Archived Varsity Awards and Game Summaries--Spring, 2010

05/19/10 - Regional Semifinals Lake Forest 2 - GBN 3
05/14/10 Lake Forest 3 - LF Academy 0		Squidward Award Winner Catherine Traut vs. LF Academy
The Scouts, fittingly, had their biggest crowd of the year for Kickin’ it in Pink. A game to raise money and awareness for Breast Cancer. The Scouts played in memory of the mothers of 3 former players, Denise Hruskocy and Chris Neumann. The largest crowd of the season also was able to celebrate the careers of the seniors playing their last regular season home game. Taylor Edwards, Taylor Elvord, Kelsey Goon, Kelly Moran and Anne Rowell, all received long standing ovations from the thousands of fans who came out early for this moment. On the Kickoff, Anne Rowell, recently off ACL surgery, demonstrated to the rest of the girls how to knock a ball as she firmly knocked it  60 yards (on the table). The game was  a good old fashioned derby. The Scout defense limited the Caxys to few shots while the LFA keeper was standing on her head making some terrific saves. Finally in the second half, reminiscent of our first goal this year, Abby Shipp cut in after a pass from Kelsey Goon and rocketed it over the keeper. The game remained close until the last 10 minutes when Katharine McCauley slotted a nice pass to Katie Murphy who was promptly tripped in the box. PK. Captain Kelsey calmly crushed it past the keeper. Less than a minute later the Scouts scored on what more than one sportscaster called The Goal of the Year. It began with Holly Wark changing the point of attack and hitting a beautiful diagonal ball to Kali Polich. Kali one touched a long cross to the back 6 where Catherine Traut rose above her defender and attacked the ball and headed it clinically across the goal into the net. Can you say Sportscenter Top Ten? The goal actually did make ESPN 8’s top ten plays. The Scouts are riding one of the biggest win streaks of the year into the State Tournament where they face the Glenbrook North Spartans (16-5) on Wednesday night at 6:00 at the Lake Forest Athletic Campus. Go Scouts Go.
05/12/10 Lake Forest   8 - Antioch   0		Squidward Award Winner Taylor Elvord. vs. Antioch
If you saw some monkeys running down the street, they were coming off the backs of the Lake Forest Scouts last night. The Scouts finally played a game from beginning to end with passion, persistence, precision and pulchritude. They also shot the ball accurately. The Scouts scored on 5 of the first 6 shots, all within the first 9 minutes and 32 seconds. Katie Murphy (3 G), Holly Wark (2 G, 1A), Catherine Traut (1G, 1A) and Kali Polich (2 A) led the way. The Scouts began the game without 4 starters, but it didn’t seem to matter. The Scouts had great passing and several of the goals were the result of combination play and beating anybody to the goal. All the goals were quality goals without any mistakes by the Sequiots’ defenders or goalie. In fact, their goalie played quite well. Kelly Moran and Holly Wark both hit quality strikes from long distance. Katie Murphy and Holly Wark both finished off of accurate crosses and Haleigh and Katie both finished breakaways as accurately as Yoda is with his lightsaber™. The Force may be with us now. Lake Forest is now 6-10-3 and play Lake Forest Academy Friday Night at 6:00. It is Senior Night and is our Kickin’ it for Cancer game to support breast cancer awareness. Varsity Field is the place to be.
05/10/10 Lake Forest  1 - Libertyville  2		Squidward Award Winner Katharine McCauley vs. Libertyville
Déjà vu! All over again. Remember the plot to Groundhog Day? Well, we seem fated to repeat the same thing over and over (with our one-goal losses) until we get it right and break out of our slump. Six out of our eight last losses are one-goal defeats. Lake Forest was met by a very aggressive Wildcat team which attacked the ball, at times with reckless abandon. While the referee didn’t always put a clamp on this behavior, it did rattle the Scouts (mentally and physically). The Scouts again did not shoot as often as needed. Good things did happen when they did. Holly Wark hit a great shot that was tipped off the bar by the keeper. The Scouts had two girls in on the rebound, and Haleigh McPeek put it in a split second before Morgan McConachie could. Almost immediately, Libertyville came back and knotted the score. The Libertyville keeper made a couple of great saves to keep it even at halftime. In the second half the Scouts had a good deal of the play, but could never break down the Wildcat defense. Libertyville got a goal back after Bridgett Hegg was called for the foul after a Libertyville player kicked Bridgett’s head and cut open her eye. The Scouts did put a good deal of pressure on the last few minutes with some great serves from Katharine McCauley--but alas, to no avail. The Scouts are now 5-10-3 and play at Antioch at 4:30 on Wednesday.
05/09/10 Lake Forest  0 - New Trier 3		Squidward Award Winner Taylor Edwards vs. New Trier
The Number 1 team in the state were too much for the Scouts. Lake Forest played a great first half of soccer. While they did give up a goal they also had some great possessions and good forays into the New Trier zone. Haleigh McPeek was creating some problems for the Trevians as she attacked relentlessly. The defense did a great job of limiting New Trier to shots from far out or crosses. In the second half, the Scouts held well until there were 15 minutes left and New Trier scored two quick goals. The Scouts made the Trevian keeper work for her shutout in the final 10 minutes but to no avail. Lake Forest travels to Libertyville for a 6:15 clash on Monday night.
05/05/10 Lake Forest 1 - Warren 2		Squidward Award Katie Murphy vs. Warren
Déjà vu! No this is not a Crosby, Still & Nash Album for the 70’s, but the Scouts came up 1 goal short in their match at Warren. The Blue Devils came out quickly with a good deal of pressure and scored a quick one in the first five minutes and maintained pressure for another 5 minutes before the Scouts regained their composure. Help came from the bench as the energy created led to the first goal. A nice ball was sent to Sheila Murphy, which she quickly sent through to her sister Katie. While it was a little too far, Katie pressured the keeper, and she was able to knock the ball to the side--where Brenna Shannon attacked and finished with authority with a blast from just outside the corner of the six. The second half was back and forth until Warren was able to nick one back. The Scouts had several good chances the last several minutes but could not tie it up

