Morton girls soccer finishes second after falling in 2A state title game
- Caden Sexton
- Jun 6
- 4 min read
NAPERVILLE — Throughout its season and playoff run, the Morton girls soccer team had always been the one to respond.
But on Saturday, it was Crystal Lake Central who found an immediate response to the Potters’ lone goal and won 3-1 in the Class 2A state championship game at North Central College in Naperville.
Despite the loss and the tears shed, many heads were hanging high. Morton’s runner-up trophy is its first state trophy in program history.
“It’s meant so much from the start,” Morton’s Claire Ceresa said. “We’ve been working so hard each day, practicing hard to get where we got today. I mean, the championship game is everyone’s dream and that’s what we got. Losing sucks, but we did what we got to state, we got to the final game. I’m just so proud of this team.”
“The season has been amazing,” Morton’s Izzy Ripka said. “Coach Statham’s first season at Morton, we made it second in state. We have a lot of returners. I know we can do it next year too.”
The depth of Morton, which finished the historic season with a 26-2-1 record, has been on prominent display all season and that depth includes a strong core returning next year.
The Potters will certainly miss the contributions of seniors Addy Blake, Edie Hart, Charlotte Vestal, Marley Rosales, Addie McClure, Kelsey Tisdale and Lily Klopfenstein. But they will return seven juniors, seven sophomores and two freshmen from this year’s varsity squad.
“I don’t really plan on stopping anytime soon, I like this feeling,” Statham said. “Hopefully we get this whole town even more soccer crazy than they already are. That’s the goal.”
This was the first season under the leadership of Statham, who led both the boys and girls teams this year.
“It’s nice because when you move to different jobs in different places, you have to change your whole life. They’ve made that worth it,” Statham said. “The boys made it worth it in the fall as well, but for the girls to do it as well, it makes my decision to come here a lot easier, knowing we did so well and we have such a great group of girls not just this year, but returning next year.”
The sun was beating down on Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium with temperatures nearing 90 degrees and Saturday’s game was played with water break timeouts in each half.
Adly Hilt was in the net for the Potters and left the goal area twice in the first half to diffuse breakaways from the Tigers, yet the third got past her as Crystal Lake Central’s Addison Schaffer scored the game’s first goal in the 29th minute.
Hilt had to check out of the contest following the first water break for having an earring in, resulting in a yellow card on the Morton bench. The Potters’ freshman goalkeeper Ainsley Bimrose made a pair of saves in her quick appearance.
In the final five minutes of the half, the Potters had a pair of breakaways that were snuffed out by the Tigers, as well as a shot from the wing that Tigers keeper Ryleigh Smith dove and tipped with her fingertips.
Jessica Knapp of the Potters defense sent Crystal Lake Central a message to start the second half, completing a solo defensive effort to stop a goal. However, injuries riddled Morton across the final 40 minutes of the season, including one to Klopfenstein, who walked off with a trainer and remained out the rest of the contest.
With Morton desperately needing a goal in the second half, Izzy Ripka delivered by scoring off a Potters’ corner kick at the 15:33 mark in the second half for her third goal of the weekend.
“Honestly, I wasn’t trying to score, but found the back of the net and just knowing that we were tied and we really could do this, giving us some hope, it felt amazing.” Ripka said.
Thirty-two seconds later, a yellow card from Rosales in the box set up a penalty kick for Crystal Lake Central. The Tigers sent Schaffer to the line, who sent a grounder into the right side of the net for her second goal of the evening.
With 23.2 seconds left and the Potters’ defense scrambling, the Tigers’ Ella Bechler sent a ball in from long range that bounced into the net and sealed Crystal Lake Central’s victory.
As the Potters walked out of the field and to the front of the stadium, the many Potters fans clad in red and white were waiting, giving them thunderous applause.
“I think it’s motivating, right?” Statham said. “It’s motivating for me, it’s motivating for the girls of the future. Hopefully there were some kids of the future there watching it and hopefully their dreams to want to get back here someday.”
“Certainly it’s mine as well.”
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