Huntley’s Wronski leaves impression

Updated: June 24, 2011 2:27PM

Huntley girls soccer coach Kris Grabner almost had as many adjectives and memorable moments to relate as Aimee Wronski had goals. And that’s saying something.

The Courier-News’ 2011 Girls Soccer Player of the Year was both athletically and statistically the area’s most dominant player. Her area-best 71 points are a whopping 30 ahead of the No. 2 point producer. Her area-high 32 goals are 13 above the runner-up.

The impact she’s had on Red Raiders girls soccer? Not only priceless but still years from being complete.

“Aimee was always someone the opposition defense had to worry about,” Grabner said. “She made her teammates better, which is exactly what you expect from an MVP or Player of the Year. And the way she played is the way she practiced. If we were doing a possession drill, her teammates knew she’d come flying at them.

“There’s just no questioning her love and passion for the game. And her impact will remain long after she’s gone because she doesn’t realize all the little girls who’ve watched her and play the game because they look up to her and her teammates.”

As expected, the two-time Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-State selection felt honored by the award and then immediately shared the credit.

“It certainly feels good from the standpoint I’ve worked hard to get to the point where I can be the kind of a player I wanted to be,” Wronski said. “But I’m also so fortunate to have been surrounded by the other seniors I’ve played alongside for years. Those seniors and my other teammates deserve credit for this award.

“I still remember my freshman year like it was yesterday, probably because it seems to have gone by so quickly.”

Grabner also had no trouble recalling when he first discovered the gem on his roster.

“I didn’t start her as a freshman, but the first time I subbed her was about 15 minutes into our opener,” Grabner said. “As the wing midfielder on the right side, she dropped back on a through ball like we wanted, but once our keeper had it, she sprinted some 80 yards to collect the punt and scored off it. I knew we had something special and I believe she scored in her first seven or eight matches. Even as a freshman, she had the ability to score big goals.”

This past season Wronski led the squad with eight match-winners as Huntley put together a stellar 19-2-1 campaign and spent all season in the Chicago Sun-Times’ Top 10.

“We had our senior night game on our football field, which naturally has some bumps left over from the previous fall and Dundee-Crown played great against us, but I still kept thinking something’s not right with Aimee,” Grabner said. “She seemed to me like she was choosing to work and at times, not work. Suddenly she sees the keeper out of position and puts in a shot inside the far post and I’m thinking, OK, she’s back to her old self.

“Second half starts and I’m getting frustrated again so this time I bench her and yell at her for not working hard. Later on I tell her to give her backup a break and 45 seconds after she gets in, she blasts it from like 40 or 45 yards, seeing the keeper’s too far off the line. I’m thinking ‘OK, she’s fired up.’ Shortly after she adds another spectacular goal, if I made a goal anything like one of those three, I’d be bragging forever. Game’s over and she doesn’t say a word, and I figure she’s upset with me only to find out from her father she had a 100-degree fever and was sick, but wasn’t going to miss senior night. That’s Aimee.”

That’s why Wronski was a four-time All-Fox Valley Conference pick and was twice named to the Pepsi Showdown’s All-Tournament squad along with making the ESPN Rise’s Honorable Mention All-America unit for 2009. It’s why she has a scholarship to play Division I soccer at Illinois State.

“I’ve got so many memories from my high school career and they’re all important to me, but one that stands out is from two years ago when we played Cary-Grove in a regional final and I scored off an assist from my sister,” Wronski said. “That was just extra special.”

“It feels strange to think I’m going to be a freshman again, but I’m really excited and ever since my visit (to ISU), I felt It’s where I belong. So my plan is to just continue working hard; in the end, everything in life comes down to hard work.”

© 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.