Blind faith

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When Neuqua Valley and Champaign Centennial take the field in today's Class AA state quarterfinal at North Central College, neither team will have seen the other play. Not in person, not on tape. Nowhere.

Unlike in football - as legend has it - where coaches meet in the wee hours of the morning to exchange film and jump-start preparation, soccer teams turn within and focus on themselves instead of their opponent.

"It's pretty much blind," Neuqua coach Jim Johns said. "It's not totally unusual. We were blind going into (the supersectional against Geneva). We couldn't get anybody to scout the game, and so we had to just go by newspaper records, actually, and what people heard."

Chargers coach Cole Bushue has actually seen Neuqua junior Robby Gargaro and sophomore forward Bryan Ciesiulka play - just not in the all-important context of Neuqua's program.

Bushue's younger brother, Jacob, is a sophomore at Champaign Centennial but plays with the Chicago Magic during the spring. In general, however, Bushue doesn't think seeing video beforehand helps preparation all that much.

"In football and basketball, you can call timeouts, you can set up things that you want," said Bushue, a 2001 Champaign Centennial graduate. "In soccer, once they get out on the field they have 40 minutes to get it done until I can get to them again. So we can sub a little bit, maybe see a matchup we like in the first half, but it's really about the kids at that point once they get on the field."

The IHSA makes it a little easier on scouting teams for the state tournament. Before the quarterfinals begin, the organization posts each team's roster, statistics, schedule and results, and complete tournament history online.

For example, this year's Neuqua team knows to watch out for the Chargers' Jonathan Hinds (23 goals, 14 assists), Kyle Bullock (20 goals, five assists) and Kenny Kranz (12 goals, nine assists). But the Wildcats might not know that Hinds has scored eight of the Chargers' 11 playoff goals, three of which were game-winners (two in overtime, one in penalty kicks).

And the Chargers know to defend the Wildcats' Bret Hruby (22 goals, six assists), Jaymie Bullard (10 goals, five assists) and Ciesiulka (nine goals, 13 assists). But the Chargers might not know that junior forward Ian Krol has become a marked man since becoming a starter on varsity this postseason.

"We're really excited to be playing Neuqua Valley," Bushue said. "We played two of the bigger programs in central Illinois. Most people would probably say it's the worst draw we could possibly have, but from our situation, our guys are excited to be in state and have a part in it. So I don't think we'll be overly nervous. It'll be a good thing."

The Chargers (21-2-3) are making their first appearance at state, reaching the quarterfinals with a stunning overtime win over Notre Dame (Peoria) on Monday. The Irish competed in the Class A state tournament from 2001-04 before joining Class AA in 2005.

The Chargers tied Notre Dame at 1 in the final minute of regulation before Hinds scored the deciding goal in the fourth minute of overtime. They played in front of about 1,400 fans on the Irish's home field.

Neuqua (22-1-4), ranked fifth in the nation by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is making its second trip to the state tournament. The Wildcats won it all in 2003 by shutting out all three of their opponents at state.

The Wildcats have breezed through the playoffs, playing only one one-goal game (1-0 over Geneva on Monday) and winning the others by an average of 3.6 goals.

"We know if we play our game," Neuqua sophomore Scott Davis said, "it's really hard to beat us."

Contact Brad Engel at bengel@scn1.com or 630-416-5289.