Bridget Lesch did everything but stand on her head trying to deliver an upset of the defending state field hockey champions Monday night in Northfield.
But the Evanston goalie couldn’t do it alone.
Four-time defending state champion New Trier punched across two insurance goals in the fourth quarter and held the visiting Wildkits without a single shot on net in a 4-0 triumph.
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Lesch contributed what might have been a school record 24 saves, yet couldn’t prevent Evanston’s second loss of the season. The Kits slipped to 6-2-1 overall.
The Trevians, led by All-State candidate and Princeton University recruit Izzy Morgan, applied constant pressure on Lesch. The junior stopped 7 shots by Morgan, who scored a whopping 42 goals last fall, and kept her off the scoreboard. She also foiled a dangerous 1-on-1 breakway bid by New Trier’s sophomore star, Lilly Cimaroli, early in the fourth quarter.
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But the unbeaten Trevians counted goals from Maxine Hekster in the first quarter, and from Makenzie Gable in the second quarter and that was more than enough to secure the win.
Riley Zenkewicz and Kayla Chudgar finished off the scoring with goals in the final 10 and a half minutes for the winners.
Evanston’s only other loss this season came by a 2-1 margin to Oak Park-River Forest. The Wildkits had totaled 22 goals combined in their last 3 games before being blanked Monday.
The Kits just couldn’t string together any passes or gain any traction against a program that all of the teams in the state of Illinois are trying to catch up to. The Trevians have captured 16 state titles overall, dating back to long before the sport was endorsed by the Illinois High School Association.
Evanston didn’t back down Monday. Now, the Kits have to figure out a way to score against their rivals.
“I thought the girls were nervous all day, but once the whistle blew, they calmed their nerves and they were fine. We weren’t intimidated by them,” said second-year head coach Annie Lesch. “I’m very proud of the way we played. I think we took New Trier a little by surprise tonight.
“I just wish we could have tested them more. We showed we can play with them. But it was hard for us to play a possession game against them when we couldn’t even get past their first line, even on our free hits. I wish we had possessed more on the right side. We needed more push and not so many swings.”
“Bridget (the coach’s oldest daughter) did play a great game. She really made them work. And we just moved (senior) Julia Newbold to the midfield for this game and she really had a good game, too.”
Evanston resumes action on Wednesday at Lake Forest Academy, and will host Antioch on Saturday at 9:30 a.m.
