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Chicago Tribune
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville North's Lucy Fitzgerald wears No. 11, like her sisters did. She nearly wins it all, which Nora did.
Naperville North's Lucy Fitzgerald had to wait a long time to get regular playing time. Fitzgerald didn't make the varsity team until her junior year and only earned a starting spot about two months ago. But the senior defender never came off the field during her final game — the Class 3A state championship game, which went to double overtime Saturday night. 'It really meant so much to me because at the beginning of the year I didn't start,' she said. 'Throughout the year, I've just been working my hardest, and to be able to play all 100 minutes on the field feels really good.' There were tears in Fitzgerald's eyes, of course, because O'Fallon halted Naperville North's stirring playoff run. The Huskies' 1-0 loss at North Central College in Naperville also ended an era. Fitzgerald is the last of three sisters to play for the Huskies (17-6-3), whose underdog run to the final was reminiscent of the 2019 state championship team that included her oldest sister, Nora. Both wore No. 11. Their sister Maggie Fitzgerald, who graduated from Naperville North in 2023 and flew into town to attend the game, wore No. 11 and No. 19 during her time. 'To have Maggie come back and surprise her sister at the state championship game, that's just what makes this program special,' Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. 'Families like the Fitzgeralds, the DeCooks, the Polaviejas, the Bueschers, there's a reason these girls were where they were. 'Nobody thought that this team would be in the state championship tonight outside of our group.' The Huskies had no Division I recruits except Tennessee-bound junior forward Claire DeCook, who played her last game because she will graduate early, and Minnesota-bound senior defender Emily Buescher. But Lucy Fitzgerald was respected for her grit and perseverance. 'Something that's incredibly special about Lucy is just her willingness to work all the time, and she never lets that negative feeling overcome her,' Buescher said. 'Every time she's given a chance, she proves that she deserves it. 'We do an awards banquet before the year ends, and her thing was most improved player because there were days when she would stay 40 to 50 minutes after practice. She would ask for me to stay or for other people to stay to help her with certain things.' Buescher, whose sister Katelynn captained the Huskies to third place in 2018 before playing at Illinois and Illinois State, added that Fitzgerald's work rate pushes teammates too. 'It makes it so easy to work hard when you're next to Lucy because you know how hard she's working,' Buescher said. 'Our last game, she absolutely saved us, so it's so easy to cheer her on because she's such a special person and a special player.' Goletz said Fitzgerald showed that Saturday, helping the Huskies hold the Panthers (23-1-1) scoreless for almost 90 minutes until Allie Tredway scored on a 22-yard rocket with 5.7 seconds left in the first overtime. 'Lucy's an incredible kid, a kid that ran the process of being in this program,' Goletz said. 'The reason you play state championship games is because you have kids who care more about the program than they do themselves. 'Lucy was such a rock back there. She was a great target on restarts, and tonight she's put on an island at times 1v1, moves her feet well.' Like most of her teammates, Fitzgerald will not play in college. But she cemented her family's legacy and set a great example. 'It's a tough thing for a high school kid to check your own ego at the door and continue to fight for your teammates,' Goletz said. 'Lucy did that day in and day out for four years, and for her to step in at the moment she had the opportunity this year and seize that spot in the back made us better.' Although her sisters' varsity careers were longer than hers, the 6-foot Fitzgerald is the tallest and strongest. But like them, she walked off the field in a Naperville North uniform for the final time having given her all and leaving behind no regrets before she heads to Tennessee, where she can cheer on DeCook. 'I feel like it was a good ending, a happy ending,' Fitzgerald said. 'Even though it's sad that it's over, I'm really happy I got to do it with this team with every single one of the girls.'
Chicago Tribune
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville North's Brooke Welch wears No. 3 like older brother Bryce. But she can accomplish what he didn't.
