Complete Weekend Updates (News, Previews, and Recaps)                                                     <<<   Previous blog entry

By Aaron Brown

March 19-20, 2010

 

SATURDAY'S FEATURED VIDEO

FENWICK TOURNAMENT (BOYS)   #1 Oak Park vs #2 Naperville Central   Check out the complete video highlights  >>>

 

SATURDAY NIGHT NOTES

The following information will be ready to go for Monday...a new article, a new  'Players to Watch' list, updated standings, new rankings, Ballers of the Week, Super Ballers, The Illpolo Report (weekly summary), and a preview of Monday's action. In the meantime, send any updates and missing scores to illpolo2010@gmail.com and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

 

SATURDAY GAME RECAPS

BOYS FENWICK TOURNAMENT Oak Park Makes Early Season Statement With 16-10 Win Over Fenwick; Wins Dan Lynch Tournament The top-ranked Huskies sent a strong message to the rest of the state this weekend, earning an emphatic victory over #3 Fenwick 16-10 to win the Dan Lynch Tournament on Saturday evening. The win comes one day after OPRF knocked off #2 Naperville Central 13-12 and kept the Huskies (6-0) perfect for the season after two weeks.   In front of a beyond-capacity crowd (with people sitting on stairwells, standing behind the scorer's table, and literally all over the pool deck), Oak Park kept a manageable lead throughout the first half before putting more pressure on the Friars in the second half to win by a six-goal margin. Tommy Poulos recorded 5 goals and Dylan O'Connell added 4 scores to lead the Huskies, but a balanced attack that saw Armando Lee, Luke O'Connell, and Troy Williams each score 2 goals made the Oak Park offense a difficult one to contain for the host Friars. Eric Hallman also added a goal in the win for Oak Park.   John Osborne led Fenwick with 4 goals, while Ted Herbstritt and Will Rigali each scored 2 times in the loss for the Friars. Connor Brown and DJ Gallo each chipped in with one goal apiece for Fenwick.   Other recaps from Saturday's tournament games:   Fenwick 12 Homewood-Flossmoor 6 The Friars jumped out to an 8-1 halftime lead en route to a 12-6 win over Homewood-Flossmoor on Saturday morning, moving them into the title game of the Dan Lynch Tournament in Oak Park this weekend. Matt Farmer recorded 5 goals and Connor Brown and Will Rigali each added 2 scores in the win for the Friars. Shay Banton scored 3 goals and Russell Maanum added 2 scores in the loss for the Vikings.   Curie 13 St Patrick 7 Eduardo Chavez registered 5 goals, Sam Lopez scored 4 times, and Ramiro Almarez added 3 scores in Curie's 13-7 win over St Patrick. Peter Blume led the Shamrocks with 3 goals in the losing effort.   Stevenson 18 Neuqua Valley 11 Josh Hodges recorded 7 goals, Alex Rembialkowski scored 6 times, and Doug Malfar added 5 goals to lift Stevenson to an 18-11 win over Neuqua Valley. The Wildcats narrowed the Patriots' halftime lead to 9-8 before Stevenson put the game away with a 9-2 run in the second half. AJ Quebbeman scored 3 goals and Andrew Bratsos and Kevin Patterson each scored twice in the loss for the Wildcats.   St Patrick 13 Lincoln-Way East 10 Alec Rourke tallied 5 goals, Peter Blume added 4 scores, and Julio Rodriguez scored 2 times in the Shamrocks' 13-10 victory over Lincoln-Way East. Steve Swiercz totaled 3 goals in the loss for the Griffins, while Brandon Spratt, Ryan Stuart, and Steve Walczak each added 2 goals.   Brother Rice 18 Naperville North 5 Sean Davis registered 8 goals and Matt Stelnicki added 5 scores to help the Crusaders knock off the Huskies 18-5. Rice built up an 11-0 halftime lead and never looked back in the win. Austin Katz scored 2 times in the loss for North.   Oak Park 15 St Ignatius 4 Luke O'Connell and Tommy Poulos each scored 4 times to lift the Huskies to a 15-4 victory over St Ignatius, advancing to the tournament title game against #3 Fenwick. Armando Lee added 3 goals and Dylan O'Connell and Troy Williams each scored 2 times in the win. Jack Abernethy recorded 2 scores in the loss for the Wolfpack.   Stevenson 12 Lincoln-Way East 9 Alex Rembialkowski registered 7 goals to lead Stevenson to a 12-9 win over Lincoln-Way East.   Curie 12 Neuqua Valley 7 Eduardo Chavez and Ramiro Almarez both scored 3 times and Eric Hernandez and Sam Lopez each added 2 goals as Curie beat Neuqua Valley 12-7.   Brother Rice 18 Homewood-Flossmoor 9 Sean Davis reached double-digits in the last contest of the night for the Crusaders, scoring 10 times in a 18-9 victory over H-F. Matt Stelnicki and Mike Mulcrone both added 3 goals for the Brother Rice attack. Russell Maanum scored 3 goals and Alec Wojack and Luke Dobben both scored 2 goals in the loss for the Vikings.   Naperville Central 16 St Ignatius 8 Mark Menis scored 5 goals and Kristian Altuve and Ryan Stanley each added 3 scores as the Redhawks wrapped up the weekend with a 16-8 victory over St Ignatius. Brendan Moore and Mark Alvarado both scored 3 goals in the loss for the Wolfpack.   