MK_031920

mokenamessengerdaily.com sports
the mokena messenger | March 19, 2020 | 45
Griffins show off offense in season-opening rout of McAuley
8
Star transfer
Schultz’s status up
in the air
STEVE MILLAR, Sports Editor
With the majority of its
team back from a 19-10
season in 2019, Lincoln-
Way East was confident
in the group it sent into
the pool for the season
opener against Mother
McAuley on March 9.
Still, it was hard for any
of the Griffins to imagine
things would go quite as
well as they did against
the Mighty Macs, who
finished third in the state
last season.
East, ranked No. 5 in
the state by Illpolo, rolled
past No. 7 McAuley 18-4
in Frankfort.
“We don’t want to be
too cocky, but for us losing
to McAuley three
years in a row and finally
being able to conquer
that and beating them is a
great feeling,” senior Katie
Meagher said.
Meagher poured in seven
goals to lead the Griffins,
while senior Emma
Hernandez scored six
goals. Junior Cali Burns
scored three goals, while
sophomore Gabby Brozovic
and senior Alicia
Pearson each scored once.
Seniors Morgan Grove
and Grace Wilk split time
in goal, with both playing
well.
“The girls stepped up,”
East coach Kendra Will
said. “We have a really
great, experienced team.
We have a big group of
seniors who have been
working hard for three
years. This is their fourth
year, and they’re ready to
dominate.”
Adding to the excitement
- and a scary though
for East opponents - is
the fact that the Griffins
dominated without one
of their top players, as
senior Tina Winter sat out
with an illness.
“Tina is a big aspect for
our team, but we showed
that we are all shooters,
we can all play defense,”
Meagher said. “We’re a
well-rounded team and
I’m just so happy to be a
part of this team.”
The Griffins could also
receive an astronomical
boost at some point this
season.
Maddie Schultz, who
scored 324 goals over
two seasons as a freshman
and sophomore at
Mother McAuley, and
earned second-team All-
State honors last season,
has transferred to East.
Her eligibility was still in
question as the season began,
so she did not play in
either of the Griffins’ first
two games.
East certainly did not
need her against her former
school.
After the Mighty Macs
took a quick 1-0 lead, the
Griffins scored the next
nine goals.
Leading 2-1 after a
quarter, East broke things
open by scoring seven
times in the second quarter.
Hernandez caught fire
with three goals in the period,
while Burns scored
two.
“It was definitely really
exciting,” Hernandez
said. “Communication
was a big thing. We
played really well as a
team and we all hype each
other up.”
Hernandez expects
team chemistry to be a
huge factor in the Griffins’
success.
“We’ve all been really
good friends for a long
time, so we know each
other’s strengths and
weaknesses and where we
need to work to get better,”
she said.
The Griffins continued
to pour it on, adding nine
goals in the second half.
“We were so hungry,”
Meagher said. “Emma
told us so many times to
keep thinking the score
is 0-0 and keep pretending
it’s a new game every
time.”
East followed up on the
impressive performance
with another offensive
outburst March 10, routing
Neuqua Valley 19-8
in Naperville.
Hernandez scored six
goals and had two steals,
Burns had five goals and
four steals. Winter returned
and score twice,
while Brozovic and Meagher
added two goals
each. Ashley White and
Campbell Greenawalt
each scored one goal.
The strong start certainly
gave the Griffins
a momentum boost, but
Hernandez wants to make
sure they do not get too
far ahead of themselves.
“I think this is definitely
a big confidence boost,
but we know there are
other teams out there, so
we don’t want to get too
confident,” she said.
Last season, the Griffins
fell one win short of
state, falling to rival Lincoln-Way
Central 11-8 in
a sectional championship
game.
East has been to state
four times, most recently
in 2018, but has never
won a game there and has
never won a state trophy.
The Griffins’ boys team
Lincoln-Way East’s Alicia Pearson looks to fire a shot against Mother McAuley during
the Griffins’ 18-4 win March 9. Photos By Steve Millar/22nd Century Media
Lincoln-Way East’s Katie Meagher gets ready to shoot in a March 9 game against
Mother McAuley. Meagher scored a game-high seven goals in the Griffins’ 18-4 win.
made history last season
when they brought home
their first state trophy
with a fourth-place finish.
The girls hops it is their
turn this year.
“I’m really hoping we
go to state and hopefully
we can do some damage
at state this year,” Hernandez
said. “That’d be
fun.”