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Warriors, Cadets, Lions all eye possible sectional titles
By Curt Herron Ever since they played in a wild 5-4 match, all eyes have been focused on a possible rematch between Wheaton Academy and Marmion. The Warriors got the better of the Cadets on September 21 in Aurora and that helped them win the Suburban Christian Conference title. But with one more win apiece, the two teams will meet up on Saturday with a much bigger prize at stake. Wheaton Academy (16-4-2) and Marmion (19-5-1) are the teams to beat in the Class 2A Hampshire Sectional. Coach Jeff Brooke's Warriors have won six of their last seven matches after edging Oswego 1-0 for a regional title. Brandon VanderVeen scored the lone goal while Philip Oster recorded the shutout in the net for the winners. Meanwhile, Kevin O'Connor's Cadets won their 13th straight match since falling to Wheaton Academy when they beat Johnsburg 2-1. Sam Duffield and Steve Anderson scored goals to help Marmion rally for the regional championship. In order to set up the rematch, the Warriors need to get past Antioch in Tuesday's 4 p.m. semifinal. Then the Cadets need to take care of business in Wednesday's 4 p.m. semifinal against Lakes. The championship is set for 4 p.m. on Saturday with the winner advancing to next Tuesday's Barrington Super-Sectional. Wheaton Academy last won a sectional championship in 2005 and has played for sectional titles the last two years. The Warriors lost to Oswego in last year's final and were beaten in the same match by Geneva the year before. If the Warriors can defeat Antioch on Tuesday, they'll advance to their sixth sectional title match in eight years. Meanwhile, Marmion has never won a sectional championship and last made a sectional final appearance in 2002. Elmwood Park Sectional Saint Viator (19-4-1) is clearly the team to beat when it opens up play in today's Elmwood Park Sectional. The Lions meet Fenton at 4 p.m. on Tuesday while Northtown and Wells face at 6 p.m. in the other semifinal. Whoever wins Friday's 4 p.m. championship advances to Tuesday's Benedictine University Super-Sectional. Coach Mike Taylor's squad earned a spot in the sectional after claiming a 7-0 regional title win over Ridgewood. Alan Aboona had two goals while Jack Horvath, Bill Krawzak, Kevin Cavers, Trevor Wheeler and Tim Phillips also scored. Saint Viator appeared in nine straight sectional finals from 1996 to 2004 but hasn't been in a title match since. The Lions hope to win their first sectional title since 2004. That would also be their tenth championship in 19 years.
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HAMPSHIRE SECTIONAL SCHEDULE
Saturday
Recent Sectional Championship matches
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