^{Preview Play-by-play Recap}

Preview

Quarterfinal #4: Naperville Central (29-4) vs Sandburg (28-5)

Game Time: 8:15pm; Friday, May 20

Coaches: NC-Bill Salentine (11th year) / Sandburg-Jim Caliendo (18th year)

How They Got Here: NC beat Naperville North 19-5 at the Neuqua Sectional. Sandburg beat H-F 10-4 at the LWN Sectional.

Previous 2011 Meetings: NC leads series 1-0. Naperville Central beat Sandburg 8-4 on 5/5.

Current Rankings: NC - #3 / Sandburg - #6

Top Performers: NC (Kyle Rickert - 105 goals) / Sandburg (Erik Niemeier - 113 goals)

The Goalies: NC (Pat Stablein) / Sandburg (Tony Rogina)

Key Factors: The Eagles have been on a roll over the last month, losing only once in that span on their way to beating H-F in the LWN Sectional title game last weekend. Only one problem...that one loss was to Naperville Central exactly two weeks ago. The game was played in Naperville in a shallow-deep pool, so not only will the rematch be played in a neutral site, but the teams will have eight-lanes and an all-deep facility to work with. Other than that, the Eagles will rely on leading scorer Erik Niemeier, a well-balanced and defensive-minded starting lineup, and high-quality goaltender Tony Rogina to try and turn the tables on NC. For the Redhawks, they have won their tournament opener at state for the last three seasons, so they will be a tough out for the Eagles. Their combination of experience and firepower with Kristian Altuve and Kyle Rickert can be tough to stop, as evidenced by their three double-digit wins at the NV Sectional last weekend. Expect a thrilling nightcap to the state quarterfinals on Friday.

Other Players to Watch:

NC (Dennis Herron, Jay Howenstine, Jeff Depew, Kristian Altuve, Matt Reasons, Pat May)

Sandburg (Anthoney Bonnar, Balys Gintautas, Cody Corridino, Lucas Krull, Matt Veldman, Stephen Zieler)