Naperville North junior forward Brooke Welch's high school career was interrupted shortly after it began. When she was a freshman, Welch suffered a torn ACL just five minutes into the season opener against Barrington. Two other freshmen, Michelle Ruan and Claire DeCook, suffered the same season-ending injuries that year. All three returned the following season, when Welch switched from defender to forward and endeared herself to teammates and coaches. 'Brooke is such a special player,' Naperville North senior defender Emily Buescher said. 'When she comes onto the field, you know that she's going to do exactly what she's asked and she's going to be exactly where we need her to be.' That was the case again during the Class 3A state semifinals at North Central College in Naperville on Friday. Welch won the ball on the right wing and sent a perfect cross to the Tennessee-bound DeCook, who scored with 24:18 left in the first half. That was the first of DeCook's two goals in the Huskies' 2-1 win against Lane. 'It was a great goal,' Welch said. 'I trust my teammates to get in the box anytime anyone gets end line, so I knew someone would be there. 'I just took a quick glance, and I saw that Claire was there. She's proved that she can score, so it was great to be able to play that to her and her finish it. It was nice to see it hit the back of the net, especially in a game as big as this.' Welch's stats don't stand out. She has two goals and one assist for Naperville North (17-5-3), which advanced to play O'Fallon (22-1-1) in the state championship game at 7 p.m. Saturday. But one of her goals was the difference in the Huskies' 1-0 win over Oswego in a regional final. 'She's a kid who will do a 5-yard sprint into the fence, so I think for her to get that (assist) is everything,' Buescher said. 'It was her fulfilling her role. In the sense of our team, she's never been an overlooked player because she is so incredibly special in doing what she's supposed to do.' That's exactly what Welch did to set up DeCook's first goal. 'The defender had the ball at first, and she had to battle to get it back,' DeCook said. 'A lot of people would be just be like, 'Oh, I lost the ball,' and they give up there. But you can always expect Brooke to work hard. It's just that continuous fight throughout the game.' Naperville North coach Steve Goletz loves that. 'Brooke is an incredible kid who gives us such a spark,' Goletz said. 'She's an absolutely selfless kid. 'She gives everything to her teammates, and we're not playing in this game if she doesn't score the goal against Oswego. We're so lucky to have so many kids like Brooke.' Welch said she's lucky to have support from people like her brother Bryce, a former point guard for Naperville North who just completed his freshman year at Iowa Central. He was a fixture at his sister's games last year and was in attendance Friday. 'It was so great to have my brother here to watch me,' Brooke Welch said. 'I picked No. 3 because he was No. 3, so it was nice in a semifinal game to be able to wear his number. He's my best friend and biggest fan.' Bryce Welch was beaming with pride Friday. 'She played great today,' he said. 'It means a lot to be able to see her go out there and do her thing, do what she likes to do.' Bryce Welch never played soccer, but he often served as goalkeeper for his sister's practice sessions and always was ready to give sound advice. 'It was mostly just don't compare yourself to other people when you're trying to get better, especially at a younger age, because she was always younger than me,' he said. 'For her, I always wanted to make it about taking it one day at a time.' Brooke Welch played basketball until she got to high school. There were many days she would play against her brother. 'Bryce and I have always been super competitive,' she said. 'Having an older brother and all his friends around, I feel like I was bound to play a sport, 'It was nice to be able to play with him and learn from him. So I feel like my competitive side definitely comes from competing with my brother.' Now Brooke Welch has a chance to do something her brother didn't — win a state title. 'She battled back so hard from her injury,' Bryce Welch said. 'So to see her with a chance to win a championship is huge.'
Chicago Tribune
04-06-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Spotlight finds Naperville North goalkeeper Olivia Ochsner in supersectional. She's ‘incredible to watch.'
