Illinois Week 8 high school standouts

There’s only one more week before 2A and 3A playoffs. 1A playoffs begin Tuesday. <strong>M [player_tooltip player_id="43959" first="Riley" last="Gumm"], Oswego East, So.</strong> This is another prospect in the sophomore class who has delivered a breakout season broken. After scoring in a tough loss to Lyons, Gumm scored two goals against Oak Park-River Forest the next day to close out April. Her best performance of the season arguably came last Tuesday during a 5-0 win over Plainfield East. She burst onto the scene with two second-half goals. For one of the goals, she out-dribbled two defenders and a keeper for a wide-open finish. Gumm finished with three goals and an assist in that game. This season, she has 13 goals and 17 assists. <strong>M Jordan Lange, Metea Valley, Jr.</strong> Lange is finally hitting her mark after a couple of quiet weeks. Her contributions this week were vital to two significant conference wins over Naperville North and Waubonsie Valley. Lange and the Mustangs bounced back from an early 1-0 deficit to take a 2-1 lead midway through the second half off some tremendous footwork and ball control, leading to a powerful shot in the bottom corner. The Mustangs upset Naperville North on the road 3-1. On Saturday, Lange got on the board early against Waubonsie Valley, taking advantage of a loose ball in the box and blasting it home. But her best play came as she megged a defender and crossed the ball to [player_tooltip player_id="22221" first="Tyra" last="King"] for a header in the back of the net. The Mustangs went on for a 3-0 win. Metea Valley’s only losses are to out-of-state opponents. <strong>F Jocelyn Leigh, Evanston, So.</strong> Leigh has been one of the biggest breakout stars in Illinois this season. The Wildkits had two significant games last week, facing Glenbrook North and New Trier. Leigh found the back of the net twice in the last two minutes of the half against Glenbrook North, then added a third goal in the second half en route to a 5-0 rout over the previously unbeaten team. Leigh then proved to be the difference maker against New Trier later in the week. She scored two goals en route to a 3-1 win to secure a CSL South Championship. The sophomore sensation has 22 goals this season and Evanston will face Deerfield on Tuesday for the CSL title. <strong>F [player_tooltip player_id="32977" first="Avery" last="Christopher"], O’Fallon, Sr.</strong> Christopher has been a goal-scoring machine all season. She has 30 goals in the 14 games in which she has played. Her 2.1 goals-per-game average is one of the best among elite-level programs in the state. The Panthers were in a tight match with Edwardsville on Tuesday night. But Christopher’s second-half goal and assist were the difference in a 2-1 victory. On Thursday, she scored three times in a 4-1 win over Belleville East. <strong>M Jada Harvey, Rockford Christian, Sr.</strong> Harvey comes from an under-appreciated small school looking to make noise in the 1A playoffs. She plays on a good Royal Lion squad that has taken down several large NIC-10 schools in the Rockford area. Harvey has 24 goals and 17 assists after scoring twice during a win over Dixon to secure a conference title. She’s a very dynamic player who loves getting her teammates involved. The Royal Lions are the top seed in their sectional. <strong>F Marissa Morris, Althoff Catholic, Fr.</strong> She’s easily been the most productive freshman coming from the St. Louis area this season with 26 goals and five assists for the defending 1A champion. She scored twice over Mater Dei (Breese) on Tuesday en route to a 3-0 win. On Saturday, she scored and assisted in a 2-0 win against Carbondale. A 1A school, Althoff Catholic looks to find similar success this postseason and they open the playoffs against Pana.