder and had a series of significant runs.

“Last year as a freshman, we looked at her all week in tryouts and she was someone we looked at seriously for the varsity,” Vostal said. “Last year we had so many forwards that we thought she would get more playing time on JV and she did. But all year, when we struggled to score, we looked at her. She's tough, she's aggressive and she has speed. She reminds me of (DeMoss) a few years ago and I think she'll be incredible in a couple of years.”

St. Charles North's game with Bartlett, scheduled for Wednesday, has been moved up 24 hours and the site has changed as well. The teams will play at 7 p.m. at St. Charles North.