Carly Sides picked a side earlier in her career when she chose to play for Vernon Hills after her freshman year.
But the senior goalkeeper had a chance to be a hero on both sides of the ball during penalty kicks on Wednesday night. Sides made three saves on St. Viator’s five attempts and then faced her counterpart, Kyli Ziebka, with a chance to send the Cougars to the Class 2A Deerfield Sectional championship game.
“I definitely felt a lot of pressure on that,” Sides said. “But I saw how their keeper was thinking while she was trying to save the others. So I put it where I thought it was a little bit out of her reach.”
Sides drilled her shot into the upper-left corner of the net, prompting teammates to rush onto the field to celebrate seventh-seeded Vernon Hills’ 2-1 victory over third-seeded St. Viator in the sectional semifinals.
“For goalkeepers, anything like 4 feet or below are easier saves,” Sides said. “Once you get higher, it gets hard because you have to stay on your line. So I buried it up top.”
Sides, a Northern Michigan recruit, also recorded five saves through two overtimes after making 14 saves against second-seeded Deerfield in the regional final. The Cougars (11-7-2) will get the chance to pull off their third straight upset against top-seeded Crystal Lake Central (19-2-2) in the sectional final at 6 p.m. Friday.
“Carly has been everything for us in this run because she knows that as a seventh seed, she’s just going to get so much attention,” Vernon Hills coach Cory Smith said.
Sides turned her attention to the Cougars after playing travel soccer exclusively during her freshman year.
“I wanted to play high school and be reunited with Ava Lukyan,” Sides said. “We started playing soccer in 3v3.”
Lukyan, a Kent State recruit who scored the tying goal in the second overtime against St. Viator (18-6), is glad Sides made that decision.
“Her work rate is off the charts,” Lukyan said. “She never gives up and wants the best for our team, and she’s a good role model and leader. She has a genuine heart and a great drive.”
Smith said Sides is showing more confidence this season.
“She has a little more of a strut, that leadership quality, knowing she’s going to play college ball,” Smith said.
Vernon Hills junior forward Sophie Ackerman, a Loyola recruit who played travel soccer during the previous two seasons, agreed and said Sides also helped her make the transition to varsity.
“She’s always pushing us to be better and leading us in our warmups and pumping us up,” Ackerman said. “She shows up in the big moments.
“Training with a goalie like that makes me a lot better. In club, I play outside back, but I play forward in high school, so working on my shots is so nice against a quality goalie.”
Sides said her training during the offseason is a key element in her playoff success. She hasn’t allowed a goal during the run of play over 260 minutes in the postseason.
“Reading the ball has been a major improvement for me compared to last year,” she said. “This year I have come out so much stronger on breakaways and reading balls played into the box. My aggressiveness with balls in the box has improved a lot as well.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
