Girls Water Polo: Sam Klosak fuels Lincoln-Way North’s overtime victory

Updated: April 20, 2012 7:30PM

Lincoln-North caught Lincoln-Way Central shorthanded when the Phoenix registered a shockingly easy 16-4 victory at the Lincoln-Way East Invitational on March 30.

Friday, North simply caught — and passed — Central. And this time there were no extenuating circumstances.

“I don’t think there was any point to make. We just want to prove our worth in sectionals,” junior Sam Klosak said after scoring twice in overtime to lead the Phoenix to a 13-11 SouthWest Suburban crossover win.

Klosak finished with four goals, Jenna Tasic three, and Kelly Pender five saves as North improved to 15-5, 7-2 to stay atop the Red division.

Danijela Jackovich scored seven goals and Brittany Knowlton three for Central (15-5, 8-1), which dropped into a tie for first place with Homewood-Flossmoor in the Blue.

Jackovich and Central goaltender Caroline Foglton missed the first meeting to compete at an Olympic developmental event in Florida.

With them in the lineup Friday, Central dominated early, using a second-period flurry of goals by Jackovich and Knowlton to turn a 2-2 tie into a 7-3 halftime lead.

North rallied in the third period by scoring on its first two possessions, once when Keriann Clarin tossed a rebound past Foglton, and again on a long floater by Tasic. Tasic scored again a minute later to make it a 7-6 proposition.

Niki Beringer’s goal on an assist from Carlie Petraitis created a 10-10 tie in the fourth period, after which the two teams went scoreless over the final 3:09

Cheyenne DeGraff broke the tie with 1:49 remaining in the first overtime. Klosak scored twice in the second OT, coming up huge to outrace two Central players to a loose ball about 20 feet in front of the net and snapping it in to make it 12-10 with just 1:07 left.

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