4/28/10 Lake Forest 4 - Zion Benton 0		Squidward Award Winner Bridgett Hegg vs Zion Benton
After a string of shutouts, the Scouts finally got on the board. The Zee Bees took the opening kickoff straight down the field with ease before the Scouts stopped them, and it looked like it was going to a difficult game. The first half was a lot of misconnected passes and lack of intensity. The Scouts finally got on the board when Katharine McCauley attacked the endline and sent in a perfect low cross. Katie Murphy, at near post, just missed the ball but her sister, Sheila, calmly slotted the ball just inside the back post. Kelsey Goon & Holly Wark both had quality shots that were turned away. The second half was anything but uninspired. The Scouts attacked from the get go and maintained the pressure throughout the half. Lake Forest was finally rewarded just 4 minutes in with an outstanding goal.  It began with a Katherine Cook thrown in, which Katie Murphy couldn’t get, but her sister followed up and got it back to Katie, who passed to an onrushing Kelsey Goon, who sided the ball into the upper 90. The  third goal was a the same combo as the first with Sheila Murphy burying the Katharine McCauley cross. The last goal was an excellent finish by Morgan McConachie, as she emphatically headed home a McCauley corner kick. A great half for the Scouts. The next game is on Wednesday at Warren with a schedule start time of 4:30. The Scouts are now 5-7-3

4/26/10 Lake Forest 0 - Loyola 1		Squidward Award Winner Kelsey Goon vs. Loyola
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.....The Scouts played one of their most complete games of the year, but unfortunately it resulted in another 1-0 loss. The Scouts put a great deal of pressure on the Ramblers. Loyola’s goalie had to come up big on several occasions (with help from the post) to keep her clean sheet intact. Kali Pollich, Haleigh McPeek, Morgan McConachie, Abby Shipp & Kelsey Goon all had good looks but to no avail. Great play from everybody. The Loyola coach thought Kelsey was the best player on the field (and he was right).The dam containing our goals is about to break open. Next game is at home on Wednesday vs. Zion-Benton at 6:15. The Scouts are now 4-7-3.

Lake Forest Soccer at the Chicago Red Stars 04/25/10 - The Lake Forest Soccer teams attended the Chicago Red Stars game vs. Sky Blue (NJ) F.C at Toyota Park. Despite the Red Stars losing a close game 0-1 and the windy and rainy conditions, a great time was had by all.

