Lions see WSC Silver title slip away as Dukes pull off late rally

By Matt Le Cren

It was Pink Out Day at Lyons Township on Tuesday, but in the end, the home team was left seeing red.

The host Lions wore pink jerseys in support of the fight against breast cancer and had the backing of several hundred fans who had purchased pink shirts.

A boisterous crowd in LaGrange thought they were going to see the Lions cap the festivities by winning a conference title, but York had other ideas.

York rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the final minutes and stunned LT 3-2 in double overtime to capture the West Suburban Conference Silver Division championship.

It was just the second league title in school history for the Dukes. They won their first, coincidentally, on the same field two years ago.

"I think just all-around we stepped up," said York junior Danielle Vujovic, who scored the game-winner with 4:28 left in the second overtime.

"We knew we wanted to win, so we had to step up everywhere and we did and it started going our way."

Freshman Ellie Ordonez, playing in her fifth career game after being sidelined for four months because of a back injury, started the decisive play.

She dribbled into the right side of the LT penalty area and crossed to Vujovic, who collided with Lions goalie Renata Butikas just as the ball arrived.

Butikas, who bruised her ribs when she banged into the post on the play, got a hand on the ball but not enough to stop it from going in.

"I didn't want to go into PKs," Vujovic said. "Once I saw that cross, I was like, 'This is it, let's go.' I got my head on it and it just happened to go in."

For Ordonez, the victory provided some payback for the heckling she said she received from the LT student section.

"[I just had to] stay composed and not let their fans get to me," Ordonez said. "Honestly, they were getting to me a little bit, but all my rage just came out on the field and I just took it out on them.

"I was so mad. I just saw 'D' coming across and I just sent it across and she was on it and it was amazing. It just felt so good."

Ordonez got the rally started when she knocked in a cross from Ashley Bowman with 6:13 left in regulation to cut the gap to 2-1.

She then triggered the play that allowed the Dukes (14-4, 6-0) to tie it at the 3:39 mark.

Her shot from outside the box eluded a diving Butikas and caromed off the inside of the left post.

The ball dribbled behind Butikas along the goal line and Christina Ordonez – Ellie's sophomore sister – pounced on it for her 31st goal of the season.

"It hurts," Lyons coach Bill Lanspeary said. "Our kids worked awfully hard, felt like we were right there and I'm sure our kids felt in the last five minutes that we had it. We just kind of let it slip away.

"We kind of got a little tired, you could see we were starting to give them a little too much space and they were good enough to make us pay. We just maybe let off the gas a little bit, let up a little bit too early and then the momentum swung."

It was a bitter lesson for the Lions (13-4-1, 5-1), who played much of the match at a high level and appeared ready to coast to victory.

After Butikas, who finished with 11 saves, made a couple of big stops in the early going, the Lions seized the initiative and took a 2-0 lead.

Sophomore Mackie Furlong opened the scoring with 21:57 left in the first half when she ran onto a perfectly placed cross from the right wing by Kelsey Holbert and beat lunging York keeper Anna Bell Lansdowne inside the left post.

The Lions made it 2-0 nine minutes later. A hard shot by Emma Meyering was rejected by a charging Lansdowne, but the Dukes failed to get to the rebound and Lauren Moberg's 22-yard shot found the back of the net.

LT had several chances to increase its lead but was unable to do so. Though each team launched 16 shots in regulation, the hosts did a great job of bottling up the dangerous Christina Ordonez.

Thanks to the play of Elise Gordon and Steph Condon, Christina Ordonez did not have a true scoring chance until the final 10 minutes of the second half.

"We played well today," Gordon said. "I think they outworked us at the end. Especially coming off the two goals in a row they had a lot of momentum and I think they just let that carry them and we missed marks and that's what happens.

"[The lesson is], obviously, the game is not over, so play hard for 80 minutes and I think that was kind of what got us."

Though disappointed, Furlong said the Lions can learn from the defeat.

"It stinks to say this might help us, like a reality check," Furlong said. "I don't think we played bad at all. The first half we were definitely outplaying them. We just lost it in the second half, but I still think after the two goals we still put up as much as we could.

"It just wasn't enough. I definitely think we could have beaten them. I think if we keep this momentum and aggression up, I think we can do pretty well."

Despite the loss, Pink Out Day proved to be a big hit. The Lions, who last Saturday conducted a clinic for 85 girls ages 5-13, sold over 800 shirts and between that and other donations made at the game, over $4,000 was raised.

The funds will be donated to LT's Relay for Life and the Karen Dove Cabral Foundation, which helps working mothers with breast cancer.

"Besides the loss it was a great success," Gordon said. "It was great to see everyone come out and the kids support it. Hopefully it creates awareness for the school and the team. It's a great cause."

For York, the win was the first signature victory of the season and could foreshadow a long run in the upcoming playoffs.

"It's definitely a big boost of confidence, knowing that you can't give up, ever, after you've been scored on," Vujovic said. "I'm excited for the playoffs now."

CLICK TO SEE LIONS' TEAM PAGE

CLICK TO SEE LIONS' PHOTO PAGE