Lady Chiefs win Region IV title for 4th time in last 7 years, move on to NJCAA National Tournament
(Sugar Grove)- Waubonsee rolled past the College of Lake County 4-0 on Saturday, Nov. 8 to win the Region IV Division I Women's Soccer Championship. The victory earned the Lady Chiefs a berth in the 2014 NJCAA Division I National Tournament hosted by Eastern Florida State College in Melbourne, Florida. The Region IV title is the fourth for Waubonsee in the last seven years. The Lady Chiefs will be making the program's second appearance ever (2011) at the National Tournament, and first under third-year head coach Brad Schlemmer. Waubonsee (15-3-2) received the 12th seed and is set to square off against top-ranked Iowa Western (18-0-1) Community College to begin pool play on Nov. 17 beginning at 10 a.m. (EDT). The Lady Chiefs are then scheduled to play eighth-seeded Butler (KS) Community College (15-4-3) the following day also starting at 10 a.m. (EDT). The 12-team tournament is split into four groups of three, with the top team from each pool moving on to the final four to battle for the 2014 NJCAA Division I National Championship. The games can be watched live via the Internet at www.njcaatv.com.
Waubonsee controlled the action throughout the title match with Lake County, scoring three times in the first half and out shooting the Lancers 30-7 on the day. Ashley Darlak got Waubonsee on the scoreboard when she drilled a shot past the Lancers' keeper Honeydeighz Cruz just five minutes into the contest. The laser shot by Darlak was her 15th goal of the season as Andrea Garcia was credited with the assist. Haley Kilbride then put Waubonsee in command with her 15th goal of the year off an assist from Darlak midway through the first half. A few minutes later Garcia secured Waubonsee's control of the match with her 22nd goal on a great move in front of the goal and a beautiful touch shot over Cruz' reach. Kilbride was credited with the assist on the play, her 14th of the fall. Waubonsee continued to pepper away at Cruz and the Lancers' defense throughout the second half. Olivia Cozzoni eventually broke through for her 15th goal of the season with 15 minutes left. Lisa Gaffino booked seven saves on the way to her fifth shutout of the season in goal. It was also the Lady Chiefs' third straight shutout and seventh on the fall overall. Over Waubonsee's three tournament victories, Coach Brad Schlemmer's squad set a program record by outscoring its opponents 23-0 and out shooting them 90-11.