Naperville North junior goalkeeper Olivia Ochsner was brimming with nervous energy and uncommon confidence as the Huskies went to penalty kicks on Tuesday. Ochsner bounced up and down on the goal line as Wheaton Warrenville South's first shooter strode to the spot. Watching from 50 yards away, Naperville North senior defender Emily Buescher had a prediction. 'We said she was going to save at least two,' Buescher said. 'We said that standing there holding hands. We knew that was coming. 'It's a really cool feeling that you can take PKs and you're not that worried.' Ochsner delivered, saving three of five shots to lift the Huskies to a come-from-behind 2-1 victory in the Class 3A Streamwood Supersectional. After Ochsner's heroics, Naperville North (16-5-3) will play Lane Tech in the state semifinals at North Central College in Naperville at 5:30 p.m. Friday. 'Olivia is such a great kid,' Naperville North coach Steve Goletz said. 'She's a great leader, and to step up and stand on her head in the shootout was incredible. It was incredible to watch.' Ochsner could only stand and watch when Illinois recruit Ashlyn Adams scored on a penalty kick to give the Tigers (19-2-2) a 1-0 lead with 54 seconds left in the first half. The Huskies tied it at the 33:57 mark of the second half when senior midfielder Isa Polavieja scored off of Buescher's 55-yard free kick. By the time the shootout arrived, Ochsner was ready for the spotlight. 'With the first PK that they called at the end of the half, I think I was a little nervous,' Ochsner said. 'I wasn't ready on my feet, and so I knew going to the PK shootout I've got to tune out everything else around me. 'But I knew I also had to be super light on my feet and ready to go. That was probably the difference-maker, me being able to read a couple shots before they actually shot it.' The shootout began with Ochsner lunging far to her right to stop Brooke Ittersagen's shot. Naperville North missed its first shot, and Adams converted to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. But Ochsner stopped the next two shooters. That turned the tide, as sophomore midfielder Kennedy Bertsch and Buescher converted to give North a 2-1 lead after four rounds. 'I get very excited after I make a PK save,' Ochsner said. 'I'm not supposed to save a PK, right? 'My energy got me through that and the mental pressure of it because I wasn't even thinking about it at that point.' Goletz pointed to that as one of Ochsner's strengths. 'I was a goalkeeper myself, and you gotta have such a great mindset, and Olivia has that mindset,' Goletz said. 'For her to have her moment here on the biggest stage, it's just an incredible thing. 'The kids love her. We love her as a coaching staff, just in how she approaches every single day and how good she is to her teammates. For her to come through and bail us out today in penalty kicks was pretty special.' In the fifth round, Grace Rodakowski converted to keep the Tigers alive. But Naperville North junior forward Michelle Ruan, who didn't play during regulation or overtime, then converted the clinching kick. Ruan said she was buoyed by Ochsner's performance. 'Every time she saved it, my heart jumped, I was just so excited,' Ruan said. 'Then to be able to put away that shot just meant a lot because I knew the entire team worked so hard to get us to this point. Ochsner, a three-year starter, has played a vital role in the Huskies' thrilling postseason run. 'She's everything for us,' Buescher said. 'She's just kind of like a nose-to-the-grindstone player. 'What you see on the field in the sense of her ability to handle some absurd shots is incredible. But then there's also what she does for us that you guys don't see, like keeping everyone going and keeping all of our heads up. She's irreplaceable.' And irrepressible in the aftermath of the Huskies' win. 'It's absolutely incredible,' Ochsner said. 'It's making me emotional thinking about it. 'I wanted to do it for my teammates, and to be able to step up in that moment and deal with all the pressure to save my teammates' season and make my coaches proud means absolutely everything to me.'
Chicago Tribune
29-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Jack Reif, ‘the biggest guy in the pool,' secures the biggest prize for Naperville North. He prizes Navy too.
