Huntley boys soccer advances to sectional finals with shutout win, St. Charles East falls in penalty kicks

When the ball entered the box, Tyler Murray’s mind drifted toward last year. In 2025, Huntley led St. Charles North by two goals in the sectional semifinals before falling by two goals in overtime. Flash forward one year and three days later, it was the same postseason round against the same opponent. Murray wouldn’t let history repeat itself. “We knew we needed to get our get back,” Murray said. “One of my teammates was going to take [the ball], but I said, ‘No, I got it.’ ”Murray corralled the bouncing ball and fired a shot into the back of the net with 13 minutes to go, securing a 1-0 win for Huntley in a Class 3A Huntley Sectional semifinal Tuesday night. “They dug deep, they did what they needed to do, and they came out victorious,” Huntley coach Matthew Lewandowski said. Sophomore goalkeeper Eli Valdez recorded six saves as the Raiders posted their second consecutive shutout and seventh on the season. He recorded a diving stop with 9:30 to go. Valdez and the defense delivered aga