NEW LENOX -- It was a story of two halves, or perhaps more appropriately, of the first 70 minutes and then the final 10 minutes.
For most of Monday's SouthWest Suburban Conference girls soccer crossover matchup between Lincoln-Way Central High School and Joliet Township, only 1 goal separated the two teams.
But during the final few minutes, the Knights began to put things together in a big way, scoring 3 times to capture a 4-0 victory.
"What stymied us the most was that they were sitting back and giving us cushions," Lincoln-Way Central coach Dan Radz. "We were toe-tapping in the middle of the field and not going forward. So I tried to convey to the girls that we needed a little more oomph.
"But we had much better adjustments during the second half after I told the girls to go right at them and go forward. Sam Neill did a fantastic job, and her and Ashley Blocker worked off of each other. I'm really happy with this team since they're a fun group to work with and they're so competitive."
Sam Neill boosted her goal total to 3 after by netting a pair. She also added an assist as the Knights (8-1-2, 4-0) posted their fourth SWSC shutout behind goalkeeper Jamie Panfil.
A sophomore, Neill scored the game's opening goal with 4:22 remaining in the first half when she got free in front of the net after taking a pass from Allison Doyle, who got her team-leading seventh assist.
"Everybody was pumped up and we came out strong today," Neill said. "I didn't really sense it when we were on the bench, but we could tell it once we stepped onto the field.
"I like how we all play as a team and how we really didn't have to get to know each other since we knew how everyone plays already and we play to our strengths. It's been a fun year so far."
Joliet (6-3, 0-3) hung tough with the Knights, however, thanks in part to the play of goalie Kim Vertin and defender Krissy Dorre.
The Steelmen's best chance came with 23:15 left in the second half when Ely Mireles sent a line drive from the right side that Panfil had to deflect away.
Central started its scoring outburst with 9:11 remaining. Angie Brown knocked in a loose ball from about 15 yards out that Neill had sent her following a free kick, which was ironically initiated by Brown.
Then, with 7:52 left, Neill connected from in front of the net on a setup from Michelle Wick for a 3-0 lead.
The Knights added another goal during the final minute when Doyle tallied her team-high 11th goal, off another assist from Wick.
"We knew that Lincoln-Way was going to be an extremely tough team, both with the ball and especially on the attack," JT coach Jeff Lundeen said. "We played very smart defensively in the first half, but late in the second half we had a few breakdowns, and you can't do mess up against a team like that.
"We're hoping that this will be a building point for us going into the rest of the conference season. Up to this point we've been very strong in the back and we've started to put some passes together. But we just need that extra step up top and to get a few other players involved and hopefully we'll be right there."
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