Soccer Game Preview: Joliet Catholic vs. Bloom

The Joliet Catholic Hilltoppers will take on the Bloom Blazing Trojan in a tournament on Sunday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, these teams will really light up the scoreboard.

Joliet Catholic took a loss when they played away from home last Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They came out on top against Marian Catholic by a score of 4-2. The high-scoring performance was a welcome turnaround for Joliet Catholic's offense, which had struggled in the games prior.

Mary Meyer and Syndell Ocegueda scored all four of Joliet Catholic's goals, bringing their combined season tally to eight goals.

Meanwhile, Bloom kept a clean sheet against Momence on Wednesday. They put the hurt on the Momence Athletics with a sharp 7-0 victory. The result was nothing new for Bloom, who have now won six matches by six goals or more so far this season.

Bloom is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine games. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-2 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they scored 41 goals over those nine contests. As for Joliet Catholic, their victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-9.

Joliet Catholic came up short against Bloom in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, falling 2-0. Can the Hilltoppers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.