Raiders grab title

Huntley’s Taylor Henning-Fletter (right) vies for the ball with Jacobs’ Cassidy Sherman on Tuesday in Algonquin. Huntley won the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division game, 3-0. (Catalin Abagiu – cabagiu@nwherald.com)

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ALGONQUIN – Conditions were muddy and damp, the chill settling through the Huntley girls soccer players’ dirt-streaked uniforms, but the moment was spectacular.

With the Red Raiders’ 3-0 victory against Jacobs on Tuesday, they clinched the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division title outright – a feat the Raiders figured would be difficult to accomplish at the start of their first season in the division.

Although Huntley’s players said their goals for the season were far from met, winning the FVC Valley Division title cued some necessary celebration and rededicated the Raiders to their postseason plans.

“For us to win this half of the conference the first time we’re playing in it, that’s a big deal for us,” Huntley coach Kris Grabner said. “We’re proud of it, and we’re even more proud because of how tough the conference was.”

The Raiders (19-3-1 overall, 9-1 FVC Valley) won the FVC Fox Division the past three seasons and had one misstep – a loss to Cary-Grove on April 22 – in their first season in the Valley, which is comprised of the conference’s larger schools.

Huntley won the title despite injuries to several key players. Junior defender Alyse Williams, junior midfielder Bre Burry and senior forward Corinne Wronski have been sidelined by injuries since playing C-G.

“It was tough to get into it because we had a few starting players out for a while, but I think we’ve been doing very well, keeping our heads up,” said junior forward Aimee Wronski, who said her sister, Corinne, tore her ACL and will not return this season.

“We stayed confident, and we’re making sure that we can get it done.”

The Raiders put away Tuesday’s match in the second half after playing to a scoreless tie against the Golden Eagles (10-11-1, 3-7) at halftime.

Huntley started the half with precision, moving the ball all the way down the field in the opening minute until Aimee Wronski got it on the far left side of the box.

Wronski crossed to junior forward Emily Konior in the middle, and Konior dumped a pass to senior midfielder Kelly Creager on the far right side of the box.

Creager took a left-footed shot and sent the ball into the goal’s far-left corner to open up a 1-0 Huntley advantage in the first minute of play in the second half.

“It was fun to finally get one in and start us off,” Creager said. “I think once we got the first goal in we started getting them in faster.”

Huntley had finished its scoring in the first 10 minutes of the second half.

Wronski hit a shot off a pass from senior midfielder Taylor Henning-Fletter with 31:36 left to play for a career-high 24th goal this season.

Konior followed one minute later, taking a Wronski rebound and sending it into the middle of the net.

Jacobs coach Anthony Cappello needs the Eagles to rally from the loss and focus on next week’s Class 3A regional semifinal against Cary-Grove.

“We’re either going to leave with the feeling we had tonight or the feeling Huntley just walked away with,” Cappello said. “It’s going to be one or the other.”