4/23/10
Lake Forest 0 - Stevenson 1

The Scouts continued their string of close 1 goal losses---coming up 1 goal short against the Stevenson Patriots. While the first half was not too exciting, the Scouts put together a great 40 minutes in the second half. Constant pressure created some havoc at various times around the Stevenson net. At one point the Scouts put together about 12 passes, which resulted in a wonderful back flick from Morgan McConachie to Abby Shipp, whose shot was pushed just wide. Katherine Cook & Katherine McCauley did an outstanding job at Wingback.

4/21/10
Lake Forest   1 - Lake Zurich   2
Lake Forest had a hard time coming out on top against an aggressive opponent by playing one half of soccer. The Bears attacked every ball and challenged in the air throughout the whole game. The Scouts were very tentative the first half and never really connected more than a few passes. The Bears did have three great scoring chances from just inside the eighteen. One was over, one was wide and Taylor Edwards came out and blocked the third. However, an unmarked Lake Zurich midfield took a misdirected clearance and rifled it into the upper corner for the half’s only score.

The second half was a different story. The Scouts came out with a sense of urgency and played very well. Holly Wark, Katharine McCauley and Abby Shipp had great halves (Katharine had a great game on her birthday). Unfortunately, due to a couple of poor traps and positional mistakes, the Bears slid a ball just inside the far post--inches away from Taylor’s outstretched hand. The good news is that it did not dampen the Scouts’ desire as they continued to pressure the Bears. Finally, Holly Wark sent in a great cross, which Catherine Traut challenged and headed back across the goal where Kali Pollich headed down past the keeper. Lake Zurich was able to withstand tremendous pressure from the Scouts and hung on to get the victory. LF is now 4-5-3 and plays Stevenson at home on Friday at 4:30.

04/17/10
Lake Forest Scouts (4-4-3)  1 - Wheaton-Warrenville South 3
The decimated Lake Forest Scouts fought valiantly against the top-10 ranked Wheaton-Warrenville South Tigers in their final game of the Pepsi Showdown. Lake Forest began the game without goalie Taylor Edwards (sprained wrist) and defender Kaitlin Close (broken wrist). With a new lineup and a new shape, the Scouts put pressure on the Tigers from the get go with both Haleigh McPeek & Abby Shipp getting good looks at goal. The Tigers countered and put some pressure on and Lauren Grenier came up with a couple of good saves. The strong NW wind came into play as a lofty ball took a high bounce over the Scouts and was tapped in by Wheaton. Minutes later the Tigers capitalized on a long through ball and beat the defense to the ball for another tap in. The 2-0 score at the half was not reflective of the Scouts effort on offense and defense.

The Tigers put pressure early on in the second half, which the Scouts absorbed before creating opportunities for themselves. Kasey Quon, Holly Wark and Taylor Elvord showed composure at the midfield putting the Tigers on their heels. On one of her probing runs through the midfield, Kasey was taken down from behind--injuring her ankle and keeping her out for 10 days. The Tigers scored again--burying a shot after a rebound. The Scouts rebounded quickly with an excellent head ball from Katie Murphy after Kelsey Good outworked half of the Wheaton defense to put a corner kick back into the middle. Katie surgically leaped and headed the ball down into the far corner. Catherine Traut then ran down a long through ball and knocked the ball past the onrushing keeper; unfortunately, it hit just outside the post. The game ended 3-1. The Scouts are beginning to get back into playing shape and are becoming more aggressive. The most impressive note is that this is being done by all the players and not just the top 6. Next game is Wednesday @ Lake Zurich at 6:15.

