Deerfield warms to the task against Warren
Deerfield’s girls soccer players lugged suitcases to school on Friday.
They were all going to Hawaii, after all, following Friday night’s match against visiting Warren. They had told friends and classmates so, some via Facebook. They were going to play in a tournament in a gorgeous setting.
But the luggage act was a part of an organized ruse.
“We didn’t put clothes in the suitcases,” said Deerfield senior forward Amanda Kellow. “Many of us put books in there.
“We’re not going anywhere.”
Deerfield entered Friday’s frigid, anti-Hawaii match with an inordinate number of ties (seven) in 16 matches. That much was true.
But the Warriors needed only 26 seconds to break the game-opening 0-0 tie and then edged Warren’s Blue Devils 2-1. Kellow sprinted alone for about 50 yards before scoring the clincher at the 33:30 mark of the second half.
Senior midfielder Kenzie Verheyen tallied Warren’s goal at 16:46 of the first half, alertly booting a slight bobble by Deerfield sophomore goalkeeper Bailey Bradford from 3 yards out. Bradford (eight shutouts this spring, including four 0-0 stalemates) had attempted to short-hop a shot for a save.
“I was there and I kind of read it,” Verheyen said of her goal.
The Blue Devils (5-7-3) worked tirelessly in the second half to create a slew of scoring chances after Kellow’s go-ahead goal. Verheyen and seniors Katelyn McDermott, Karly Moe and Lexi Reyes applied consistent heat with their crafty crosses and shots on goal.
“We weren’t as composed as we should have been (in the second half),” admitted Verheyen. “We had chances, but we rushed too much during our runs and I wish we had done a better job spreading the field.
“We didn’t play our game.”
Top-notch Deerfield defender Claire Mulert did not play in the second half Friday night after a scary collision with Warren senior keeper Amanda Macuiba late in the first half. As a hustling Mulert caught up to a well-placed free kick from Warriors senior Jill Noeh, her head hit one of Macuiba’s outstretched hands.
Macuiba’s other hand deflected the ball.
Both players went down.
But Mulert stayed down for about five minutes. She appeared a bit dazed but OK, as she walked to her bench at 2:05 of the first half.
On Tuesday, junior midfielder Samara Haas, another Deerfield standout, suffered an ACL tear in a win over Niles North.
“We’re familiar with the ACL injury,” Deerfield coach Rich Grady said before Friday’s match. “Two of our girls had to deal with it last year. It’s a difficult injury, emotionally and physically.”
Deerfield (7-3-7) got an early lift Friday from sophomore forward JoElla Guagliardo. She struck for the contest’s first goal at 39:34 – or when the last word of the national anthem was still in reverb.
Warren’s defense, paced by freshman Alexis Strothers, played sound defense for the rest of the half.
“She’s solid, doesn’t get intimidated in the least,” Blue Devils coach Ryan McCabe said of Strothers. “No field, no game is ever too big for her. She goes after it on every play.”