The 90-degree heat was baking the turf and sapping her energy, but sophomore midfielder Jenna Krakowski had only one thought for Libertyville.
“There’s only 25 minutes left for our whole season,” Krakowski said. “Just give it everything you’ve got and come out with a win.”
The Wildcats did just that at state Saturday, scoring twice in a six-minute span to rally past Barrington 2-1 in the Class 3A third-place game at Fremd in Palatine.
Krakowski set up the winner, racing into the open on a counterattack before feeding junior forward Avery Gleason up the right wing.
Gleason dribbled to the edge of the penalty area before firing a shot into the upper left corner of the net with 18:08 remaining in the second half.
“I saw Avery making the run and I just knew she was going to get it,” Krakowski said. “So I played it right to her run.”
The timing of the goal was symbolic as well as superb — Krakowski’s uniform number is 18 and Gleason’s is 8.
“It was similar to my goal against New Trier,” said Gleason, referring to Libertyville’s 1-0 overtime win in the supersectional. “The goalie was leaning this way, so I went to the far post.”
The Wildcats (18-2) went farther than they had since winning the 2001 championship. They hadn’t been back to the state finals since, but this group surprised many by reaching the Final Four with 12 first-year varsity players.
Five of them, including Gleason, play on the same club team. That meant instant chemistry.
“We all know how each other plays,” Gleason said. “We have continuity in what we do.
“I know where people are passing, they know where I make runs, so we’ve been able to build off that.”
The Wildcats built a sturdy foundation in a short amount of time. They beat state powers New Trier and Barrington — which had combined to win five of the previous six state titles — twice each.
Although Libertyville’s quest for the third state title in program history ended with a 2-1 loss to eventual champion O’Fallon in Friday’s semifinals, the Wildcats bounced back in impressive fashion to beat the Fillies (17-3-2).
Barrington took a 1-0 lead when Kate McGreevy headed in a corner kick from Brooke Brown with 28:39 remaining in the second half.
The Wildcats answered at the 24:01 mark as Sally Grace Rogers headed home a 31-yard free kick from fellow junior defender Riley Brennan.
“I’m just so proud of this team,” Libertyville coach Daniel DePaz said. “I wish there was a bigger word that I could say, but what true grit and resilience this team has.
“One of the toughest games has to be the third-place game. You’d hoped you’d be in the state championship game, but you lose and you have to come back less than 24 hours later and still play hard.
“That speaks volumes about what kind of kids we have on this team.”
People are taking notice, much to Gleason’s delight.
“I think it builds confidence in the program,” Gleason said. “If people recognized us before it was, ‘Oh, it’s just girls soccer.’
“We’ve never been really good recently. Fans are coming out and everyone is paying attention to what we’re doing.”
That includes future Libertyville players.
“One of my friends who is going to be a freshman said to me, ‘You play my position, I watch all your games and I want to be you,”’ Gleason said. “So it’s inspiring another generation of players.
“They say, ‘We’re going to play for Libertyville girls soccer — they’re good.’ We really have a chance to do well.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.