Captain's choice

Naperville North's Ediz Yorulmazoglu celebrates his goal against visiting Glenbard North on Tuesday night. The Huskies clinched the DuPage Valley Conference title with the 4-0 win.
Danielle Gardner / Staff photographer

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A little yellow band of cloth. The letter "C" in the middle.

It signifies the Waubonsie Valley captains on a soccer field. For 25 games this season, one of those bands wrapped around the right arm of Bri Rodriguez.

But when she went down with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee during the Class AA quarterfinals, the captain's band needed a new arm. Rodriguez talked with coach Julie Bergstrom before settling on the player most deserving of the honor - Vanessa DiBernardo.

"It wasn't just the handing over of a yellow arm band," Bergstrom said. "It was an exchange of trust. Bri knew Vanessa could handle it."

The move paid off as DiBernardo, a sophomore with more than her share of big-game experience, led the Warriors to their second Class AA state title in a row. She scored the only goal in Waubonsie's semifinal win against nationally ranked Normal West, and added another in a 3-0 victory over Belleville Althoff in the final while Rodriguez could only watch.

"Without her there, it's a different approach," DiBernardo said. "We wanted to win it for her. Right before the (semifinal) she handed me the band. It felt really good. Not having her playing and then her giving that to me, it felt like she could trust me."

The exchange pointed to how Rodriguez, a junior midfielder, had grown as a leader in her third varsity season. And added another reason for why she was chosen as The Sun Girls Soccer Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.

"Her leadership role was more evident this year than it was last year," teammate Rachel Bostick said. "With losing a huge senior class last year, she had to make a big step up in the middle. As a player, she just amazes me every time I watch her play. I don't know how much better she could have gotten from last year, but she found a way to get better."

Rodriguez continued to excite fans with her ball control and deft footwork. Always the playmaker, she finished with nearly twice as many assists (25) as goals (13). When DiBernardo missed a handful of games with a high ankle sprain, Rodriguez transformed herself into a goal-scorer, netting the only goal against St. Charles North in a late regular-season game.

When the teams faced off again in the supersectional round, Rodriguez returned to her playmaking role, assisting on DiBernardo's overtime winner.

The role of the consummate team player fits Rodriguez well. During a long interview that was supposed to focus on her for this story, Rodriguez took every opportunity to direct attention toward her teammates.

She said she was amazed by the stamina Ali Stahlke had. And how impressed she was with Molly Thayer, who "played her best soccer of the season" when she was put into the starting lineup during the state semifinal and final. Rodriguez commented how fellow All-City picks Bostick and goalie Claire Hanold did so well guiding a young back line defense. And about how Kiki McClellan deserved attention long before her three-goal performance against Neuqua Valley in a sectional final.

Then there was the moment she shared with DiBernardo, when a piece of yellow cloth proved to band a team together when it was most needed.

"I gave her the captain band because I thought it would pump her up more," said Rodriguez, who committed to West Virginia. "And to show her that I had faith in her, and that she would be fine. I actually had fun watching her that game."

Much like soccer fans have felt about watching Rodriguez.