Chloe Shapkauski had her sophomore season at Tinley Park cut short last year when she tore the ACL in her left leg during a game against Reavis.
Shapkauski missed the last few games of the regular season and the entire playoffs while heading into a long rehab process.
“Not being able to play was really hard,” she said. “I got surgery about two weeks after I tore it and then I was able to start physical therapy shortly after that.
“My love for the game motivated me to come back strong.”
Shapkauski has returned to play a key role for Tinley Park.
The junior midfielder finished the regular season with four goals and eight assists for the Titans (11-7), who are set to take on rival Oak Forest at 6 p.m. Friday in the Class 2A Kankakee Regional championship game.
“Chloe is such a steady, important player for us,” Tinley Park coach Kelsey Neylon said. “She’s great at setting up her teammates and she’s a strong defensive player as well as offensively.”
When Shapkauski came back from the injury, she faced some nerves and uncertainty.
“I started playing again in January,” she said. “At first, I was a little hesitant with being aggressive and everything because I didn’t want to injure it again. But once I played a little bit, I knew it was safe.”
Her teammates helped erase any doubts.
“Seeing the smile on my teammates’ faces when I was back on the field really made me want to succeed even more,” Shapkauski said.
On a young team, Shapkauski enjoys being one of the guiding voices for Tinley Park.
“My biggest strength is my voice, I feel like,” she said. “I always tell people when they have a pass open and try to help everyone know where to go. I try to read the field for other people. I always try to get those outside crosses to get assists.”
Off the field, Shapkauski reports on sports for her school district’s BDTV228 and writes for some local publications.
“I got interested in journalism because they gave me an opportunity to do it with my friends,” she said. “I have an opportunity to speak with my friends and report on them.
“I already knew their backgrounds and I was really excited to share my friends’ stories with other people.”
Shapkauski missed Tinley Park’s 2-1 loss last season to Oak Forest in the regional final. She hopes she can help the Titans make a big playoff run this time around.
“The playoffs are all about hustle and heart,” she said. “We really need to kick up the heat and the intensity and just do our best and push ourselves.”
‘Cardiac kids’: The Lockport boys team’s run to a third-place finish in Class 3A last fall was filled with memorable comebacks and dramatic overtime games.
Apparently, that rubbed on the Porters’ girls team.
Lockport (16-6-1), seeded 10th in the loaded Naperville Central Sectional, pulled off a wild 4-3 win over seventh-seeded Waubonsie Valley in Wednesday’s Lockport Regional semifinal.
The Porters won a shootout 5-4 in six rounds, with senior forward Karolina Stasik converting the winning penalty kick.
It was a big night for Stasik, who also scored in OT and broke the single-season program record for goals with 26.
Lockport’s Anna Domina tied the game 2-2 with just 29 seconds left in regulation.
“I think the girls went to quite a few of the boys games in the fall and it shows,” Lockport coach Todd Elkei said. “They have become the cardiac kids too. This just shows the kids’ heart and desire.”
Ram tough: The South Suburban Red championship came down to the final game of the regular season on May 12, when Reavis (10-12-1, 8-2-1) edged Eisenhower 2-1 to take the title.
Olivia Smycz and Natalie Carriedo scored for the Rams. Smycz, a sophomore forward, led Reavis with nine goals this season.
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.