EVANSTON TOURNAMENT McHenry Finishes Perfect Weekend, Wins Evanston Tournament McHenry defeated Evanston, GBS, GBN, and Bremen to finish with a 4-0 record and the Evanston Tournament title over the weekend. On Friday, the Warriors beat eventual second-place team Glenbrook North 16-6, as Reilly Shanahan scored 9 goals and Tim Briscoe added 4 scores. Saturday, McHenry defeated GBS 9-8 on a last-second goal from five-meter goals; Shanahan led the team with 6 scores in the win. Shanahan added 20 more goals in two wins over Bremen (19-11) and Evanston (19-6), totaling 35 scores for the four-game tournament.   Meanwhile, Tytus Kwiatkowski recorded 5 goals to lead Glenbrook North to an 11-10 win over rival Glenbrook South on Saturday. He also scored 5 times in a 13-12 win over Evanston and added 5 goals in a 15-9 victory over Bremen as the Spartans finished the tournament in second place. GIRLS NAPERVILLE CENTRAL TOURNAMENT Naperville Central 11 Oak Park 0 Claire Fleming scored 4 goals, Abbey Kerth scored 3 times, and Sam Virella and Julia Campbell combined in goal to earn an 11-0 shutout win. Claire Wirtz, Emily Sejna, Robyn Stanley, and Vanessa Lin each added one goal apiece in the Redhawks' victory, while Huskies' goalie Vicki Maslowski made 10 saves in the losing effort.   Naperville North 14 York 2 Audrey Chien scored 5 goals and Lindsay Jansen and Katie O'Dea each scored 3 times in the Huskies' big 14-2 win over York. Jessica Cleveland scored 2 goals in the loss for the Dukes.   Naperville Central 7 Mundelein 5 Emily Sejna scored 3 goals and both Abbey Kerth and Claire Fleming scored 2 times to help the Redhawks advance to the title game of their own tournament with a 7-5 win over Mundelein. Evelyn Kurzac led the Mustangs with 3 scores, while goalie Emily Tylka recorded 13 saves in the loss.   Homewood-Flossmoor 10 Naperville North 8 Hannah Ongman scored 4 goals, Rebecca Matthews added 3 scores, and goalie Sophie Schloen recorded 7 saves in the Vikings' 10-8 win over Naperville North. The win moves H-F into the title game to face host Naperville Central.   Mundelein 5 Oak Park 2 Alexis Jones scored 3 times and Evelyn Kurzac added 2 goals as Mundelein knocked off Oak Park 5-2. Katie Hunt and Paige Gruber  both tallied goals in the loss for the Huskies.   Homewood-Flossmoor 16 York 5 Michelle Mayer scored 5 goals, Hannah Ongman and Rebecca Matthews each scored 3 times, and Maya Holst added 2 goals to lead H-F past York 16-5. Cheryl Skukas scored 2 goals in the loss for the Dukes.   Oak Park 4 York 0 (5th place game) Vicki Maslowski scored on a full-court shot at the end of the first half to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead, and Alison Coogan, Katie Hunt, and Kimmy Stefanik each added goals in the second half to help Oak Park claim a 4-0 shutout win over York in the fifth-place game at NC. Maslowski recorded 8 saves plus a goal and earned her first shutout of the season.   Mundelein 14 Naperville North 2 (3rd place game) Alexis Jones totaled 9 goals to lead Mundelein to a 14-2 win over Naperville North in the third-place game of the NC Tournament. Evelyn Kurzac added 2 scores in the win for the Mustangs.   Naperville Central 11 Homewood-Flossmoor 7 (1st place game) Claire Fleming scored 5 goals and Abbey Kerth added 4 scores as Naperville Central won their own tournament with an 11-7 win over Homewood-Flossmoor. Hannah Ongman scored 4 times and Michelle Mayer added 2 scores in the loss for the Vikings.   STC NORTH TOURNAMENT Andrew Knocks Off Buffalo Grove To Win STC North Tournament Andrew and Buffalo Grove both went 2-0 on Saturday morning to advance to the title game of the STC North Tournament. The T-Bolts earned 15-2 win over the hosts as Leah McCarthy led the way with 3 goals. Later, Andrew beat Hoffman 14-3 as McCarthy and Amanda Kuchan both tallied 3 scores in the win. Buffalo Grove advanced to the final game with wins over Lake Forest and Conant.   Update: Andrew beat Buffalo Grove in convincing fashion (19-7) to win the STC North Tournament. Amanda Kuchan recorded 7 goals, Katie Fischer scored 4 times, and Leah McCarthy tallied 3 scores in the win.   LOCKPORT TOURNAMENT St Ignatius Remains Undefeated With Three Wins and Wins Lockport Tournament St Ignatius earned wins over Mother McAuley, Neuqua Valley, and Lockport on Saturday to improve to 7-0 and win the Lockport Tournament. Stats and score updates to follow.   Meanwhile, Neuqua Valley finished in second place after they stunned Mother McAuley 4-3 on Saturday; Danielle Cirrintano scored 2 times and both Chelsea Pesesky and Jen Nehls each contributed one goal apiece in the victory. The Wildcats also defeated the host Porters 15-3 as Rachel Lehman scored 4 times and Jordan Julius added 3 goals.