04/13/10
Lake Forest 0 - Mundelein 1
The Scouts lost for the first time on Varsity Field over the course of the last three seasons. The Scouts began the game with 3 new starters due to sickness and missed practices. The first twenty minutes consisted of a lot of back-and-forth play with the Mustangs getting a couple of good looks at goal early. The referee almost assisted on the first goal of the game when he deflected a Holly Wark pass behind Katherine Cook right to the Mundelein forward, who took it to goal and blasted a crazy knuckler that Taylor Edwards calmly caught. The Scouts put a couple of corner kicks and crosses towards goal, which created some frenzied clearances out of the Mundelein end before the half ended. The turning point of the second half came with about 18 minutes left. Mundelein had a good counter attack that put the Scouts under pressure. While the Scouts thwarted the initial attack, a deflected shot caught Taylor Edwards going the wrong way, and Mundelein took the lead. Lake Forest came back with a perfect pass from Morgan McConachie that sprung Abby Shipp on a breakaway and Abby put a nice shot just pass the Mustang keeper--somehow she got her hand on it to keep the score at 1-0. The Scouts put a good deal of pressure on in the last few minutes, but to no avail. Lake Forest is now 4-3-3.

04/10/10 Pepsi Showdown Round of Sixteen
Lake Forest 1 - Barrington 4
Barrington was just too much for the Scouts. Barrington got on the board quickly with two goals in the first 15 minutes. The Scouts were treated to a quality display of how to go to the ball by Barrington. The Scouts withstood the Fillies’ attack for the rest of the half. In the first few minutes of the second half, the Scouts gave up a really weak goal on a corner kick as many people watched a cross go ankle high all the way to the back post before being kicked in. That was effectively the game breaker. Lake Forest did come back and after several good attempts, mainly through Katherine McCauley services, Kasey Quon buried a shot from the 18 after the keeper made a kick save on a Morgan McConachie breakaway. The Scouts learned a valuable lesson and are looking to improve their play and desire dramatically.

04/08/10
Lake Forest 1 (4-3 on PK’s) - Deerfield 0

In a game that featured strong defense, the Scouts persevered past the pesky Warriors. Neither team really had any great scoring opportunities due to stingy defending. The Special K of the Scouts (Kelsey Goon, Marina Katz, Katharine McCauley and especially Katherine Cook) stymied the Warriors. Taylor Edwards was rarely tested. Unfortunately, neither was the Warriors keeper. The tension became heightened in the two golden goal overtimes.  The first half of the second overtime featured Deerfield maintaining pressure and then the last half was all Scouts, with Abby Shipp missing just wide on a great fake rip to the far post. In PK’s Taylor Edwards saved the first one before Haleigh McPeek calmly slotted the Scouts to a 1-0 lead. Abby Shipp, Katharine McCauley and Kesley Goon all scored giving Lake Forest a 4-3 lead going into Deerfield’s last kick. Taylor Edwards, stood tall in goal as the last Warrior put it just over the crossbar. The Scouts move on to face Barrington in the Round of 16 in the Pepsi Showdown.

04/06/10
Lake Forest 1 - St. Ignatius 1

Lake Forest got back to work after having an enjoyable 11 days off. The Scouts had one day of practice before taking on the Wolfpack in a Pepsi Showdown Athletico Showcase game. The Scouts controlled the play in the first half; however, never really severely forced any outstanding plays from the St. Ignatius keeper. Holly Wark did have an excellent free kick, heading towards the upper 90, that the keeper punched away. The second half definitely was wide open. The Scouts opened the scoring with Abby Shipp dribbing through several defenders, maintaining possessions before dropping the ball back to Holly, who served a typical great ball into the middle. Haleigh McPeek challenged well and deflected it to Morgan McConachie who slotted it home for the 1-0 lead. Both teams had several good chances. Taylor Edwards confidently grabbed a couple of dangerous balls out of the air. Kaitlin Close, Katharine McCauley, Kelsey Goon, Kaitlin Close & Marina Katz (our Special K® defense) held the Wolfpack at bay until a well-placed shot snuck off Taylor’s fingertips just inside the far post. The final 10 minutes featured end-to-end action with several close scoring attempts by Abby Shipp & Morgan. All in all it was a great effort by the Scouts.

03/24/10
Lake Forest (3-1-2) 4 - Niles North 0
The Scouts finished their Pre-Spring Break tour with a 4-0 result. Brenna Shannon stepped into the nets and made a couple of great saves in preserving the shutout for the Scouts. While the Scouts did have most of the play, it took them 31 minutes before they got on the board. Haleigh McPeek opened up the scoring on a great pass from Sheila Murphy. Just over a minute later Katie Murphy buried a rocket inside the far post with Morgan McConachie getting the helper, and then just 3 minutes later Morgan finished after a great through ball from Abby Shipp.  10 minutes into the second half Haleigh finished off a great pass from Abby. Everybody played quite well as the Scouts outshot the Vikings 19-4.

