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the Lockport Legend | May 24, 2018 | 41
Athlete of the Week
10 Questions
with Ally Fischer
Ally Fischer is a senior at
Lockport Township High
School. She’s been a fouryear
varsity player for the
Porters soccer team.
The season came to a
disappointing end when
the Porters saw a 4-0
lead slip away and lost
5-4 in a game that went
to penalty kicks in the
regional semifinal. What
happened?
I feel like it was completely
mental errors. We were
going strong, and then we
made mental mistakes. We
just couldn’t finish it.
Was it especially hard
for you and the other
three seniors?
Yes, I’m already disappointed
the season is over.
I looked forward to coming
out day after day. Now,
I won’t be able to see my
friends all the time.
How did you get started
playing soccer?
I started playing when I
was 3 at the [Chicago] First
Church of the Nazarene in
Lemont. Then, when I was
5 years old, I first played for
the Homer Hawks club team.
When they switched to Inter,
I kept playing with them. I’m
still playing for them, on their
23 and under team. When I
was younger, I played goalie
for half the game, and in the
field for half the game. But
that was short-lived, as I was
too short to play goalie. So,
I’ve mostly played forward
ever since.
Did you play any other
sports?
I did cross country and
track at Homer Jr. High in
seventh and eighth grade.
But I didn’t do that in high
school, just soccer.
What is it about soccer
that makes it the sport
for you?
Every game is different. It
keeps me moving and takes
a lot of athleticism to play.
Do you do anything to
fire yourself up before a
game?
Yes, I listen to music. But I
always turn on one song that
is heavy metal. It doesn’t
matter which one, but it’s
heavy metal, and I scream at
the top of my lungs and get
angry. The rest of the team
thought it’s funny, and they
always like to film it.
How did your bond
with the other seniors
— Madi Davis, Lauren
Pikulski and Stephanie
Quigley — come about?
Yes, we were all really
close. Me and Lauren [Pikulski]
have been playing together
on club ball since fifth
grade. Actually, this year’s
senior and junior class had a
good bond as a team.
What have you learned
from Lockport coach
Todd Elkei?
I’ve learned to never give
up and do the best that I can.
I also learned that we can’t
let down for one second, but
that’s what we did [against
West Aurora].
Photo submitted
Are you going to play
soccer in college?
Yes, I’m going to play at
the University of Illinois at
Springfield. It’s a Division
II program. [Porter goalie]
coach EJ [Kirn] is an alumni
there, and he got ahold of
the coach. So, I went there
for some visits last summer
and signed to go there last
October. I want to major in
pre-dentistry and minor in
business. I want to become
an orthodontist and have my
own practice.
What’s the best thing
about being an athlete
at Lockport?
Just what a big community
it is. Yes, you have friends
on your team, but everyone
looks up to you as an athlete.
You get that name, you put
yourself in that position and
I really like it.
Interview by Freelance Reporter
Randy Whalen
This Week In...
Lockport Township High
School Varsity Athletics
Baseball
■May ■ 30 host IHSA Sectional,
4:30 p.m.
Softball
■May ■ 24 host IHSA Regional,
4:30 p.m.
■May ■ 25 host IHSA Regional
(Rain Date), TBA
Boys Volleyball
Lockport def. Homewood-
Flossmoor 25-8, 25-9
Pat Surane and Kyle
Dixon each recorded four
kills Thursday, May 17,
as the Porters downed
Homewood-Flossmoor in a
Tennis
From Page 45
in the finals. His victory
helped the Porters to 33 total
points and not only their
fourth straight sectional
championship, but seventh
(1986, 2003, 2010) in
school history.
Lockport (33 points) outdistanced
Romeoville (22)
for the team title. Oswego
(19), Plainfield Central
(14), Plainfield South (12)
and Plainfield North (12)
followed. Bolingbrook (8),
Plainfield East (6), and Joliet
West (2) rounded out
participating teams.
Seth Yaeger also advanced
to state with a third
place finish for Lockport.
After losing to Sardo 6-2,
6-1 in the semifinals, the
senior defeated Romeoville
senior Jacob Armea 6-0, 6-4
for third.
“This has been one of our
best years since we have a
close group of guys,” Randall
said. “Seth [Yaeger] almost
got there last year, so
for him to be able to do it
■May ■ 26 host IHSA Regional
Championship, 10 a.m.
■May ■ 29 at IHSA Sectional,
TBA
■May ■ 30 at IHSA Sectional,
TBA
Boys Track and Field
■May ■ 25 at IHSA State Championship,
TBA
■May ■ 26 at IHSA State Championship,
TBA
high school highlights
The rest of the week in high school sports
SouthWest Suburban Conference
match in Lockport.
Anthony Pfeiffer made his
presence felt with eight
kills, seven assists and
three aces.
Lockport def. Bolingbrook
this year is great. I’m proud
of him since he put in a lot
of hard work. And Fernando
and Douglas have a lot of
potential.”
Sophomore Fernando
Meraz and freshman Douglas
Blomquist won the
doubles title for the Porters.
They defeated Romeoville
senior Martin Rayos del Sol
and junior Jakub Sudol 7-6,
4-6, 6-1 in the final. To say
that the duo never dreamed
of this a year ago is an understatement.
Last summer,
Meraz was living in Mexico
and playing soccer, not
tennis. He moved here six
months ago.
“I hadn’t played that
much, but coming here
changed my mind,” said
Meraz, who first started
playing tennis at Challenge
Fitness. “We’re a
young team and still have
a lot to work on. After I
met the coaches, they’ve
been helping me out and
now I love the sport. Jack
is a very good player and
motivates us a lot. Being
this young and winning
Boys Tennis
■May ■ 24 at IHSA State Championship,
TBD
■May ■ 25 at IHSA State Championship,
TBD
■May ■ 26 at IHSA State Championship,
TBD
Boys Lacrosse
■May ■ 25 host IHSA Sectional,
4:30 p.m.
23-25, 25-17, 25-16
Anthony Pfeiffer was the
catalyst for the Porters, tallying
14 kills and 12 assists
as they defeated Bolingbrook
May 15. Kyle Dixon
also contributed 15 kills,
1.5 blocks and two aces.
this tournament is very
exciting.”
Blomquist agreed with
Meraz’s sentiment.
“It feels amazing and I
worked really hard for it,”
he said. “The good thing is
that we have a lot to get better
at. Fernando has been really
good, and me. We work
well together and have great
communication on the court.
It’s also been really nice to
see Jack all of the time since
he’s a great player.”
The Porters second doubles
team of junior Jacob
Cala and freshman Peter
Naylor narrowly lost to
Rayos del Sol and Sudol
7-5, 7-6 in the quarterfinals,
or they could have potentially
faced their teammates
for the title. But all of Lockport’s
doubles players are
expected back for next season.
In the third-place doubles
match it was Oswego senior
Max Blount and junior
Darren Li with a 6-4, 6-2
win over Plainfield Central
seniors Sam Jackson and
Noah Bylon.