ALTON – Marquette Catholic's Chris Hartrich has been a key player for the Explorers' run to Friday evening's IHSA Class 1A Freeburg Sectional final against Belleville Althoff. Hartrich, a junior for the Explorers, has been one of the leading scorers for MCHS on the year; this postseason has been a big one for him so far.
Hartrich led off the run with a goal and four assists in an 8-1 win over Metro East Lutheran in the semifinals of Marquette's regional tournament Oct. 10; three days later, he had a goal and an assist in the Explorers' 4-1 regional final win over McGivney Catholic, then added a hat trick in Marquette's 4-1 win over Breese Central in Tuesday's Freeburg Sectional semifinal match heading into Friday's sectional final.
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“It's the first step of the state tournament, so we have to make sure every game is our top priority,” Hartrich said after the opening win over MEL. “We could have had some more in the first half (the Explorers had taken a 4-1 lead on the Knights despite rainy conditions at Gordon Moore Park), but you just have to take what they give you.”
Hartrich began the playoffs excited; he feels the Explorers are a good team. “I'm excited because we have a good, young team,” Hartrich said of MCHS. “I think we can go really far in this thing.”
While acknowledging the task gets tougher the further the postseason goes, Hartrich felt his side was ready for the challenge. “We're ready for the challenge,” Hartrich said.
“It's how young we are,” Hartrich said about what makes the Explorers so good. “We've all played through high school, so we have really good chemistry; it's like we all know and have a good understanding of how to play the game together.
“We know each other's tendencies and how to work with each other; I like that.”
The goal, of course, is to be one of the final four teams at East Peoria's EastSide Centre the weekend of Oct. 27-28 for the IHSA Class 1A state tournament. “That's a huge goal,” Hartrich said.