03/22/10
Lake Forest 2 - Palatine 0
The Scouts began the week with a 2-0 victory on a sunny Monday. While the Scouts controlled the play, they didn’t generate too many solid scoring chances. However, the first goal could have been the goal of the season. Kali Polich deeked two girls and took it end line before crossing it. The pass was a little behind the runner, Morgan McConachie, who let it run between her legs and flicked it with her back foot heel past the keeper. In the second half Kelsey Goon rocketed a free kick from 25 m that dipped into the upper corner. The defense and Taylor Edwards held the Pirates to only two shots.

03/19/10
Lake Forest 1 - Carmel 1
In the last game of the Carmel Quad the Scouts and host Corsairs battled to a 1-1 tie. It was the first time on grass for the Scouts, and it took a little bit before they got comfortable with the bounces and the size of the big field.  It was a fairly even first half with neither team creating any great chances. Then with a few minutes left in the first half, the Scouts turned up the heat. Following a Holly Wark corner that was not cleared too well, Ellie Revenaugh sent the ball down the wing to Haleigh McPeek, who spun her girl twice before rocketing a shot by the Carmel keeper--which a defender tried to clear to no avail. In the second half the wind changed and cooler temps prevailed, and the Corsairs turned up the heat. The Scouts did get one past the keeper, but it was cleared off the line. Carmel then had two great chances with one clanging the post and Taylor Edwards parrying the other. Finally under the pressure of several corners in a row, Carmel was awarded a PK after a scrum on a corner. Carmel goal, 1-1 game. Katherine McCauley, Marina Katz and Kelsey Goon did a great job of shutting down one of the state’s premier players, Cassidy Brown.

03/18/10
Lake Forest 0 - Hersey 2
The Scouts opened up a little flat and then maintained that for most of the game. Give credit to the Huskies for giving the Scouts all that they could handle. Lake Forest gave up a goal in the first half and then an early goal in the second before awakening. The last 20 minutes had great movement from the Scouts and outstanding combination play on the wings.

03/17/10
Lake Forest 1 - Prairie Ridge 1
Sunny and 60 degrees were perfect conditions for the opening game of the Carmel Quad. In the 11th minute the Scouts scored a great goal off a corner kick. Holly Wark served a perfect ball to Morgan McConachie who rose above her opponents before heading the ball authoritatively into the back of the net. The lead didn’t last too long as Prairie Ridge launched a ball from the sidelines that just floated over the reach of Taylor Edwards. On such a small field, the game turned in to a bit of kickball with not a whole lot of connecting passes.

03/15/10
Lake Forest 1 - Lakes 0
To say the Scouts got out quickly in their first game of the year would be an understatement. 33 seconds into the game Abby Shipp took a touch laterally across the middle and blasted a 20- yard frozen rope into the side netting for a 1-0 lead. The play was set up with great passing and movement involving no less than 4 girls. Sheila Murphy was credited with the helper after combinations with Abby and Haleigh McPeek. That was the only goal of the game. Both teams had a couple of good chances with Taylor Edwards saving a breakaway and the defense of Katharine, Kelsey, Katherine & Katz virtually shutting down the Lakes attack.

Archived Varsity Awards and Game Summaries--Spring, 2009

05/26/09
IHSA Semifinals
Lake Forest 0 - Fremd 1
Lake Forest (18-3-1) dominated possession of the ball throughout the game; unfortunately for the Scouts, those possessions did not result in a goal.

05/22/09
Lake Forest Wins Lake Forest Regional Championship!
Lake Forest 3 - Deerfield 0
Lake Forest played a great game against the over-matched Warriors. Lake Forest controlled the play the entire first half, but was thwarted by the Deerfield goalie and a very tight defense. Finally, with eight seconds left in the half, after a tremendous foot save by the keeper on a Nicole Lipp breakaway and a rash of goal-line clearances with the final clearance coming off a Deerfield hand. Penalty Shot! Nicole Lipp calmly came up and slotted it in the left-hand side netting.

