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ILLINOIS WATER POLO
2005 SEASON
Naperville Central 12 Waubonsie Valley 11
March 12, 2005
Pat Leclair waited patiently for a one-on-one situation, put his head down, turned his defender, and used as much strength as he could to elevate and fire a shot into the left corner with the defender on his back to give Naperville Central a 12-11 lead with 2:39 remaining. The Redhawks' defense shut the Warriors down in the final two minutes, including a final possession where they did not allow a shot, to emerge from the Neuqua Valley Tournament with a 12-11 win.
Waubonsie started out strong in the opening quarter, as Andy Bax found Grant Gucinski for an open shot and a goal just fifteen seconds into the game. Don Lambka hit a driving Leclair for a goal to tie the score on the next play, but Bax and Gucinski hooked up again moments later, and the Warriors had a 2-1 lead after just one minute of play. Gucinski got open for a breakaway goal to make it 3-1, but Kevin Bell scored a powerplay goal and Leclair nailed a seven-meter shot with 4:27 remaining in the opening quarter to tie the game at 3-3. Naperville Central goalie Corey Stein came up big with a save on a Bax drive and then deflected Stephen Lalka's shot off the post on a one-on-one breakaway attempt. Bell added a goal on a sick backhand shot from two meters out, but Bax delivered on a powerplay goal for the right wing to tie the score at 4-4 at the end of the period.
The Warriors dominated the second quarter, with Lalka scoring on a breakaway to start things off. Matt Arnold followed that with a rebound goal to make it 6-4, but Mark McCoy's open was blocked by Stein to prevent a further deficit for the Redhawks. Brian Luth came off the bench to add a two meter goal to slice the lead to 6-5, but Gucinski extended the lead with a goal from the left wing moments later. Waubonsie's Mike Kozak scored a breakaway goal to make the score 8-5, and Brett Billenstein's powerplay goal with 2:20 to go in the half gave the Warriors their biggest lead at 9-5. Before the half ended, Leclair drew a four-meter penalty and slammed home the penalty shot to cut the advantage down to 9-6 at halftime.
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Naperville Central responded with a big third quarter, as Ryan Alberts made a steal and went coast-to-coast to score and make it 9-7. Alberts drew an ejection on Central's next offensive play, and Leclair found Bell open for a score to get the Redhawks to within 9-8. Alberts continued his efforts on the defensive end, with a field block that prevented a Waubonsie Valley powerplay opportunity. Lambka dropped a pass in to Bell at two meters, and he scored to even the game at 9-9. Lambka drew an ejection and took a pass from Bell to score Naperville Central's fifth straight goal, giving them a 10-9 advantage with 1:36 remaining in the third period. Billenstein scored on a penalty shot to tie the score once again, but Bell found Lambka streaking towards the net for a goal to put the Redhawks back ahead. Stein stopped Kozak's last second shot to keep Naperville Central ahead by one heading to the final quarter.
Gucinski hit the post on a backhand chance in the first minute of the fourth quarter, while Waubonsie goalie Matt Crittenden made a brilliant save on Bell's backhand to keep the Warriors within one. Bax scored from the left wing with 4:49 left in the game to tie things up at 11-11. Stein stopped a Bax shot on the Warriors next possession, and Leclair scored the eventual game-winner with 2:39 remaining.
Bell made a key steal on Gucinski with 2:02 to play, and Stein made another steal with Gucinski driving with 1:12 to go. The Warriors had one last possession with a chance to score with 0:40 left, but they failed to get a shot off and Naperville Central ran out the clock for the 12-11 win.
Leclair and Bell each scored four goals for the Redhawks, Lambka scored twice, and Luth and Alberts each added a goal. Waubonsie Valley was lead by Arnold (3 goals), Gucinski (2 goals), Bax (2 goals), and Billenstein (2 goals), while Lalka and Kozak scored once.
The win gave Naperville Central a 3-0 record for the weekend, as they also knocked off Neuqua Valley and Naperville North, and capped off a 6-0 opening week for the Redhawks. The Warriors finished the weekend with a 2-1 record, as they also defeated Neuqua Valley and Naperville North.
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