Lake Forest moves into Pepsi semifinals

Updated: April 22, 2011 2:06PM

Neither wintry wind nor fabulous freshman was able to keep No. 19 Lake Forest from advancing to the Pepsi Showdown semifinals.

Kasey Quon had a goal and an assist and Sarah McClenahan and Haleigh McPeek also found the back of the net as the Scouts knocked off host Metea Valley 3-2 in quarterfinal action Thursday night in Aurora.

Lake Forest will face Loyola, which edged Plainfield North 2-1 on penalty kicks, in Saturday's semifinals at Olympic Park in Schaumburg. Lyons plays Glenbrook South in the other semifinal.

"It's really exciting for us because last year we didn't do as well as we wanted to," Quon said. "I think this year we've been doing really well and we've just been building up to this and improving each game."

The senior-laden Scouts (7-1-3) scored twice in a span of 71 seconds to take a 2-0 lead. Quon opened the scoring with a wicked 23-yard shot that went over Metea Valley goalie Megan Geldernick's head and dipped under the crossbar with 28:26 left.

Then a miscommunication between Geldernick and a defender led to a giveaway at the top of the box and McClenahan booted the ball into the empty net.

"That was disheartening because we haven't done that very much at all," Metea Valley coach Pat Feulner said. "Two of our best kids get crossed up and give away an easy one, but we got down 2-0 and we came back."

The young but talented Mustangs (8-5-1) did make it interesting, scoring against the wind just two minutes later when freshman forward Jenna Kentgen knocked in a corner kick from Kristina Tomaras.

Lake Forest increased its lead to 3-1 just 2:16 after intermission when Quon sent a pass from the midfield to McPeek on the right wing. McPeek raced into the box and scored from 12 yards out. The play highlighted the Scouts' strategy of keeping the ball on the ground while going into the teeth of the biting wind.

"We're used to playing on turf and we're a possession kind of team, so we just keep our shape out wide and do a lot of good passing," Quon said. "(That way) we get out wide and cross it in at the top."

Metea Valley, a first-year program that has no seniors and only five juniors, didn't quit and cut the gap to 3-2 six minutes later on Kentgen's second goal of the game. The speedy Kentgen, who now has 12 goals, got the ball on the left wing and quickly finished to the far post.

The rookie nearly tied the game with 27:10 left when her header off a Tomaras corner kick hit the underside of the crossbar and caromed straight down on the goal line. Two Mustangs had cracks at the ball in the resulting scrum before a shot from Holly Krol was deflected wide of the left post by a defender.

"I don't know how that didn't go, especially with the wind blowing that way," Feulner said. "You would have thought it would have got in, but it didn't."

But the play of Kentgen is one of many reasons why Feulner is optimistic about his squad's future.

"She just goes hard," Feulner said. "She is fast, she's powerful, she's a strong kid and she plays like an upperclassman."

A huge corps of upperclassmen is what has sparked Lake Forest's strong start.

"I think that's a big part of it and also we have a lot of young talent, too," Quon said. "So we just have a really good dynamic and one of the strengths of our team is that we have a lot of depth, so it doesn't matter who starts and who doesn't start. We have a lot of strong players."

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