The second half featured tremendous team play and two top-notch goals. The first came after Katie Burke shielded well and was fouled. Nicole hit a low-bending ball around the inside of the wall, which skipped under the keeper's hands. A few minutes later Nicole stepped up to win a ball. She attacked the goal--freezing two defenders. She then deftly tapped the ball to an overlapping Megan Bourne, who one touched a perfect cross back post. Kelsey Goon rose up and commandingly headed the ball back across the goal, off the far post and in. WOW! The defense of Annie Evans, Katharine McCauley and Anne Rowell was outstanding, limiting Deerfield to two long-range shots, which were handled easily by Taylor Edwards. Abby Shipp and Morgan McConachie had outstanding play up top for the Scouts along with Haleigh McPeek, Holly Wark and Rachel Quon in the midfield.

Lake Forest Wins Regional Title Over Deerfield--May 22, 2009

05/21/09
Rachel Quon--2009 recipient of the Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year! (more details & watch video )

05/19/09--Regional Competition
Lake Forest 4 - Wheeling 1

05/14/09
Lake Forest 2 - Vernon Hills 0

Lake Forest Girls’ Soccer
2009 North Suburban Conference Champs
2009, 2008, 2003

The Scouts won their third conference title in seven years and made it two in a row with a hard-fought victory over the Vernon Hills Cougars. Lake Forest had a very good start to the game, but could not get past the Cougar Keeper who made several good saves. At halftime a few adjustments were made, and the Scouts came out en fuego. Just a few minutes into the half, the Scouts worked the ball inside to Rachel Quon, who then sent it outside to Nicole Lipp, who in turn quickly passed up field to a checking Morgan McConachie, who one-touched it to Abby Shipp, who settled and found an overlapping Nicole, who blasted a hard shot into the goal. Less than two minutes later, Katharine McCauley sent a ball to Morgan, who one timed it to the wing to Megan Bourne, who first timed the cross to Nicole, who had rushed the back post. Nicole calmly chested it down before burying in the back of the ol’ onion bag. This was some outstanding combination play!

The excitement didn’t end there. With 25 minutes left, Taylor Edwards was called for an inadvertent hand ball outside the box. Red Card. This was unfortunate as the girl who drew the foul was clearly offsides on the play. It meant that the Scouts had to play a man down and with another keeper. Unfortunately, Finley Amato got hurt in warm-ups so into the net went...Rachel Quon. Rachel’s smart play, along with outstanding defense from Katharine McCauley, Annie Evans & Kelsey Goon kept Vernon Hills at bay. Congratulations to the Scouts on an outstanding run in the conference.

(don't forget to check out the video)  

5/11/09 - Senior Night
Lake Forest   4 - Zion Benton   0
On a beautiful night for soccer, the Scouts took on Zion Benton at Varsity Field. 8 seniors took the field for their last conference game. It took the Scouts a little while to get things started. Ten minutes in--Rachel Quon hit a blistering shot low to the far post, which their goalie incredibly parried wide. Ten minutes later, Hannah Nedeau dropped a ball to Nicole Lipp just outside the 18, who promptly buried it in the back of the net. A minute later, Nicole had her second on a nice little combo play with Rachel Quon. Less than 5 minutes later, Hannah got her goal after a nice pass from Katharine (Cookie) Cook. In the second half, Carly Shannon ripped a bent-free kick into the box, which glanced off a Zee Bee into the net. Katie Burke, Megan Bourne and Annie Evans were thwarted by the Zion keeper, who made some incredible saves. Rachel Flood & Niki Hruskocy, along with keeper Finley Amato, kept the maroon and yellow at bay.