 

SATURDAY GAME PREVIEWS

There is plenty to pay attention to on Saturday as nine tournaments get underway starting at 8:00am in various places across the state.   BOYS FENWICK TOURNAMENT The action heats up at Fenwick after seeing #1 Oak Park defeat #2 Naperville Central 13-12 on Friday night, one day after #4 Brother Rice and #5 Lyons finished in a 10-10 draw. Big games in the early stages of the championship round include #1 Oak Park facing #6 St Ignatius and #2 Naperville Central taking on #5 Lyons. Meanwhile, the 8:00am game between #3 Fenwick and #12 H-F will determine who gets a shot at the winner of the OPRF/Ignatius game mentioned earlier. Other potential matchups include a rematch between Brother Rice and Lyons or a late contest between Naperville Central and Brother Rice. We'll know a lot more after the first few games on Saturday.   EVANSTON TOURNAMENT Glenbrook North comes off their second straight win over Evanston when they take on rival Glenbrook South in the early game at the Evanston Tournament. The last fixture of the day between McHenry and Evanston should also lead to an interesting outcome.   HINSDALE CENTRAL TOURNAMENT There are still a few things to determine in the early games at the Red Devils' Tournament, but Hinsdale Central and Lincoln-Way Central will both be in the title mix with either Andrew or Lockport when all is said and done.   VERNON HILLS TOURNAMENT Lake Forest in the driver's seat for the VH Tournament title after earning wins over Barrington and Deer Park on Friday night. They will need to get past Libertyville and Vernon Hills in order to finish undefeated on Saturday. GIRLS BREMEN TOURNAMENT #17 Bremen takes on Stagg in the first semifinal while Marian meets an undefeated Bradley team in the other semifinal on Saturday afternoon. The winners will face each other at 4:30pm tomorrow evening.   LOCKPORT TOURNAMENT #5 Mother McAuley seeks revenge against #2 St Ignatius at 2:00pm on Saturday at the Lockport Tournament, which uses a round-robin format for the four teams competing. #23 Neuqua Valley also joins the previous two teams and the host Porters for this one.   NAPERVILLE CENTRAL TOURNAMENT The second-ranked Redhawks will look to keep their six-game winning streak alive as they invite #8 H-F, #14 Mundelein, Oak Park, #21 Naperville North, and York to town for a nine-game tournament on Saturday.   STC NORTH TOURNAMENT The North Stars play host to #24 Andrew and a handful of up-and-coming teams on Saturday, which includes Buffalo Grove, Conant, Hoffman, and Lake Forest.

