Stay Connected with YourSeason
Burlington Central falls in regional
| Andrew A. Nelles~For Sun-Times Media |
Updated: May 21, 2011 8:25PM
Burlington Central coach Mike Gecan admitted one of the reasons his school put in to host the upcoming Class 2A sectional was because the Rockets hoped to be able to utilize that home-field advantage.
But with 52.8 seconds left in a second overtime period Saturday, Marian Central got the counter attack that produced the match-winner in a 2-1 battle that both ruined the Burlington Central plans and gave the Hurricanes the plaque from the Hampshire 2A Regional.
As result, the Rockets’ year ends at 14-7-1 while Marian Central takes a 17-9-0 mark into Tuesday’s 7 p.m. sectional semifinal.
Burlington Central’s Camille Dela Cruz, whose second-half goal forced overtime, directed a solid shot at the right post only to have Hurricanes keeper Kaitlyn Logan make a kick save which the Rockets’ Cali Andrew used for another dangerous attempt from the right side. Logan caught that one and her punt downfield led to Laura Le Fevour getting by a defender to the touch line for an approach from the right side.
With Burlington Central goalie Caitlin Solberg rushing toward Le Fevour but hugging the goal line enough to not allow anything between her and the near post, the junior’s cross found teammate Robin Wenzel wide open for a 4-yard finish.
Marian Central had a 35-8 advantage for overall attempts and an 18-5 edge for on-target shots. Despite that type of edge in the opening 40 minutes, halftime was a 0-0 draw that finally ended 17:14 into the second half when a Solberg free kick was shanked and Marian Central’s Susan Thomas quickly sent the ball back goalward as players from both sides watched it sail inside the far post before the Rockets keeper could get back into position.
To Burlington Central’s credit, the Rockets came back inside of two minutes with a Maddie Stoneman missile that caromed off the crossbar and Dela Cruz nailed the rebound for the equalizer with 17:31 left in regulation. It was the Dela Cruz’s eighth goal of the year.
“I saw the opening and just took it because it’s just like what we’ve worked on every day in practice,” Dela Cruz said.
“Scoring a goal is always nice, but I’d trade this one or any of my others for a win today.”
Burlington Central’s Gecan was hoping the Rockets could gain the school’s third regional title, but first under his leadership after having guided the boys team to a fourth-place finish during the fall.
“In terms of quality opportunities, it may not have been by much of a margin, but I still believe we had more, the trick is they finished the one that mattered,” Gecan said.
“Maybe having Caitlin take that free kick was a mistake on my part because it left her out of position. But she generally boots them quite a ways, but not that one time. Other than that I still believe our defensive was pretty strong in that they had to take almost all their shots from longer range. They didn’t run breakaways like they had all when we first played them (a 2-0 loss) or the other times I scouted them.
“It’s disappointing now and they’re hurting from the loss, but I’m still happy with the season we had as a whole and it’s a credit to our seniors: Heather (Krup), Michelle (Fowler) and Gabriella (Mazzarisi).”
© 2012 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit www.suntimesreprints.com. To order a reprint of this article, click here.
Cell Phone Alerts
Comments Click here to view or make a comment