5/9/09 Lake Forest  1 - New Trier  0 Breast Cancer Awareness Night

WOW!!!!! As Frankie Valli sang, "Oh What a Night”...There are so many successes with regards to the night. We raised a total of $2293, which we will be giving to the Susan G. Komen foundation in the names of Denise Hruskocy and Chris Neuman (Affourtit). Thank you very much to all who helped out. A special thanks should go to the girls for all they did to make this event as successful as it was. Your daughters are amazing! Secondly, what a night of soccer. The biggest crowd in LF history (estimates are from just over a thousand to upwards of 13,452). Whatever the totals were the fans were treated/enlightened to an outstanding night of soccer. The game exemplified, which many people don't realize, that a 1-0 soccer game can be just as exciting as any other "popular sport". We definitely, and deservedly so, won over many fans. Last, but not least, a big thanks goes to the Scouts. The girls' play on the field was truly outstanding. Creativity, movement and shape were our themes for the game, and the girls demonstrated them to the hilt. It is often said, "Offensives win the headlines but defenses win the championships." While you do have to score to win and Rachel's goal was clearly deserving of a headline, our team defense was truly outstanding. All 11 players on the field played as a collective unit and signaled that we do have what it takes to win a championship

05/07/09
Lake Forest   3 - Lake Zurich  1
In a battle of two Lakes, the Forest ended up on top of Zurich. Abby Shipp began the scoring on a pass from Nicole Lipp. Nicole won a ball in the air, which she one timed through to Abby, who volleyed the ball into the upper right corner from 30 yards out. After some pressure Lake Forest won a corner kick, which Rachel Quon served beautifully to the back post where Megan Bourne was waiting to pounce on it before finishing with precision. The Bears nicked one back before halftime. The second half was a lot of pressure in their offensive zone without the results. Midway through the half, Annie Evans sprinted through 3 defenders from the Midfield stripe and hit a low far-post shot that the keeper parried into the path of the onrushing Morgan McConachie, who put it away for a well-earned goal.  

05/01-02/09
Brine Tournament of Champions - Burlington, IA
Lake Forest   2 - Liberty (MO)   1
In a very physical game the Scouts prevailed as both Nicole Lipp and Rachel Quon scored two outstanding goals. The first half was even with both teams getting a couple of good looks  at goal. Liberty broke the scoreless deadlock on a breakaway with just  5 minutes left in the first half. In the second half the game turned quite heated with both teams getting some chances. Nicole Lipp took a pass from Rachel Quon and hit a perfectly placed strike low to the near post from 20 and the game was tied. A few minutes later Rachel took a quick combo from Megan Bourne before Rocking the Waffle in the upper 90. Two top players with two top finishes.

Lake Forest   0 - Bellville Althoff 2
Somebody was going home with their first loss as two of the top teams in the nation met in the semi’s. This game could have been worthy of a championship as Belleville was ranked #18 by ESPN. Both sides demonstrated appealing soccer with a high level of technical skill. The Crusaders jumped on the board in the early in first half on a great shot. The Althoff keeper was very strong and the Scouts couldn’t hit the post once but couldn’t get anything past her. She ended up making 8 saves. The Crusader’s then sealed the deal with a goal late in the game. While the game was fairly even the result was fair.

Lake Forest    0 - St. Thomas Aquinas (KS)   5
The Scouts found out they were not ready for 3 games in less than 24 hours. While it was somewhat close for about 4 and a half minutes Aquinas was definitely the better team that game.

04/27/09
Lake Forest 3 - Loyola 1
In a very competitive game the Scouts ended up on top of the #9 ranked Ramblers. It was a very interesting game as the Scouts, with the wind, played an outstanding first half--yet wound up on the short end of the score as Loyola capitalized on their only shot of the half. The Scouts started like gangbusters with Nicole Lipp finding Rachel Quon yet Rachel was stuffed by the Loyola keeper. The ensuing corner was knocked around the box a couple of times before being cleared. With five minutes left if the first half, Loyola’s all-state forward, Allison Suhey, got a breakaway. Goalkeeper Taylor Edwards made the initial save, but the ball trickled under her and Suhey was able to beat two Scouts to tap in the goal. The second half was a little more even with pressure until Rachel Quon’s bending free kick fooled the Loyola keeper, who was able to make an initial save, but then Anne Rowell knocked in the rebound. A few minutes later, a Kasey Quon blast was blocked and fell to Nicole Lipp who found Rachel. This time Rachel danced around the corner and finished in the far post. With just 5 minutes left in the game, Megan Bourne finished a Katherine “Cookie” Cook through ball.