 

FRIDAY'S FEATURED ARTICLE

'The REAL March Madness' By Aaron Brown

 

FRIDAY GAME RECAPS

BOYS FENWICK TOURNAMENT Fenwick 15 Curie 2 Connor Brown, John Osborne, and Matt Farmer each scored 3 goals as Fenwick won the evening's first game at the Fenwick Tournament on Friday. Sam Lopez scored 2 times in the loss for the Condors.   Oak Park 13 Naperville Central 12 Luke O'Connell and Tommy Poulos both scored 4 times and O'Connell scored the clinching goal on a lob shot from the left side of the pool as #1 Oak Park defeated #2 Naperville Central 13-12 on Friday night. Dylan O'Connell totaled 3 goals for the Huskies, while Eric Hallman and Troy Williams each added a goal in the win. Kyle Rickert and Mark Menis led the Redhawks with 4 goals apiece, while Dennis Herron, Kristian Altuve, Pat May, and Ryan Stanley each added one goal in the loss. Check out the complete video highlights  >>>   Lyons 16 Neuqua Valley 1 David Sekula scored 7 goals and Michael Shapiro added 4 scores to lead the Lions to a 16-1 victory over Neuqua Valley. Brendan Tully and Kovas Zygas each scored 2 times in the win for the #5 Lyons. Mike Rooney scored the lone goal for the Wildcats in the loss.   St Ignatius 15 Naperville North 6 Mark Alvarado tallied 7 scores and Brendan Moore added 3 goals as the Wolfpack earned their second win of the tournament, a 15-6 decision over Naperville North. Austin Katz scored 2 times in the loss for the Huskies.   EVANSTON TOURNAMENT Glenbrook North 13 Evanston 12 Tytus Kwiatkowski scored 5 times in Glenbrook North's second straight 13-12 win over Evanston on Friday night.   HINSDALE CENTRAL TOURNAMENT Lincoln-Way Central 20 Riverside-Brookfield 6 Petar Jackovich totaled 7 goals and 6 steals and Dave Smith, Joe Caffarini, and Murphy Hebbard each scored 3 times in LWC's 20-6 win over R-B in the first round of the HC Tournament.   NONCONFERENCE St Viator 16 Elk Grove 4 Gregg O'Connor recorded 5 goals and Eric Primdahl and Peter Cleary each added 4 scores in St Viator's 16-4 win over Elk Grove.   Mundelein 12 Palatine 10 Pat Falconer scored 5 goals, Will Davidson added 4 scores, and Frank Lukacs scored 2 times as Mundelein held off a challenge from Palatine to win 12-10 on Friday. Brad Ferris led the Pirates with 6 goals, while Jeremy Stanton added 2 scores in the loss for Palatine. GIRLS BREMEN TOURNAMENT Bremen 16 Richards 6 Catherine Vivado, Emma Martinus, and Nora Plank all contributed 4 goals in Bremen's 16-6 win over Richards.   Stagg 16 Argo 8 Liz Hadhazy totaled 7 goals in Stagg's 16-8 victory over Argo.   Bradley 16 Morton 10 Emily Caise scored 14 of Bradley's 16 goals in a 16-10 win over Morton.   Marian 7 Hinsdale South Amy Martello registered 3 goals to lead Marian to a 7-4 victory over Hinsdale South.   NONCONFERENCE Loyola 11 New Trier 4 The Ramblers scored 9 unanswered goals to erase a 4-2 first-half deficit and emerge with an 11-9 win over New Trier in Winnetka on Friday night. Maeve O'Connor proved difficult to stop during the Ramblers' second-half run and totaled 7 goals in the game. Ashley Letrich and Caitlin Sershon both scored 2 times and goalie Kristina Alexander recorded 9 saves in the victory for Loyola.   Wheeling 8 Vernon Hills 3 Amy Wilson recorded 4 goals and Christa Khatcherian added 2 scores to lead Wheeling to an 8-3 victory over Vernon Hills. Callie Schoenman and Gabby Fuentes each added one goal apiece in the win for the Wildcats.   Waubonsie Valley 12 Lockport 3 Alex White scored 4 goals, Ember McCoy added 3 scores, and Nikki Mandl chipped in with 2 goals as the Warriors improved to 6-1 with a 12-3 win over Lockport on Friday night.

