Junior midfielder Lindsay Ingemunson is never content with scoring just one goal for Yorkville.
She plays soccer like an artist who seemingly bends the field to her will.
“The momentum of the game changes so much after you get one,” Ingemunson said about notching a hat trick. “And there’s a fire that everybody wants to keep getting more.
“We had a great start to the season, and then a little bit of a losing streak, and (Wednesday night) we really wanted to keep going for the seniors.”
Ingemunson got things going Wednesday. The Loyola recruit scored three goals to power the Foxes to a 4-2 win over West Aurora in a Class 3A Naperville Central Regional semifinal game.
Freshman forward Jaretzy Rodriguez scored a goal in the 35th minute for West Aurora (11-4-2). Freshman forward Katherine Perez also created the 2-2 tie with a goal in the 56th minute.
Ingemunson, however, put the game away by converting penalty kicks in the 63rd and 68th minutes for 10th-seeded Yorkville (10-6), which avenged a 4-2 season-opening loss to the Blackhawks and advanced to play at 6 p.m. Friday against for the regional title.
Freshman forward Hannah Sester, who scored the Foxes’ first goal Wednesday in the 43rd minute, was impressed by Ingemunson’s performance.
“Lindsay is obviously a strong offensive player,” Sester said. “We look at her any time we need something. She’s so scrappy, really fast, and she’s going to win any 50-50 ball. She has great footwork.”
Senior defender Amy Guzman assisted on Hester’s goal with a free kick. Ingemunson then scored her first goal 37 seconds later for the 2-1 lead.
“Lindsay is really strong and fast, and we know every time we find her, she has the ability to break down the defensive line,” Guzman said. “Personally, she’s just a funny, very hilarious person.
“She lights up our team and is very fun to be around.”
Ingemunson pushed her prolific season total to 31 goals. It was her fifth hat trick of the season.
After playing club as a freshman, the 5-foot-8 Ingemunson tallied 17 goals and nine assists last season in her high school debut. She blends size and speed with a knack for finding open spaces.
She has toggled between playing the midfield or as a forward at top of the attack.
“I have decent height and my strength helps me body people off the ball,” Ingemunson said. “I also like to move off the ball. We’re very good at playing through balls in space and looking to get wide.
“That lets me run onto the ball.”
As the youngest of four sisters, Ingemunson grew up determined to prove her value and show what she was capable of, plus she was naturally fiery.
“None of my sisters played soccer, and my mom played in high school but not seriously,” she said. “I played every kind of sport growing up, but I always liked soccer the best.”
The moment everything crystallized for her came during a pivotal stretch in fourth grade.
“I started playing on a boys team during that time,” Ingemunson said. “it really showed me a different side of the game. That was the point where I realized how much I truly liked the game.
“I also have two boy cousins who go to school with me. I’m always trying to prove I’m better.”
After playing basketball her first two years, Ingemunson elected to focus exclusively on soccer.
“I love the bonds you create with your teammates,” she said. “It’s such a special thing, on and off the field. Celebrating with your team is one of the best feelings.
“I don’t think I’d ever be able to step away from that.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
