Maria Perez’s varsity debut last year for the Andrew girls soccer team was an eye-opening experience.
Not getting as much playing time as she hoped for made her hungrier.
“Last season was a little rough for me,” Perez said. “I went from starting on my club team to being on the bench on my high school team. That was very humbling.
“One of the biggest things this year is I wanted to come out here and be a lot more confident and just show what I can do.”
Perez, who’s in the starting lineup now, put her skills on display Thursday.
The senior forward scored two goals as the Thunderbolts topped host Homewood-Flossmoor 3-0 in a Windy City Ram Classic second-round game in Flossmoor.
Andrew (2-0) will take on Providence or Hinsdale South in Saturday’s quarterfinals of the 32-team tournament at a time and location to be determined.
Abbie Bosco gave the Thunderbolts an early lead over H-F (1-1), scoring in the seventh minute off a long pass from junior defender Erin O’Neill.
Perez, who had the first two-goal game of her career, started it by taking a pass from Jessica Morawski near the top of the box and ripping a 15-yard shot inside the far post to make it 2-0 in the 12th minute.
“We’ve seen a lot of improvement from her this year,” Andrew coach Loren Zolk said of Perez. “She’s a force out there. She has a lot of skill and a really good shot. She likes to create opportunities for other people, but she can also put shots away.
“She’s been impressive. I’ve been really happy with her growth over the last year.”
Perez struck again early in the second half, showing off a fine touch in scoring a nifty goal.
After the ball was deflected several times in the box, Andrew’s Katherine Watzke got her foot on it and flicked it toward the middle of the field.
Perez was there to volley it the ball out of the air, finishing off a high shot.
“When the ball comes back, you just try to get anything you can toward goal,” Perez said. “That’s all I had in mind was to get a foot on it and hope for the best.”
Perez said she scored “about three” goals last season, so scoring twice so early this year has her feeling good about the future.
“It’s definitely a confidence builder,” she said. “It feels amazing. I’m looking forward to a lot this year.
“It’s my senior year. I’m trying to do as much as I can for my last year and finish strong.”
Andrew did not allow a shot on goal as O’Neill, Emily Tobin, Bella Kreydich and Brina Arvanetes led the defense.
Simone Cortes and Addy Kreydich each worked a half at goalkeeper for the shutout.
O’Neill has moved from midfielder to defender, at least temporarily, as Andrew is dealing with some injuries.
“Right now, I’m playing back and I feel pretty comfortable with it,” O’Neill said. “I like it a lot. I used to play back when I was younger.”
Cristina Ramirez made six saves for H-F, while Dakota Dixon and Solana Hernandez generated several offensive chances.
New Vikings coach Ali Farkos, an H-F alum, is optimistic about what she has seen so far.
“I came in completely blind about these girls and I’m liking everything we’re doing,” Farkos said. “The girls are working their butts off. We’re moving toward bigger and better soccer and being competitive where we can come out and play with the best teams.
“We’re making strides every day toward being a better program, and that’s what our goal is right now.”
Steve Millar is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.