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Jays head to Iowa for Tournament of Champions

There’s not much doubt about it — Liberty is ready for another challenge.

Nor is there a doubt about this — a challenge is coming. The Blue Jays pack their bags for this weekend’s Adidas Tournament of Champions in Burlington, Iowa, which has earned the reputation as one of the premier high school girls soccer tournaments in the country.

Four teams in the event, including the Blue Jays, owned spots in the ESPN Rise Fab 50 national poll, as of April 25. The 32-team field, comprised of teams from Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin, has been split into four 8-team brackets. Three of the ranked teams fell into Liberty’s division — the Adidas Bracket.

"I’m excited. I am really excited to be challenged and to work hard and to get better," junior Madi Knight said. "I just can’t wait."

Liberty (10-1 and ranked No. 31 nationally) will open tournament play with a first-round match at 3:30 p.m. Friday, April 30, against Middleton (Wis.), which has made more state tournament appearances than any other Wisconsin public school in the past 20 years. The Jays’ next match, win or lose, is 8 a.m. Saturday, May 1, against either Ankeny (Iowa), ranked No. 26 in the ESPN national poll, or previously ranked Homewood-Flossmoor (Ill.).

If it works out, Liberty could meet No. 9 St. Charles North (Ill.), the lone nationally ranked side on the bottom half of the bracket, at 1:45 p.m. Saturday in the final round. The other teams in the field include Granite City (Ill.), Waunakee (Wis.) and West Des Moines Valley (Iowa).

"You win the first one; that’s what we have to focus on is the first one," coach Tom Rottjakob said. "If you win the first one, it’s like playing three state championship games. That’s the type of thing we need. We need that kind of competition. You’ve got to play the best to be the best."

Liberty failed to get past that first-round opponent in their inaugural showing at the tournament last year. The Jays fell to Lake Forest (Ill.), the No. 1-ranked team in the country at the time, in the opener but bounced back with two consolation wins and a fifth-place tournament finish.

One of the most challenging aspects of the tournament is dealing with the unfamiliarity of the other teams in the field. However, the Jays don’t appear to be concerned.

"I’m a firm believer with the way we are as a team, we don’t have to make adjustments for other teams," Rottjakob said. "If we play the way we can play, they’re going to have to make a ton of adjustments for us. We just need to play our game, play sensible, not try doing too much, and make sure we work the ball around."

A handful of other Missouri teams, including Park Hill South, Visitation Academy and Ozark, will make the trip to Iowa and will compete in different brackets than Liberty. The Jays will also avoid a matchup with St. Thomas Aquinas, who is responsible for Liberty’s lone loss this season.

"I’m looking forward to it a lot," junior Erica Carr said. "It should be fun team bonding and getting to know the girls better and strengthening our team as a whole."

And in all likelihood, the Blue Jays will receive three of their stiffest challenges to date.

"Yeah, that part, too," Carr added.

Sports writer Chris Geinosky can be reached at 389-6654 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .