Knights and Tigers square off for Pepsi crown

Wheaton Warrenville South's #18 Nico Galto jumps for the ball as Sandburg's #20 Alex Heina looks on.
John Booz/For the Sun-Times

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The tough, physical defense of Wheaton Warrenville South will be matched against the speed of Lincoln-Way Central's high-powered offense when the two sides meet next Sunday at Toyota Park in the championship game of the Pepsi Showdown presented by the Chicago Sun-Times.

Top-seeded WW South (8-2-1) will be appearing in the title game for the third time in the four-year history of the tournament after edging Sandburg 1-0 on Saturday in semifinal action in Western Springs. Lincoln-Way Central (10-1-1), the No. 6 seed, will be making its title game debut thanks to a 5-1 thrashing of Warren.

Ohio State recruit Eric Shrigley gave WW South the only offense it would need when he scored his 11th goal of the season on a header from seven yards out off an assist by Joshua Exclusa in the 33rd minute. It was the Tigers' third straight one-goal victory of the tournament.

"I think people look at me and see that I'm really skinny, so they're not that intimidated," Shrigley said. "But I think I've gotten a lot more physical in my game, and that's been a big part of my success."

Defense was again a big part of the Tigers' success. Goalie Randall Babb made four saves to record his fourth shutout in an evenly-played match.

Today we played very secure in the back," WW South coach Guy Callipari said. "I think we had only one breakdown.

And what can you say about Eric being opportunistic? It's nice to have a go-to guy and he loves to step up and he doesn't shy away from the ball."

Sandburg dropped its record to 5-5.

Lincoln-Way Central, which has won seven straight, has a host of go-to players up front. The Knights have scored 52 goals and given up just eight this season, outscoring their last three Showdown opponents 13-2.

"When we have some chemistry we just get going and there's not much that can stop us," said Lincoln-Way Central midfielder Tim Garland, who scored twice. "We're excited to get to [Toyota Park] and show everybody what we're made of."

Dave Sayre had a goal and two assists for the Knights, while Ben Martinez and Jason Obermeier also scored. Tyler Schwede scored for Warren (4-6-2).