The Evanston Township High School field hockey team routed Naperville North 5-0 on Wednesday, Oct. 21, advancing to the state quarterfinals.
The Wildkits will face Glenbrook North at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, in Antioch, Evanston Athletics announced on X. The school's athletics account called the round the "STATE Elite Eight."
The quarterfinal sets up a rematch. Glenbrook North beat ETHS 3-2 early in the season, on Aug. 31, according to the team's MaxPreps schedule. The Wildkits have not lost since Oct. 1.
ETHS carries a seven-game winning streak into the matchup. That stretch includes a pair of gritty double-overtime road wins: 1-0 at Latin on Oct. 1 and 3-2 at Glenbard West on Oct. 5. The Wildkits followed those with a 3-0 home win over Oak Park-River Forest on Oct. 7, a 2-0 home win over Lake Forest on Oct. 13 and a 4-0 road win at Highland Park on Oct. 14.
Wednesday's shutout capped the run.
The Wildkits sit at 15-6 overall and 4-4 in conference play. They have outscored opponents 60-28 this season and are ranked No. 5 in Illinois by MaxPreps. ETHS has been dominant on neutral sites, going 4-0 away from both home and road venues.
Wednesday's result was the second time the Wildkits faced Naperville North this fall. ETHS won the first meeting 5-1 on Aug. 24 in Evanston. The two games produced a combined 10-1 scoring margin in the Wildkits' favor.
The season has had its rough patches. ETHS opened with a 5-0 loss to Loyola Academy on Aug. 22 and dropped a 4-0 decision to New Trier on Aug. 29. The Wildkits lost to New Trier again on Sept. 29, also 5-0. Conference play proved uneven at 4-4, with losses to Loyola Academy, Francis W. Parker, Lake Forest and New Trier.
But the postseason surge has been emphatic. Five of the seven wins during the current streak came by shutout.
Saturday's game against Glenbrook North in Antioch will determine whether the Wildkits keep their season alive.
