The sun came out with 20 minutes left in Friday night’s game, sending its glare directly into the eyes of Metea Valley’s Julia Straub.
No worries. It was merely Straub’s time to shine.
The senior goalkeeper made three of her five saves down the stretch, including a tremendous play with 1:55 remaining in the Class 3A Naperville Central Sectional final.
“It was terrible,” Straub said. “The sun was kind of blinding and it was hard to see.
“But I was just really focused on the ball. I was just like, ‘We’ve got to hold the shutout, we’ve got to keep them at zero.'”
Straub zeroed in on Maggie Fitzgerald‘s rocket from the right wing, allowing the Mustangs to hold on for a 1-0 victory over Naperville North at Memorial Stadium.
It’s the first sectional championship in program history for Metea (19-2-1), which will play Edwardsville at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Normal West Supersectional.
The Mustangs had been 0-4 in sectional championship games.
“It feels amazing,” Straub said. “I’m just so proud of this team because this is probably the most talented team I’ve ever played on.
“Every single girl just has this drive and passion when they get on the field. We have such a special connection together and everyone plays their hearts out. It feels great because everyone here deserves it.”
The fourth-seeded Mustangs began the season relatively unheralded, but they are unbeaten against Illinois opponents and have won 11 straight games, two of which have been over second-seeded Naperville North.
“They like to be the underdog,” Metea coach Chris Whaley said of his team. “They like to play like they’ve got something to prove every game.”
Straub plans to play club soccer and major in biomedical engineering at Colorado State, but she certainly proved something against the Huskies (19-3-3).
Naperville North threw everything at Straub after junior forward Jordan Lange scored on a 23-yard shot to give Metea a 1-0 lead with 9:11 to go in the game.
“She’s an amazing goalie,” Lange said of Straub. “I’ve played with her since we were really little and I’ve seen her grow to be such an amazing player.
“She just gives her all at every moment and she’s such an upbeat person. She’s an amazing person as well.”
Lange has seen Straub make tough saves before but never like the one on Fitzgerald.
“Oh my gosh, it was an awesome save,” Lange said. “She could not even see in the sun and she just got her hands on it.”
Even the even-keeled Whaley was impressed.
“Holy cow,” Whaley said. “We already knew she’s capable of making big saves and she did. We brought (sophomore) Alyssa (Gluting) up so she had somebody to work with and mentor, somebody who was going to push her to be her best.
“Julia just kept getting better and better, and she proved her worth to her team.”
The Huskies proved the same to Naperville North coach Steve Goletz.
“I’m happy for our kids and how hard they played,” Goletz said. “It took a great team, a great individual effort and an unbelievable save but we went down swinging to the last second.
“What these kids did this year is just remarkable, and my heart just hurts that I don’t get another day to coach them. You tip your hat to Metea, and we wish them the best of luck as they move forward.”
What keeps the Mustangs moving forward?
“It’s just our drive, our positivity and our teamwork,” Straub said. “We’re always there for one another. We push each other hard and don’t yell at each other negatively. We leave it all out on the field.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.