 

FRIDAY'S NOTES

I will be working on a more concise design for The Illpolo Blog coming up sometime next week. Something with a little more design to it that should also be a bit easier to read. In the meantime, the look of this page may change until the details are completely finalized.

 

FRIDAY GAME PREVIEWS

Three boys' tournaments (Evanston, Fenwick, and Hinsdale Central) get underway this evening, while Bremen hosts the only girls' tournament that begins on Friday night. Here is a closer look at who's participating and what to expect as the weekend gets started after school today:   FENWICK TOURNAMENT The Fenwick continues after a six-game opening on Thursday, as #1 Oak Park faces #2 Naperville Central in the biggest game of the season thus far. The third-ranked hosts beat St Patrick in the tournament opener on Thursday and will look to do the same against Eduardo Chavez and #8 Curie. Here are the rest of tonight's matchups in Oak Park:   #3 Fenwick vs #8 Curie #1 Oak Park vs #2 Naperville Central #5 Lyons vs #17 Neuqua Valley #6 St Ignatius vs #19 Naperville North #2 Naperville Central vs #16 Stevenson #4 Brother Rice vs #17 Neuqua Valley #19 Naperville North vs LWE   EVANSTON TOURNAMENT #15 Evanston hosts a tournament that includes #10 McHenry, GBS, GBN, and Bremen playing in a round-robin format. Glenbrook North earned a huge win over the Wildkits on Thursday night and will be looking to mark their mark in this tournament, while a key win or two by Glenbrook South could also propel them into the Top 25. Meanwhile, both Evanston and McHenry have early-season wins over Top 25 opponents and look forward to their matchup on Saturday morning.   HINSDALE CENTRAL TOURNAMENT Hinsdale Central plays host to #23 Lincoln-Way Central and several other teams looking to mark their mark early in the season and jump into the Top 25 with a solid weekend performance. The field includes also includes Andrew, Hinsdale South, Lockport, R-B, and STC East.   BREMEN TOURNAMENT The Bremen girls' tournament also kicks off on Friday night with four games scheduled, including a rematch between Marian and Hinsdale South from last weekend and the tournament-opener between #17 Bremen and an always-tough Richards team.   Tonight's non-tournament games include:   BOYS #9 Mundelein vs Palatine - The Mustangs look to remain perfect when they travel to Palatine to take on an improving Pirates squad. St Viator vs Elk Grove - The Lions will look to bounce back after a narrow loss to Loyola in Catholic League play, while Elk Grove (0-6) remains in search of their first win.   GIRLS Lockport at #19 Waubonsie Valley - The Warriors continued to impress this week with a key win over Neuqua Valley, and they will face another test on Friday night against Jackie Bart, Molly Knowles and the rest of the Porters. #7 Loyola at #11 New Trier - This important early season matchup between rival schools could have major implications on the race for the top seed come playoff time. #22 Wheeling at Vernon Hills - The Cougars (0-3) seek their first win of the season against #22 Wheeling, who are riding the momentum of a 4-1 start.

WEEK 2 BLOG ENTRIES: MONDAY-WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY | FRIDAY-SATURDAY

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WEEK 1 BLOG

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