12 Rutland Herald Fall Sports Guide 2018
HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS SOCCER PREVIEW
MVL girls soccer ready to go
By TOM HALEY STAFF WRITER
When Ian Akin speaks of his Fair Haven girls soccer team being young , he is talking about a sophomore class that is the heart and soul of his team .
It is a case where youth is not synonymous with inexperience . The Slaters were blessed with a talented freshman class that quickly served notice they were ahead of their time and ready for the rigors of varsity competition . They are back and better than ever .
Being young means something else at Proctor . The Phantoms graduated seven seniors who started .
When talking about youth at Rutland , Lori McClallen is thinking down the road . A whopping turnout of 22 freshmen gives her something to be excited about far beyond this season .
Young can also simply mean younger . The Green Mountain team that made it all the way to the Division III state title game , where it fell 3-1 to Thetford , lost 15 of its 23 players .
Teams young and old are ready to kick this season off and for some it starts as soon as this Friday .
Black River
It ’ s not an easy thing to fight : an impending closure of the school and a 0-13-1 record last season .
But Kathleen Thompson is a Black River graduate , former athlete for the Presidents and feels that Black River pride . She is not going to let her team go quietly into the night . The man the school ’ s mascot name honors might have had the moniker Silent Cal , but this year ’ s edition of Black River soccer is going to do its best to make some noise .
ROBERT LAYMAN / STAFF PHOTO
Elise Magro , center , practices with the team and prospective new teammates during a combined varsity and junior varsity practice Tuesday , August 21 , 2018 at Alumni Field in Rutland .
That includes the offense , which was muffled all last season . Thompson is going to try to spice it up by having senior Paige Kelley play less in the goal and more in the field .
“ She has some incredible throwins and some really good crosses ,” Thompson said .
The only other senior is Becca Rogers , a versatile player who Thompson can deploy most anywhere . Hope Kelley , Paige ’ s sister , was a sweeper last year and might be another piece moved to inject some more sizzle into the attack . “ She ’ s very fast ,” Thompson said . The plan is for Hailey Pierce to see more time in the goal .
“ She is quick and has Spider Man fingers . She gets balls you don ’ t think she can get , especially ones over the top ,” Thompson said .
Jae Greneider returns to the midfield as a junior .
Ninth graders Mackenzie Martin and Emma Kirdzik will contribute , Martin on defense and Kirdzik on offense .
Due to low numbers , a few eighthgraders are also likely to get an early taste of varsity action .
Fair Haven
Akin can ’ t wait to see how those freshmen have grown up this year . They were pretty darn good last season in fashioning a 6-7-1 record that included an upset victory over Mill River under the lights of LaPlaca Field .
“ We got that done with a very specific game plan and after that everyone bought in ,” senior Kaleigh Brown said .
Brown and Sarah Ezzo are the only seniors and they will look to provide leadership for a still young team .
That talented sophomore class consists of goalkeeper Emma Ezzo , defender Courtney Brewster , midfielder
Megan Ezzo , forward Emma Brigs and utility players Bella Carravino and Ryleigh Coloutti .
Ezzo was the All-Marble Valley League goalie .
“ They make up the bulk of our team ,” Akin said of the celebrated class .
Juniors Kerigan Disorda and Austin Bruno will contribute significantly .
Freshmen who could make an impact are Olivia Almeida and Bella Carrara .
Others looking to make their mark include Alexa Love , Paige Cusanelli , Tess Barber , Samantha Barker , Annaleise Fontaine , Ashley Carvey , Briauna Woodbury , Anika Brannock , Jillian Hetrick and Sarah Ferrara .
“ I hope we are getting a reputation as a team that is pretty talented defensively ,” Akin said . “ Our possession style is really going to be our strength .”
He knows the Slaters ’ division within the league offer stern tests .
“ Hartford , Woodstock and Mill River are tough , competitive teams year in and year out ,” he said . “ But I have been impressed with Springfield . They have been improving and are such a hardworking team .”
Green Mountain
Last year , one of the biggest surprises came out of Green Mountain Union High School , where the Chieftains shocked the state by going 17-1 and making it all the way to the state championship game . First-year coach Carolynn Hamilton was rewarded with coach of the year honors , but will surely be a miracle worker if the Chiefs come close to duplicating that effort this time . While the losses to graduation are
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