As the final four seconds ticked off the clock, Naperville North senior Jack Reif held onto the ball as a New Trier player tried in vain to pry it from his hands. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Jack Reif's teammates, including senior Mason Hofmann, knew a dream was about to become reality. 'He has great ball control,' Hofmann said. 'He's a super big guy, so when we need someone to keep possession, he's the guy that you go to.' When the horn sounded, the Navy-bound Jack Reif turned and hurled the ball to the ceiling of Stevenson's natatorium as his mother, Naperville North boys water polo coach Kelly Reif, began jumping up and down on the pool deck. That was the beginning of a celebration capping a storybook ending. The Huskies, led by Jack Reif and Hofmann, had just rallied to beat New Trier 7-6 on Saturday night to win the first state championship in program history. 'Their best player shot the ball, and we got the save,' Jack Reif said. 'We were able to spread out, and I knew they'd get the ball to me. I'm the biggest guy in the pool, so I was able to hold him off. 'I was just overwhelmed with emotion.' So was Kelly Reif, the former Waubonsie Valley and Indiana star who began coaching the Huskies in 2021, when Jack Reif was in eighth grade. 'It was just like all the emotions at once,' Kelly Reif said. 'We've worked so hard for this. 'His freshman year, I looked at this group of kids, and I said, 'We're winning state your senior year. Watch us.' And with four seconds left, I just couldn't believe it that we had the ball in the hands of one of our strongest players. I knew we could kill four seconds. I was so excited.' Kelly Reif first introduced Jack Reif to water polo when he was 8 years old. Her husband, Myles Reif, coached the club team that included Jack Reif and Hofmann, who were the two best scorers for Naperville North (31-4) this season. Hofmann, a Johns Hopkins recruit, finished with 171 goals and 91 assists, and Jack Reif had 121 goals and 72 assists. Each scored six goals in the Huskies' 17-10 victory over Young in the semifinals earlier that day. New Trier (31-3), which had won three of the four regular-season meetings with Naperville North, led 6-2 at halftime but didn't score again. The Huskies rallied behind Hofmann, who had three goals and an assist, and Jack Reif, who contributed one goal and one assist. Hofmann assisted junior Caden Tsao's go-ahead goal with 4:09 left in the fourth quarter. Jack Reif led Naperville North's strong defense the rest of the way. 'As you can see, none of the kids give up ever,' Kelly Reif said. 'To be able to shut them out in the second half is incredible. You saw Jack and Mason just take charge, like 'we're not losing this game,' so it was awesome.' Hofmann had dreamed of winning a state title even before he entered high school. Doing it alongside Jack Reif made it even better. 'I've been playing with Jack for probably 10 years,' Hofmann said. 'Almost every time I've played water polo, he's been there, too, whether it's at a practice in the morning, at a gym, or in the weight room, late-night drives to masters practice. He's been there the whole way. 'It's our last game playing with each other, so it's bittersweet.' Jack Reif never played football, despite his size. Water polo and swimming were his only sports, and playing for his mother was an added bonus. 'I wouldn't have it any other way,' he said. 'Working hard at practice and then going home and talking about the practice and game-prepping with her in late nights, early mornings, I'll never forget that. 'The bond we have is really something special. Not a lot of people get to experience that, especially winning a state championship, so I'm very proud of our team.' Kelly Reif, who has a career record of 110-28, is equally proud. 'I feel very blessed to have this opportunity,' she said. 'Not many people get the opportunity to wear the hat of mom and coach, nonetheless a state championship, so it's just so exciting. 'I love him so much. I love all the kids so much. It's just a really special bond that we have.' Jack Reif also had a bond with his great-grandfather Bob Young, a Navy veteran who served in World War II and later became a high school football coach and then an Illinois High School Association official for football and basketball. Young died at age 99 one week before the Huskies won the state title. 'After our last sectional game, I found out that he had passed away,' Kelly Reif said. 'So this is extra special. I'm sure he's up there looking down and pulled us through for that one.' Young was a role model for Jack Reif. 'He always loved telling stories about the Navy, so I really looked up to him,' Jack Reif said. 'He was a great man.' So Jack Reif jumped at the opportunity to attend the Naval Academy. 'I took it with no regrets, didn't look back at all,' he said. 'I'm really excited to serve my country.' Upon graduation from the Naval Academy, Jack Reif will be required to serve five years on active duty. He's ready to do it for one simple reason. 'I just want to give back to the things that have given me the most,' he said. 'This country has given me so many excellent things. It's a great opportunity for myself to be successful but also to give back.'
