On Tuesday, Sept. 16, Naperville North High School’s boys varsity soccer team (5-4-1, 1-0-1 DuPage Valley Conference) defeated Naperville Central (7-1-2, 1-1-0 DuPage Valley Conference) by a final score of 2-1.

In order to beat their undefeated rivals in this Homecoming game, each athlete had to be exceptionally focused and would have to give their best effort on the pitch. According to head coach Jim Konrad, the boys did just that.

“I’m super proud of the boys tonight, especially with how hard the boys played,” Konrad said. “Every kid, from the back four, to the midfield three and the forwards, had their heads on straight. I saw a lot of good things.“

Facing their undefeated opponents, NNHS, playing the role of underdogs, needed to fight for every inch of turf. Seconds within the start of the game, sophomore midfielder Chris Sullivan crossed the ball, which deflected off fellow midfielder, senior Connor McBride. Senior forward Chris Ensign was there to finish, giving the Huskies a 1-0 lead.

Neither team was able to find the net again during the first half; defensive presence was too strong for both the Redhawks and Huskies. It was not until 8:47 in the second half when junior midfielder Martin Li was able to capitalize at the goal, scoring his third for the season. Following Li’s goal, the Redhawks doubled their efforts to finish offensively. The Huskies’ back four held off Central until 62:22, when a cross to Redhawk senior midfielder Daniel Poole connected with the goal. With 17:44 left to play, NNHS zoned in on defense to stave off a Redhawk upset.

At 71 minutes, a free kick was awarded to NCHS off a penalty from junior midfielder Grant Borg. The Redhawks had a chance to tie NNHS, with enough time afterwards to claim the lead. The Dawg Pound breathed a sigh of relief as the ball bounced up off of the crossbar.

For the remainder of the game, the Redhawks pounded away at NNHS’ defense, continuously sending the ball to their side of the pitch. But the Huskies held onto the lead, thanks to the defensive efforts of goalkeeper Christian Robert and the rest of NNHS’ lineup.

It was a cliff-hanger, through and through. During the last 15 minutes, NCHS seemed poised to upset the Huskies’ homecoming game and retain their undefeated status. Ensign recalled the anxiety that the last few minutes caused for the Huskies.

“You could definitely see the clock winding down,” Ensign said. “It was definitely a nail-biter, just sitting there praying that they don’t get another chance. But we stuck to what we were doing, we played hard and we finished off the game. Every last couple of minutes was going to be a nail-biter.”

The original version of this story said senior midfielder Grant Sullivan, but it has been edited to reflect that it was sophomore midfielder Chris Sullivan. “The North Star” regrets the error.