Posted: May 13, 2019
Pritzker Soccer Wins Fifth-Straight Noble League Championship
By Emily Iannaconi
Senior captain Keyla Romero and sophomore America Calvario scored three goals apiece to lead Pritzker College Prep to a 7-0 win over Noble Street College Prep on Saturday May 4th, claiming its fifth-straight Noble League Championship.
Pritzker solidified its undefeated season with the victory, making them 11-0 in conference play and 14-3 overall. Noble Street finished the season with a 4-4-2 mark in conference games. When the two teams met earlier this season, Pritzker won 8-0. Faculty, family and friends all came out to show their support for both teams. The Jaguars and Golden Tigers played a physical championship game, but ultimately Pritzker came out on top becoming a dynasty of sorts by adding another championship trophy.
"It's meaningful because the girls want it and it means a lot to the girls," said Pritzker assistant coach Amanda Meyers. "It's awesome to be a part of a dynasty."
Pritzker opened the scoring about five minutes into the game as Calvario dribbled up the middle of the field and fired a shot past Noble Street's goalie to make it 1-0. Ten minutes later, Romero shot a goal off a rebound to give Pritzker a 2-0 advantage. With less than two minutes left in the first half, Calvario split the Noble Street defenders up the middle and shot her second goal of the game, giving the Jaguars a 3-0 advantage.
Four minutes into the second half, Pritzker added to its lead when Marisveidy Arellano passed the ball to Romero who fired a strong kick to the goal from 20 yards out that soared past the hands of the Noble Street goalie. In the 53rd minute of the half, Romero fired a pass across the middle of the field to Citlaly Leyva who shot the ball to bottom left corner of the goal, increasing Pritzker's lead to 5-0.
The Jaguars added on another goal when Denise Jimenez dribbled up the sideline and sent a pass to Romero who snuck it past the goalie at the 60th minute of the game. Then, with just under 11 minutes left, Calvario scored her third goal of the day off a penalty kick to give the Jaguars a 7-0 lead that they would hold for the remainder of the game.
Head coach Luz Espinoza has been coaching Pritzker for 13 years and appreciates the significance of every win. "It's incredible to play in the championship and two of [Noble Street's] coaches were also players back when they were at Pritzker," Espinoza said.
Noble Street coaches Noemi Hernandez and Aracelli Salgado were both players at Pritzker when they were in high school. And on Saturday they got the chance to play against their former coach - something that both sides found special.
For the seniors on the Pritzker team, the win felt particularly significant as it closed out their high school career playing against the Noble League. "I think the game went really well and it's exciting to win four championships in a row," Romero said.
The rest of the team will miss the seniors next season but are looking forward to continuing the winning tradition. "We won our fifth year in a row and I'm excited for next year," Sophomore Adrienie Cornejo said. "And I like playing with this group of girls."
Meyers understands that this win solidifies the Pritzker girl's soccer team as one of the most successful programs at the school. She knows that would not be possible without the girls. "Espinoza and I are there to guide and mentor, but the girls come in with an understanding of how to play the game," Meyers said. "They know where to go and they come to practice and are motivated to win every year."
Now, Pritzker is looking ahead to the postseason. The pace is faster with non-conference teams and the team knows that this win is just the beginning. "This caps our Noble season, but we are going to have to work hard moving forward," Meyers said. "We'll celebrate on Monday with ice cream but going forward, we know we have to step it up."
Senior captain Keyla Romero and sophomore America Calvario scored three goals apiece to lead Pritzker College Prep to a 7-0 win over Noble Street College Prep on Saturday May 4th, claiming its fifth-straight Noble League Championship.
Pritzker solidified its undefeated season with the victory, making them 11-0 in conference play and 14-3 overall. Noble Street finished the season with a 4-4-2 mark in conference games. When the two teams met earlier this season, Pritzker won 8-0. Faculty, family and friends all came out to show their support for both teams. The Jaguars and Golden Tigers played a physical championship game, but ultimately Pritzker came out on top becoming a dynasty of sorts by adding another championship trophy.
"It's meaningful because the girls want it and it means a lot to the girls," said Pritzker assistant coach Amanda Meyers. "It's awesome to be a part of a dynasty."
Pritzker opened the scoring about five minutes into the game as Calvario dribbled up the middle of the field and fired a shot past Noble Street's goalie to make it 1-0. Ten minutes later, Romero shot a goal off a rebound to give Pritzker a 2-0 advantage. With less than two minutes left in the first half, Calvario split the Noble Street defenders up the middle and shot her second goal of the game, giving the Jaguars a 3-0 advantage.
Four minutes into the second half, Pritzker added to its lead when Marisveidy Arellano passed the ball to Romero who fired a strong kick to the goal from 20 yards out that soared past the hands of the Noble Street goalie. In the 53rd minute of the half, Romero fired a pass across the middle of the field to Citlaly Leyva who shot the ball to bottom left corner of the goal, increasing Pritzker's lead to 5-0.
The Jaguars added on another goal when Denise Jimenez dribbled up the sideline and sent a pass to Romero who snuck it past the goalie at the 60th minute of the game. Then, with just under 11 minutes left, Calvario scored her third goal of the day off a penalty kick to give the Jaguars a 7-0 lead that they would hold for the remainder of the game.
Head coach Luz Espinoza has been coaching Pritzker for 13 years and appreciates the significance of every win. "It's incredible to play in the championship and two of [Noble Street's] coaches were also players back when they were at Pritzker," Espinoza said.
Noble Street coaches Noemi Hernandez and Aracelli Salgado were both players at Pritzker when they were in high school. And on Saturday they got the chance to play against their former coach - something that both sides found special.
For the seniors on the Pritzker team, the win felt particularly significant as it closed out their high school career playing against the Noble League. "I think the game went really well and it's exciting to win four championships in a row," Romero said.
The rest of the team will miss the seniors next season but are looking forward to continuing the winning tradition. "We won our fifth year in a row and I'm excited for next year," Sophomore Adrienie Cornejo said. "And I like playing with this group of girls."
Meyers understands that this win solidifies the Pritzker girl's soccer team as one of the most successful programs at the school. She knows that would not be possible without the girls. "Espinoza and I are there to guide and mentor, but the girls come in with an understanding of how to play the game," Meyers said. "They know where to go and they come to practice and are motivated to win every year."
Now, Pritzker is looking ahead to the postseason. The pace is faster with non-conference teams and the team knows that this win is just the beginning. "This caps our Noble season, but we are going to have to work hard moving forward," Meyers said. "We'll celebrate on Monday with ice cream but going forward, we know we have to step it up."
