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  Friday Updates         

  By Aaron Brown

  May 22, 2015

 

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GAME PREVIEWS (Friday, May 22)

 

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #1

4:30pm - Barrington vs Fenwick

The Friars have been waiting for this weekend since last year's season ended with an overtime loss to Loyola in the state title game. The Broncos have been waiting for the opportunity to play in this event since they began playing water polo. Which team will accomplish their dream of making it to Saturday's semifinal round when they square off in Lincolnshire on Friday afternoon?

 

Fenwick was nearly perfect this season, losing just once St Patrick back in late March. Since then they have racked up 25 straight wins and advanced to the state tournament after shutting out Curie 10-0 to win their own sectional.

 

Barrington was nearly just as perfect as their opponents, as they rattled off 22 straight victories before dropping two decisions to Naperville Central and Mundelein late in the season. They bounced back quickly to win the MSL title over Wheeling and the Schaumburg Sectional after a 10-5 triumph over Conant.

 

The two teams did not meet during the 2015 season.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #2

5:45pm - Lincoln-Way Central vs Stevenson

The Knights will look to keep their magical run going on Friday evening when they make their first-ever state tournament appearance. They will have their work cut out for them, as the Patriots will play a home game after earning their fourth-straight trip to the Big Dance.

 

Lincoln-Way Central battled to a 21-10 mark in 2015 after opening the season on a seven-game winning streak and closing the regular season with a three-game skid. After losing to three Top 5 teams at the Stevenson Tournament in Week 9, they turned things around by beating Andrew, LWN and Sandburg to win the LWN Sectional.

 

Stevenson posted an impressive 26-6 record this season, with three losses coming to #1 Fenwick and two others coming against #2 Naperville Central (the other loss was to Missouri-based SLUH in April). They beat the Knights and Neuqua Valley to close out the regular season before winning the BG Sectional with a 15-7 victory over Wheeling.

 

As previously mentioned, the Patriots defeated the Knights 12-1 on May 9 in the same location as Friday's contest.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #3

7:00pm - New Trier vs St Ignatius

The Trevians are back at the state tournament after a one-year layoff and are seeking to improve upon their best-ever finish in 2004 (4th) while hoping to challenge for their first-ever state title. The Wolfpack will also be looking to claim their first state title as they make their third-straight appearance at the annual event.

 

New Trier went 23-9-1 in 2015 and ended their season on a six-game winning streak that culminated in an 11-7 victory over the defending champs (Loyola) in the GBN Sectional title game. The majority of their losses came against Top 10 opponents and they are looking sharp after beating Loyola for the first time all season when it mattered most after losing three times to the Ramblers during the regular season.

 

Meanwhile, the Wolfpack have seemingly gotten things together after a topsy-turvy season that saw them finish with a 20-13 record. They lost the Catholic League title game to #1 Fenwick at the conclusion of the regular season before beating DeLaSalle to win their own sectional and advance to the state tournament.

 

Despite playing in two of the same tournaments (Palatine and York) the Trevians and Wolfpack never met during the 2015 season.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #4

8:15pm - Lyons vs Naperville Central

The Lions are back in the state tournament after a two-year layoff and will be looking to recreate the magic of their 2012 state title-winning season. The Redhawks are also back in the mix after three straight misses and could have their best chance at winning their first-ever state title if they can get past LT in the quarterfinal round's last contest.

 

Lyons finished with an impressive 29-4 mark that included two lengthy winning streaks. The only blemish on their record since late March was an 8-5 loss to their Friday night opponents. The Lions earned a bit of revenge last weekend by getting past Stagg in their own sectional semifinal before beating Brother Rice to advance to the state tournament.

 

Naperville Central finished the year with one of their best seasons in team history (29-2) with both of the losses coming against top-ranked Fenwick. They have won seven straight since their most recent loss to the Friars at the end of Week 8 and qualified for state after beating Neuqua Valley 12-9 in last weekend's sectional playoffs.

 

Central beat Lyons in the preliminary round of the Stevenson Tournament in Week 8 in the same location as their quarterfinal round matchup in Friday night.

 


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GAME RECAPS (Friday, May 22)

 

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #1

Fenwick 16 Barrington 9

Danny Farmer registered 6 goals and Ryan Masi scored 4 times as Fenwick outscored Barrington 9-2 late in the second half to survive a scare from the Broncos to earn a 16-9 win as they advance to the sectional semifinal round. Colin Daly added 2 late goals while Andrew Bertschy, Jack Mahoney, Bailey Wendt and Mickey McGuire each scored once in the win. Chase Lesniak netted 3 goals and Matt Gouskos scored 2 times in the loss for the Broncos, who tied the game at 7-7 late in the third period before succumbing to the late Fenwick run.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #2

Stevenson 12 Lincoln-Way Central 4

Collin Kapecki recorded 4 goals,  Dan Maleski scored 3 times and both Andrew Shashin and Kurt Holzer scored 2 times as the Patriots earned a 12-4 victory over Lincoln-Way Central on Friday. The hosts put together a 6-0 run in the second quarter to pull away from the Knights, who were led by Pat Burke's 2 second-half goals.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #3

St Ignatius 20 New Trier 9

Shane Hughes registered 7 goals and the trio of Andreas Christy, Billy Barth and Gunnar Glaab each put in 3 scores as Ignatius jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the second quarter en route to a 20-9 victory over New Trier. The Trevians got a bit closer after a 3-0 run to end the first half, but the Wolfpack proved to have too much firepower and pulled away in the second half. Jack Dunn added 2 goals and Brendan Stelmach added one score in the winning effort. Chandler Tempest netted 5 goals, Alex Grant scored 3 times and Danilo Scekic put in one goal in the loss for the Trevians.

 

 

QUARTERFINAL #4

Lyons 13 Naperville Central 11

Sam Szczepaniak scored 4 goals and Tommy Kaptur notched 3 scores as the Lions built an 11-6 lead by the middle of the third period and staved off a late rally to beat Naperville Central 13-11 to advance to the state semifinals.

 

Szczepaniak and Nathan Henderson each scored 2 goals and Adam Cardone scored once during a 5-0 run by the Lions that helped break the game open. Nick Walker, who led the Redhawks with 6 scores, tallied 3 straight goals to cut the LT lead to 11-9 before George Lundgren converted on a 5m shot to put LT ahead 12-9. Walker responded with another goal and Kyle Jackson scored his fourth of the game to trim the lead to 12-11, but Szczepaniak's left-handed lob shot helped seal the Lions win. Central had multiple chances to score down the stretch but could not find the back of the net by the time the final horn sounded.

 


 

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