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SPORTS
THE NORTH SHORE WEEKEND
9/20 – 9/21/14
HE’S A COLOSSAL SUCCESS Old-school Moore is a huge presence on defense for LF’s soccer team
Lake Forest High School’s Hunter Moore (right) battles Highland Park’s Aidan Subra for possession during earlier action this fall. photography
■ by bill mclean
sports@northsoreweekend.com Lake Forest High School senior Hunter Moore did not receive a yellow card for doing a wonderful job of impersonating a middle linebacker on a soccer pitch last weekend. But nobody would have faulted Buffalo Grove High School’s visiting Bison for at least lobbying for one on Sept. 13. “He’s a colossus back there, physically imposing,” Scouts soccer coach Rob Parry said after Moore — a sturdy 6-foot, 180-pound all-North Suburban Conference pick last fall — played all 80 minutes in a 2-2 stalemate. “Hunter holds us together back there. “I haven’t seen a better defender this year.” Parry had to see Moore roam and distribute the ball from the midfield as well, because LF was shorthanded against BG. At times it looked like the center-back had been born to play there, too. Moore, stationed a few feet in front of Scouts senior goalkeeper Brogan O’Connor, put his helmet of curly-brown hair to good use early, popping straight up to clear a BG corner kick out of harm’s way. Later, after a Bison forward had darted behind him, Moore caught up to the foe and booted the ball upfield. Near the end of the first half he displayed his touch after battling for control of the ball near midfield, smoothly tapping a right-on pass to speedy senior forward Paul Passalino. “He’s one of our leaders, definitely,” Lake Forest senior
midfielder Brian Roper said. “Hunter gets us focused at practices, and you can always count on him back there. He’s a big kid who gets a lot of momentum going with his size, and when that’s going …” Look out. Moore’s physicality plus his will to secure 50/50 balls usually equals resignation from an opposing player. A soccer player since the age of 7, Moore chose not play the world’s most popular sport his freshman year. He suited up for football in the fall and lacrosse in the spring. “It was hard for me to give it up that year,” admitted Moore, who still plays lax and earned all-NSC honors (honorable mention) as a defenseman last spring. “I soon realized, when I played soccer again my sophomore year, how much I loved it, how much I missed it. It’s a great sport, and there’s nothing better than the thrill of your team scoring a goal.” His Scouts (4-5-1) got blanked in the first half of the match against BG on Sept. 13. But the hosts showed plenty of verve after the break, making up a 2-0 deficit on goals from senior midfielder Clarke Hough and Keegan Kullby (PK). “We played with a lot of energy [in the second half,],” Moore said. “It had been building.” His distinctive head of hair — think Greg Brady’s curly mane in “The Brady Bunch” TV series, the latter years — is two stories high. And counting. “I’m old-school,” said a smiling Moore, who pulled back some of his locks to reveal a thin Scouts-blue flow band.
by joel lerner
“My hair used to be straight.” His personality? “As bubbly as his hair,” Parry said. “You know what?” Parry added, turning serious. “Hunter is an inspirational leader whose teammates respect him and his abilities as a player.” Moore is thinking seriously about playing soccer and lacrosse in college, perhaps at a Division III school. But that’s down-the-road stuff. His mind now is on academics, soccer, Call of Duty (video game) battles and his fantasy football team. “He’s a lot of fun to be around, even in a classroom,” Roper said. “Hunter likes to sit in the back of a classroom.” Teachers, though, have never had to give Moore a yellow card for acting up in the middle of a lecture. “Our teachers are great, very helpful,” Moore said. “I’m getting a great education. “I like balance in my life. I try hard in school, play sports and never forget the importance of friends.” Notable: Kullby delivered the assist via a free kick on Hough’s goal against BG on Sept. 13. O’Connor (first half) and junior Wil Audley (second half, 0 goals allowed) split the goalkeeper duties in the 2-2 tie. O’Connor made a sensational save at 24:05, diving to his right for a onehanded deflection. … Passalino drew the foul that set up Kullby’s second-half PK. … LF lost 2-0 to Lake Zurich on Sept. 8 and 2-1 to Libertyville three days later. Scouts junior midfielder Matthew Mick, on a Passalino assist, tallied the goal against the Wildcats. ■