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Girls Soccer: ‘All heart’ Pilch reflects on Hinsdale South career
Hinsdale South's Carolanne Pilch (right) battles Fenwick's Bridget Hillsman for the ball, during the IHSA regional semifinal at York High School May 15. | Curtis Lehmkuhl~Sun Times Media
Updated: July 2, 2012 9:27AM
Hinsdale South senior defender Carolanne Pilch has many fond memories of her four-year varsity soccer career.
She does have one regret, however.
“We did a lot more losing than I would’ve liked,” Pilch said. “I’m a pretty competitive person, so it’s been kind of hard. I still had a lot of fun, and I know everyone played as hard as they could.”
Pilch, the lone senior starter, saw her high school career come to an end when Fenwick beat Hinsdale South 2-0 in the IHSA Class 3A York Regional semifinal on May 16.
The captain’s impact on the team wasn’t lost on Hinsdale South coach Pat Wolf.
“Carolanne Pilch had a fabulous year for us,” Wolf said. “Since her freshman year, she always played hard. She took charge when she was on the field and was all energy, all heart and all determination.”
The only other senior for the Hornets (7-13-3) this season was Abby Uhlar, which bodes well for the future of the program.
Pilch shared captain’s duties with junior goalkeeper Vanessa Niestrom.
“I liked it. The younger players look up to you when you’re a captain,” said Pilch, who experienced a regional championship as a freshman. “Vanessa was a captain also, and I felt a lot of teammates helped lead. I’m sad that I’m not going to play with my teammates or coaches again, but we gave it our all.”
Wolf believes his team’s inexperience may have played a factor against Fenwick, but was pleased with the season as a whole.
“We only have one senior, and it’s hard to be that one trying to lead a whole group,” Wolf said. “Seniors tend to play with more purpose toward the end of the season, so it helps to have a number of them on the field. The season was good. If you look at the victories, not so good, but we played a competitive schedule, and outside of some brief moments, we competed with most teams.”
Hinsdale South was hit hard by injuries this season.
Promising freshman forward Julie Reschke missed the entire season, while junior midfielder Steffi Chew broke her wrist in the opener and didn’t play again. Sophomore Maggie Nicosia, who had an encouraging freshman campaign, played in just three games, and sophomore Cassie Jensen was also among those missing time.
Niestrom missed about three weeks as well, though JV goalie Paulina Noga filled in nicely.
“We had the injury bug like I’ve never had before,” Wolf said. “That definitely hurt us. We had a lot of young girls get experience because of the injuries, and that’s something to look forward to in terms of next year. Hopefully, we will sail through next season with no injures.”
