Lady Kickers are back in action and what the scoreboard isn’t showing is their determination for another great season.
The Clarkston Girls Varsity Soccer team opened their season with a loss to Rochester with the Lady Falcons lone goal scored near the end of the game.
“For it being our first game of the season we passed and played really good,” said Sarah Wasilk, head coach.
They followed it with a tie against North Farmington, both ending with zero.
“It was a very physical game by both teams,” Wasilk added. “We battled some mental hurdles and did well.”
She explained some of the girls were out due to injuries or illness.
“We were spread pretty thin. We had a lot of girls step up and pull their weight on the team. They did very well,” she added.
Sophomore Katie Miller made five saves in the net and got her first shut-out as a varsity goalie.
“She had some big saves but she had one amazing save that saved the game for us,” said Wasilk. “She came up with huge saves against Rochester, too.”
The girls should should be better and healed when they come back from break and head into the bulk of the season.
Their goal – continue the success from last season when the team finished 15-3-2 and finished OAA White champions, capturing their first league title.
The success brings them in to the OAA Red where they want to continue being competitive and bring home another title.
“It is a tough league and every game is tough,” said Wasilk. “They want to be competitive which they have been.”
The girls are also focusing on winning district finals. The girls lost in the final round against Rochester Adams, which they hope to get vengence on April 14.
“Our tough schedule leading up to districts will prepare us for a tough districts,” said Wasilk.
The girls have a mix of returners and new players to get the team to their goals.
‘We are more experienced,” said Wasilk. “It looks promising. We are very strong defensively and we are passing very well. Offensively we are getting the ball forward, getting some good looks and getting some shots on the net. We haven’t scored yet but I am confident the goals will come as long as we keep working on finishing, playing together and possession.”
Returners are juniors Lindsey Adams, Mikayla Ferer, Caitlyn Kirby, Lisa Lyons, Sarah McCallum, Taylor Stoke; seniors, Gina Bollini, Andrea Butler, Amanda Ejups, Jacquelyn Gipe, Samantha Johnson, Kaylee Liddle and Claire Viazanko.
New faces include sophomores Katie Miller, Morgan Todd; juniors, Chelsea Chase, Andrea Dumais; seniors, Emily Roan and Jennifer Zawadski.
“The new girls have been working really hard in the off season and have bonded,” said Wasilk. “They play like veteran players.”
They come back to host Lake Orion on April 12 and Rochester Adams on April 14.
“We are excited,” said Wasilk. “Lake Orion is a huge rivalry and the girls always get pumped for that game.”
The games are at Clarkston High School, beginning at 5:30 p.m. with JV, varsity follows.