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Every year, the Downstate teams are wondering about Chicago teams, and the Chicago teams are wondering about the Downstate teams.
So leave it up to your favorite blog, Cornerkicks, to give you the best scouting report out there. And make sure to pick up Friday's Sun-Times for a complete Class AA state preview, All-Area Girls Soccer Team and the 2008 Sun-Times Girls Soccer Player of the Year.
Until then, here's a look at Althoff, which will face Homewood-Flossmoor at 1 p.m.:
Althoff is very solid and they have beaten all the best teams in southern Illinois. They did lose to St. Louis power, Nerinx Hall, but they were short-handed during the loss.
*Very young team with most of the best players freshmen or sophomores.
*Enrollment is under 600, so can they compete with the big schools? Won their last 15 and controlled from start to finish against a pretty good Chatham-Glenwood team.
*Lost top scorer Liz Ebel (60-plus career goals) to an ACL just before the start of the season and still managed to outscore opponents 123-19 this season.
*Solid both offensively and defensively.
*Very physical team - not afraid to shoulder tackle to get the advantage.
*Very attack minded - will attack with three or four. Not afraid to pass backwards to someone with a better angle on the goal.
*Players to watch offensively - Megan Pawloski, a sophomore wants the ball to her left side; not afraid to put up shots from 20-plus yards; and fights like crazy to get free including. Megan Jaskoviak, a senior who is tough in the box and very physical with a hard shot.
*Players to watch defensively: Jenni Hamlin and Allison Bevenue (aka AB). Both are seniors and rock solid. Very physical and will take what the refs give them unless they are completely overmatched.
*Style of play is of course a German style-build up with patience and then let it rip in the box with major physical play. Why do I say "of course" - their coach is German...Juergen Huettner.
- Joe Trost
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