Chicago Tribune
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville North freshman Lawton Close is ‘not in California anymore.' But he's not out of his element.
Naperville North freshman Lawton Close drove the ball over the right fielder's head and raced to second base with a leadoff double. The hit against DeKalb ace Brodie Farrell left Close feeling a surge of adrenaline, and for good reason. Farrell is a Parkland commit who hasn't been beaten this season. 'Oh, I was ecstatic,' Close said. 'It was so fun because I know how great of a pitcher he is, and to get that as a freshman, that was amazing.' Close's double, the only extra-base hit allowed by Farrell on Thursday, was a glimpse of what could be in store for the Huskies (15-15), who will play Oswego in the Class 4A Plainfield North Regional semifinals on May 29. 'It was really good,' Close said. 'I like to face better pitching because it gives me a challenge to have an at-bat against those guys, especially a guy like that with good off-speed and good fastball. 'I trust myself, so as soon as I saw that pitch, I just went and got it.' Farrell, who finished with a four-hitter in DeKalb's 9-1 win in the DuPage Valley Conference Tournament semifinals in Naperville, got Close on called third strikes twice. That wasn't surprising given Farrell's talent and age advantage. The senior right-hander is the DVC co-pitcher of the year and improved to 7-0 with a 1.62 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 52 innings. But Close, a first baseman who scored Naperville North's only run against Farrell, isn't fazed by the tough competition. 'It's been very challenging,' he said. 'I've faced a lot of good pitchers, especially that are older than me, and it's good to see that. 'I've had a lot of fun this year. Definitely the captains taking me under their wings, that was really big.' One of those captains is Illinois State-bound senior catcher Zach Bava, who also played varsity baseball as a freshman. 'I just told him that it's another baseball game,' Bava said. 'Yeah, you're going to be playing against kids that are three years older than you, but at the end of the day, they're still teenagers just like you are. 'So just calm yourself down and do what you know how to do and don't overthink. Just hit the baseball.' Close has done that often enough. In 28 games, he's hitting .231 with four doubles, a triple, 14 RBIs, 11 runs scored and two stolen bases. 'I think Lawton is a fantastic hitter,' Bava said. 'I voiced my opinion that Lawton deserved a spot on varsity. We made that happen, and he's been showing flashes throughout the year. 'Obviously, the batting average isn't exactly where he wants it, but I know he's a competitor.' Close, whose family moved to Naperville from California last summer, quickly made that clear to Huskies coach Jim Chiappetta. 'You watch him work in the cage, you can see right away that he's got some special ability as a freshman,' Chiappetta said. 'Then you see it show up in a game situation against kids that are two to three years older than him, that's a special thing to see. 'I love his demeanor, and I love his work ethic, and I think those are things you notice right away. He plays the game the right way.' Close said he gets his work ethic from his father, James, who was drafted out of UNLV by the Florida Marlins in 1999 and played for two years as an outfielder at the Class A level, including a stint with the Kane County Cougars in 2000. 'He just tells me to simple it down,' Close said. 'Baseball is a simple game. If you speed it up, it's going to be even harder, so simple it down.' Getting Close out may be anything but simple for opposing pitchers in coming years. 'He's shown flashes that he's a truly special player,' Bava said. 'The next three years, the DVC has got a lot to follow up on with Lawton, so they've got to be ready for him.' One thing Close wasn't ready to experience was Chicago's spring weather. He showed up to an early practice very underdressed. 'It looked like a nice day, but he was in short sleeves and shivering,' Chiappetta said. 'I said, 'You're not in California anymore.'' Not to worry, though. Close has acclimated. 'It's really nice here,' he said. 'I mean, winter is definitely different than out there, but you get adjusted.'
