Resurgent Peotone, Kate Cuthbertson power past Streator 5-0

STREATOR – Peotone midfielder Kate Cuthbertson returned to the Blue Devils lineup just last weekend after missing the opening month-plus of her senior season due to an injury.

Tuesday during the Blue Devils’ Illinois Central Eight Conference match with the host Streator Bulldogs, Cuthbertson made up for lost time.

Cuthbertson scored just three minutes and 44 seconds into the proceedings, added a second opening-half goal some 25 minutes later, then went from hat trick to haul with a couple more in the closing minutes of Peotone’s 5-0 blanking of the Bulldogs at Streator’s James Street Recreation Area.

“Once we were able to figure out our spacing in the middle of the field and connect our passes and look for the ball outside – even on this smaller field – we found each other," Cuthbertson said. “We were checking our shoulders and communicating really well.

“It gave us that spark today, I think.”

Three of Cuthbertson’s four goals were assisted by junior teammate Allie Werner, who added a goal of her own to open the second-half scoring and put the Blue Devils (4-5-1 overall, 1-3 in the ICE) ahead 3-0.

“It’s really easy to work with her,” Cuthbertson said of Werner. “She’s a great player, we both build off of each other really well, and it just turns into goals and opportunities.”

Peotone keeper Alexa Matichak only had to make five saves to record the shutout, as – other than a chunk of the first half between Cuthbertson’s first two goals – the Blue Devils dominated possession to the tune of a whopping 29-5 advantage in shots on goal.

“We came in and put five goals on the scoreboard,” Blue Devils coach Ryan Murray said, “and as impressively, we kept a clean sheet. That’s something we’ve struggled to do in previous games.”

The Bulldogs (3-11, 0-4) did enjoy the aforementioned strong stretch of scrappy play in the opening half and another in the latter 40 minutes, holding Peotone without goals for stretches of 24:58 in the first and 32:40 in the second. Senior center midfielder Joey Puetz was especially effective, and keeper Lahla Thompson notched 23 saves against five goals against.

“They had the pressure on us all game,” Streator coach J.T. Huey said. “We’re missing a couple key players for various reasons, the girls knew what was at stake, but we controlled the game for a good 10 minutes right off the bat. We had some good ball movement and good talk.

“Then [Peotone] scored, it was mostly a goalie deflection. Lahla got a hand on it, then [Peotone] was able to finish it. It was one of those 50/50 scrum goals that happen, and credit to them, they capitalized on it. We were frustrating their play early though.

“We are a very young, freshman-heavy team starting a lot of freshmen and sophomores, and we’ve continuously improved every single game. ... We’re rebuilding. We’re not going to win every game, but we’re going to keep getting better.”

In addition to Puetz’s noteworthy work, Streator defenders Jillian Clift and Katherine Bressner both made goal-saving plays. Not enough of them, though, to keep up with Cuthbertson and the suddenly resurgent Blue Devils, winners of four of their last six after an 0-4 start.

“We started pretty poorly, to be honest,” Murray said. “We graduated 11 seniors last year, eight starters, so it’s been kind of growing pains, but we’ve been progressively getting better as the season’s gone on.”