Girls soccer: Richmond-Burton seniors go undefeated in KRC, win conference tournament

RICHMOND – There was a nervous energy surrounding Richmond-Burton for much of Wednesday.

Yes, the Rockets were set to play rival Johnsburg for the Kishwaukee River Conference Tournament championship. But for the eight seniors on the team, they had a chance to do something not many athletes get a chance to do in their high school careers.

Never lose a conference match.

[ Photos: Kishwaukee River Conference Girls Soccer Championship ]

R-B hadn’t lost a KRC match since April 2019, and the seniors were determined to extend that streak into next season. The Rockets responded by playing their best match of the season, taking the title with a 4-0 win.

“These tournaments don’t mean anything, but for us, we couldn’t lose,” Rockets senior Bri Maldonado said. “We did all of it for each other. We all play for each other and never let down.”

R-B and Johnsburg had built a strong rivalry over the past couple of seasons. The Rockets (12-1-1, 8-0 KRC) held on to win last season’s conference tournament title against the Skyhawks in a shootout, and freshman Maddie Seyller led a heroic comeback to beat Johnsburg earlier this season.

Senior Layne Frericks knew the Rockets needed to start fast in order to avoid another tight game. She beat out a few defenders on a deep pass from Maldonado and then beat out Skyhawks goalkeeper Sophie Person to give the Rockets a 1-0 lead with 35:09 left in the first half.

“It was really important,” Frericks said of the goal. “We said the first goal sets the tone, and that’s what we did.”

The Rockets made sure not to let up. R-B created a few more solid looks at the net before Seyller and Frericks had a give-and-go down the field to set up a Seyller goal with 10:03 left in the first half.

Maldonado made it 3-0 when her corner kick snuck in with 35:51 left in the match. She scored the Rockets’ final goal just outside the side of the box when she pitched a shot that snuck in the corner of the net.

The Rockets limited the Skyhawks to two shots on goal, and senior goalkeeper Taylor Labay made both saves.

Rockets coach Casey DeCaluwe was ready with three different lineups for whatever the Skyhawks were ready to throw at his team. DeCaluwe said the Rockets did a good job of setting the tone early and shutting down Johnsburg’s top scoring threats.

“They understand that there’s different ways to play the game,” DeCaluwe said. “This group is so cerebral where they’re able to move into that so quickly.”

Johnsburg (12-4, 6-3) had won nine straight matches heading into Wednesday’s championship match. During that span, the Skyhawks outscored opponents 55-6.

“These tournaments don’t mean anything, but for us, we couldn’t lose. We did all of it for each other. We all play for each other and never let down.”

—  Bri Maldonado, Richmond-Burton senior

But on Wednesday, Johnsburg couldn’t find the switch in one the biggest matches of the season.

“It’s tough to show up to a championship and just not deliver, really,” Johnsburg coach Rob Eastland said. “We played one of our worst games of the season. You can’t do that against teams like Richmond.”

Wednesday’s championship was the final match before the start of the postseason for both teams. Johnsburg will start the playoffs against North Boone in the Class 1A Marengo Regional on May 10, while R-B starts against Harvest Christian on May 11.

Both teams could meet again in the Class 1A Marian Central Sectional championship match.

The group of R-B seniors now will turn their attention to winning a state championship. They reached the Class 1A title match in 2022 and have appeared in three state supersectional matches.

That nervous energy might be lasting for another month if everything goes the Rockets’ way.

“They’ve got big goals,” DeCaluwe said. “I don’t think they’re going to be satisfied unless we get to where we’re trying to get to, which is back to where we were in 2022.”