Wildcats get season-high five goals in regional win over Tomcats

By Curt Herron

In a season where goals have been few and far between, Plainfield Central got the enjoy the scoring touch on Saturday afternoon.

Competing against east Aurora in a Neuqua Valley Regional match in Plainfield, the Wildcats collected a season-high five goals.

That was quite a feat, considering that Central had scored just three goals in its last nine matches, seven of which were shutouts.

The 5-0 win over the Tomcats advanced the Wildcats (8-15) to Tuesday's 4 p.m. match against Neuqua Valley in Naperville.

It also snapped a four-game losing streak as well as frustrating stretch where Central dropped eight out of nine matches.

Krista Pezzopane scored a pair of early goals to help the Wildcats grab a 2-0 halftime lead over East Aurora.

After the break, Jessica Kaminski, Kelsey Graefen and Bailey Wysocki chipped in with scores for the winners.

The Wildcats' five-goal effort topped their previous best this year, which came in a 4-0 win over Romeoville.

Janna Pascente stopped everything that the Tomcats sent her way to record the shutout in goal for the Wildcats.

Her job was easier thanks to the efforts of defenders Lauren Kulaga, Britney Lenza, Lisa Schroeder and Graefen.

Although the Wildcats were coming off of a 2-0 loss to Plainfield North the previous day, the Wildcats performed well.

And the fact that his squad was distracted by the school's prom was another positive sign for Central coach Ken Schoen.

Click to hear coach Ken Schoen interview

The match was moved to the lower level field due to a track meet at the stadium, but that didn't bother the Wildcats.

Pezzopane gave the Wildcats the only goal that they would eventually need when she scored about four minutes into the match.

About 10 minutes later, the junior forward again found the net on a short liner to give her squad an early 2-0 advantage.

Click to hear Krista Pezzopane interview

The Tomcats threatened to get a goal back a short later but one of their best attempts toward the net bounced off the post.

Late in the opening half, Graefen cleared away another East Aurora shot try and Pezzopane was stopped on a line drive shot.

Pascente was busier after the break, stopping a Tomcat attempt during the opening minutes of the final half.

But the Wildcats also had more good scoring opportunities during the last 40 minutes, starting shortly after the intermission.

Sami Jensen was stopped on a short try and following the subsequent corner kick, Amanda Jensen sent a shot just over the net.

A few minutes later, Melissa Del Sarto bounced an attempt toward the net that was also stopped by the Tomcat keeper.

Central finally connected again about 13 minutes into the second half when Kaminski fired in a liner from the side.

Several close calls followed during which Sami Jensen and Jessica Munkvold were stopped and Anna Mihelich hit the post.

Following a Tomcat threat which was halted by Pascente and cleared by Graefen, Wysocki had a short shot deflected away.

Then a Kulaga shot was cleared by a defender and a Graefen header was just wide following a corner from Taylor Caldwell.

The Wildcats added a fourth score with about 13 minutes remaining when Graefen was able to connect on a long line drive.

Click to hear Kelsey Graefen interview

Central closed out the scoring about three minutes later when Wysocki moved downfield before converting on a short shot.

The Wildcats had a few other late chances but shot attempts from Amanda Jensen and Mihelich were deflected away.

During the final minutes, Sami Jensen was stopped before Pascente pulled in a long free kick to preserve the shutout.

The Wildcats' previous shutout also happened to be its last win prior to Saturday, a 1-0 victory over Plainfield East.

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