Hornets put up good fight in loss to rival Red Devils

By Paul LaTour

The lineup Hinsdale Central used Friday night looked a little different than it did a year ago when the Red Devils won their first state championship.

Some of that is a result of graduation. Some is also a result of injuries, including a season-ending torn ACL to goalkeeper Nicole D'Agostino suffered on April 14.

Another notable loss – Stanford-bound Toni Kokenis – came because a player opted to concentrate on basketball for her senior season.

So it was with relief that the Red Devils welcomed back Olivia Trilla from a broken left ankle suffered during preseason.

In only her second game of the season, Trilla scored to lead the Red Devils to a 2-0 victory over their District 86 rival Hinsdale South at Benedictine University on Friday night.

"We're trying to just spot her, give her 15- to 20-minute runs and try to build her up a little bit," Red Devils coach Skip Begley said of Trilla, who made her debut Thursday in a loss to Waubonsie Valley.

"So it was good to see her in and to give her some quality minutes and get a finish."

Trilla's goal gave the Red Devils (7-5) a 1-0 lead with 8:49 left in the first half.

On an Eryka Hawkins center that bounced in on Hornets goalie Vanessa Niestrom, Trilla was able to pounce on a deflection in a crowd and get her first goal of the season.

"I didn't think I was actually going to get it because there were so many people around me," said Trilla, who scored eight goals as a junior last season.

"But it worked to my advantage. I was just standing in front of the goal doing what I was supposed to do."

The game stayed that way until the 76th minute when senior Melissa Boduch ripped a low shot past Niestrom, a freshman who finished with seven saves.

The goal allowed the Red Devils to breathe a little easier for the final 4:31.

"We were getting a little nervous when it was that close," Boduch said. "To have a two-goal lead – not that you can relax – but it's a little bit easier on you, especially on defense.

"You can be a little more aggressive and not have to worry about getting beat."

The Hornets (3-7) battled throughout the night, but couldn't put consistent pressure on Red Devils goalie Allison Donnely, who started in order to give Katie Tarmon rest as Central completes three games in three days.

Donnely didn't make a save, but the Red Devils needed a nonkeeper save to earn the team's sixth shutout of the season.

The Hornets nearly broke through in the 36th minute off a corner kick when Jessy Mutters headed the ball toward the goal, past Donnely.

But a Red Devils defender was near the goal line to head the ball back out of danger.

Despite being shorthanded with injuries, the Hornets stayed strong and had chances to tie the game in the second half.

In the 60th minute, Mutters sent a through ball into the penalty area. But Donnely snatched it up just before Brenda Maugeri could get to it.

Three minutes earlier, Mutters had prevented the Red Devils from adding to their lead.

Mallory Feinstein, who had a handful of chances throughout the game, tried to split through the Hornets defenders, but Mutters was able to angle her off and steal the ball.

"It was a nice balanced game – a little more balanced than it has been in past years," said Hornets coach Pat Wolf, whose team lost 6-1 to the Red Devils last season.

"There are times when I think we're doing some good things, but we're still making mental mistakes. That's the hard part."

The Hornets played without Brittney Noble and Meagan McPherson due to injuries. Wolf said Noble needed three stitches in her knee after getting hurt against Downers Grove North on Thursday.

McPherson is no longer using crutches after suffering a stress fracture above the ankle, so Wolf said she could return sooner than planned.

"We're playing some younger kids out there and we need a little more conversation out there and connectiveness between our passes," Wolf said.

"We talk about the word composure, and it was lacking at times."

The match was part of a Friday Night Lights event at Benedictine that featured Central vs. South in three events – girls soccer, baseball and softball.

"I wish it would have been a better night so we could have dragged more people out," said Wolf, referring to the rainy, damp evening. “I hope this continues."

The Hornets return to Benedictine on Monday to face Benet at 6:30 p.m. The Red Devils resume play in the Naperville Invitational on Saturday at noon against Sandburg at Naperville North.

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