Finding their groove

Creston girls soccer hits the field this spring looking to improve from last season, this time under the coaching of former assistant and now head coach Megan Kinkade.

Kinkaide says she’s hopeful this season, knowing a team that went 5-12 the season prior well.

“I am very hopeful,” said Kinkade. “We have a lot of potential in our girls this year.”

An experienced and senior-heavy class will take the field for the Panther footballers this spring after losing only two seniors from last season.

“They’ve really been built up to very good soccer players and I’m really hopeful that this year will be an epitome of all that we’ve worked on the last four years,” said Kinkade.

Part of the returning seniors will be last season’s leading goal scorer, Breanna Ross, who scored seven goals.

Seniors alongside Ross are Jesse Vicker, Emma Christensen, Jessica Arevalo, Rachel Wignall, Karmen Chuong, Grace Root, Breanna Ross, Sophia Schuler, Laura Weis and Devon Buls.

Of the 24 roster spots, 10 are seniors and it is no secret that they will all be important to not only the team success, but for success of the underclassmen.

“(They are) very important,” said Kinkade. “They lead the underclassmen well. They’re kind of like mini-coaches when I can’t be there for all of them at the same time. ... They know what I expect from them and they can mimic what I say when I’m not there to help. It’s great to have so many upperclassmen here.”

The underclassmen, consisting of two freshmen and nine sophomores, have some room to grow said Kinkade.

“We definitely love that they came out,” said Kinkade. “We just have to start with them like we did our seniors and work them up. They can definitely be like our seniors now. They have the potential, they just have to stick with it.”

Sydnie Taylor and Hannah Rounds both come into the program as freshmen this season and try to help improve a team that saw its highest win total since winning six games in 2011.

“They can’t be scared of running and being sore and being in a little bit of pain sometimes. Soccer not a painless sport,” said Kinkade.

Building the legs

As head coach, Kinkade has got a jump start on what she believes has been a big weakness for the team – conditioning.

“Our weaknesses have always been conditioning and we really hit that hard this season,” said Kinkade. “We’ve ran really hard, getting familiar with Indian runs and sprints and different kinds of relays.”

Kinkade believes that the emphasis on conditioning and building up stamina will keep the Panthers in the game for a full 80 minutes and potentially more.

On the other end, the first-year head coach believes that the number of players on the team who can control the ball and work on offense and defense are the strengths, along with game IQ and mental work on the field.

“The mental work is the best that I have seen this year as far as where to be and where to go and where to get the ball up field,” said Kinkade. “I’ve really seen people mature in the game as far as where they used to be when they were younger. That’s really increased.”

Conference outlook

A naturally tough conference across all sports, the Hawkeye 10 will bring tough opponents from top to bottom for Creston.

Lewis Central, said Kinkaide, is one of the tougher conference foes for the Panthers.

“It’s always Lewis Central (winning the conference), they’re always number one or number two at state. ... They’re definitely the front runner,” Kinkade said.

Kinkade said that despite strong conference opponents, the Panthers are going to plan and prep accordingly for each game this season in hopes of playing competitive soccer.

Roster

Seniors – Jesse Vicker, Emma Christensen, Jessica Arevalo, Rachel Wignall, Karmen Chuong, Grace Root, Breanna Ross, Sophia Schuler, Laura Weis, Devon Buls.

Juniors – Kara Kinsella, Lexi Rounds.

Sophomores – Lily Pryor, Madison McCoubrey, Rylee Haynes, Sierra Meyers, Jurneé Harvey, Lauryn Christensen, Mimi Aguirre, Kaci Abildrup, Jaida Fischer, Chloe Martin.

Freshmen – Sydnie Taylor, Hannah Rounds.

Schedule

April 1 – at St. Albert Catholic 4 p.m.

April 4 – at Nodaway Valley 7 p.m.

April 9 – Kuemper Catholic 5 p.m.

April 11 – at Denison-Schleswig 5 p.m.

April 16 – at Chariton 5 p.m.

April 23 – Lewis Central 5 p.m.

April 27 – West Central Valley TBD

April 30 – Chariton 5 p.m.

May 4 – Creston Tournament 9 a.m.

May 7 – Atlantic 5 p.m.

May 9 – Glenwood 5 p.m.

May 14 – at Winterset 5:30 p.m.

May 17 – Knoxville 5 p.m.

May 24 – Harlan 5 p.m.