The Scouts take on the extremely tough Stevenson Patriots on Wednesday at the VHAC

04/20/09
Lake Forest 7 - Round Lake  0
The Scouts jumped off to an early lead behind 2 goals from Hannah Nedeau on assists from Katie Burke. Nicole Lipp added a brace with Rachel Quon getting a goal as well. Lake Forest had the better of the play and Kasey Quon ended the game with two crackin' shots past the Round Lake Keeper. The Lake Forest defense limited the Panthers to two shots, which were skillfully handled by Finley Amato.

Lake Forest Snowbowl Shootout
04/17/09
Lake Forest  1 - Stevenson 0
In a well-played game worthy of the championship, the Lake Forest Scouts defended their title by beating the undefeated Stevenson Patriots 1-0. It was a defensive struggle with the Scouts getting off only 17 shots while Stevenson managed 6. The Patriots keeper came up with a couple of big saves to keep them in the game. In the end, it was a great combination play that won the game with just 2:56 left. It started with Anne Rowell coming up the left seem, passing the ball in the middle to Nicole Lipp, who quickly slotted it to Rachel Quon--who had already cut behind her defender. Rachel then beat another defender before calmly finishing under the onrushing keeper.

04/16/09
Lake Forest 3 - Carmel 0
This could have been the title game in many tournaments, but it was only the semi’s here as the Number 1 ranked Scouts took on the Number 6 ranked Corsairs. The early part of the game was back and forth until Nicole Lipp blasted a 25-yard bomb through the hands of the Carmel keeper. With 15 minutes left in the first half, Taylor Edwards made a great save on a breakaway--just deflecting the shot off the post, which bounced right back to her. That took the wind out of their sails for the remainder of the half. The second half was even until 10 minutes into it when Rachel Quon found Nicole behind the defense. While she was shut down, she hit Megan Bourne coming in from the right. Megan curled a one timer with her left solidly inside the far post. Nicole rounded out the scoring less than 5 minutes later with a left-footed rocket that found the upper 90 in the blink of an eye.

04/15/09
Lake Forest  3 - Deerfield  0
The Scouts got on the board early against the visiting Warriors with a goal from Nicole Lipp. The play was set up quite well by Katie Burke when she shielded the bouncing ball quite well from her defender before getting it over to Nicole. Rachel Quon scored the second goal with 15 minutes left in the first half for a 2-0 halftime lead. Early in the second half, Rachel found Haleigh McPeek with a great pass, and then Haleigh did what she is paid (with compliments) to do and buried it in the back of the old onion bag for the 3-0 victory.

04/07/09
Lake Forest 3 - Libertyville 2
In a spirited hard-fought contest the Lake Forest Scouts eeked out a victory over the visiting Wildcats. The Scouts were coming into the game after a 10-day layoff for Spring Break. The game was fought in blustery, spring conditions in which 4 of the 5 goals were scored with the wind. The Scouts jumped on the board early on a sweet left-foot drive from Haleigh McPeek. Next, Nicole Lipp rocked the waffle off the corner kick from Kasey Quon. Just after half, the Scouts widened the lead when Haleigh calmly slotted home the ball after a nice series of passes, with the helper coming from Nicole. Libertyville roared back and scored 2 more and then missed a penalty kick with just 6 minutes remaining. The soccer gods were on the side of the Scouts as they managed to hold on for the victory.

3/19/09
Lake Forest (2-0) 1 - Niles North 0
Lake Forest could possibly have set a new school record for number of shots in a game. The Scouts finished with 45 shots in a game played in cool temperatures with a brisk wind. Lake Forest ended the game with 13 different players getting off shots. The Niles North keeper was quite active and made several quality saves. The Scouts had a few ping off the post, and the score would have been decidedly different if the goals were just 2 feet bigger.

03/16/09
Lake Forest 7 - Highland Park 1
The Scouts had a good start to their season. While the first 10 minutes were filled with nervous touches, they finally settled down into quick passes with strong ball movement. The Scouts got some great goals with good combination play--the Kasey Quon to Rachel Quon being one highlight. Nicole Lipp also had a couple of outstanding shots. After a 4-0 halftime lead, the Scouts scored 3 more in the second half--with the best coming off a deftly chipped ball from Kasey Quon, which Katie Burke confidently headed into the net. All in all a good start to the season.