Memorial Examiner - Sports
Memorial girls goal: get past 2nd round
By MIKE TENNEY
Lindley Amrantos sees the Memorial girls soccer team as having one mission this year.
“We want to get past the second round (of the Region III playoffs),” said the lady now holding the head coaching position after five years of directing the Memorial junior varsity squad. “That’s where we’ve stumbled the past few years, so our big goal this year is to get past the second round in the playoffs.”
And she just might have the team that can do it with seven returning starters, 12 returning lettermen, and two of her top three goal scorers back from a group that finished 19-7-2 last year and was the co-district champion with archrival Stratford.
“I am definitely trying to keep it going,” said Amrantos. “And we’ve had a great run here over the past few years as far as district and our non-district schedule goes. We’ve beaten some great teams along the way, no question. But I am trying to look a little further than that and see what I can do to get us to the next level in the playoffs. We know we’ve got a capable team. We just need to prove it in the playoffs and making a run deep into the playoffs is what we’re really after this year.”
The Mustangs will have a nice array of weapons available this year with a veteran group and five talented freshmen that Amrantos is very high on.
“It is an interesting mix,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of talented juniors and seniors and a couple of sophomores that will help us, but we’ve also got five freshmen that are very advanced players. I could see three of them starting for us, but right now I’m just trying to incorporate them into the mix and seeing how it works.
“But they’re all going to get a substantial amount of playing time or I wouldn’t have them on the varsity roster because we’re not going to bring freshmen up to sit and watch. They need to be playing and I really believe these girls are ready to play varsity soccer right now.”
Junior left midfielder Molly Walker, who scored 14 goals, and junior center-midfielder Kylee Piatczyz, who scored 13 goals, were the second and third leading scorer on the team last year and have looked good in the preseason workouts, the coach said.
“They will give us a nice 1-2 offensive punch,” said Amrantos. “It is always a little easier coming in when you have a couple of girls who can put the ball in the net. But from what I’ve seen, I think we’re going to have a couple of others that can as well.”
Senior center-midfielder Rebekah Carl, who has signed with Campbellsville College in Kentucky, and senior goalkeeper Beth Herlin, who has signed with Rice, are the only two three-year lettermen on the team.
“Beth is an excellent goalkeeper,” said Amrantos, who took over the team last March in the playoffs when the previous coach had to take a maternity leave. “And Rebekah has looked really good in practice as they all have. It feels good to know that we’re pretty strong in the middle and we’ve got a good goalkeeper and we’ve got a lot of experience in those areas.”
Junior left defender Taylor Goodwine, senior center-defender Katherine Mathews, and junior defender Merritt Shivetz are the other returning starters.
Senior right midfielder Claire Lensgras, senior forward Emily Anderson, junior defender Rachel Bett, junior forward Leah Lappin, sophomore midfielder Allie Russo, and sophomore forward-midfielder Mary Claire Bruce are the other 2008 letterwinners on the team.
“I do feel like we have a great deal of experience,” said Amrantos. “I know that I feel like we are farther along as a team than I thought we might be at this point and one of the reasons is because we do have a lot of experience and the freshmen are all pretty advanced. But we’ve still got a lot of work to do because experience doesn’t mean anything if we don’t come together and work together as a team.”
Defender Kendall Fitzpatrick, defender Emily Donnan, forward Rachel Owens, midfielder Rebecca Dunn, and defender Reagan Porter are the Fab Five ninth-graders coming in.
Defender Anna Grace Martinson, midfielder Michelle Coan, defender Rachel McCormack, and defender Katie Heinz are four seniors that round out the roster.
Amrantos said she has a lot of players who could make vital contributions.
“Right now, I do feel like as a coach I’ve got a lot of options regarding players,” she said. “We’ve got it all. Experienced seniors and juniors and a couple of sophomores that played last year as freshmen and freshmen that are going to play a lot this year, so I’m very excited about it. And I’m looking forward to it. And I think the girls are too.
“We’ve been practicing for some time now and we’re ready to see how we look against somebody else.”
The Mustangs first scrimmage is Saturday, Jan. 3, at Elkins. Tuesday, Jan. 6, is a workout against Katy at Rhodes Stadium before opening the season Thursday, Jan. 8, against Spring Woods in a first-round game in the Spring Branch ISD tournament.
“We want to get past the second round (of the Region III playoffs),” said the lady now holding the head coaching position after five years of directing the Memorial junior varsity squad. “That’s where we’ve stumbled the past few years, so our big goal this year is to get past the second round in the playoffs.”
And she just might have the team that can do it with seven returning starters, 12 returning lettermen, and two of her top three goal scorers back from a group that finished 19-7-2 last year and was the co-district champion with archrival Stratford.
“I am definitely trying to keep it going,” said Amrantos. “And we’ve had a great run here over the past few years as far as district and our non-district schedule goes. We’ve beaten some great teams along the way, no question. But I am trying to look a little further than that and see what I can do to get us to the next level in the playoffs. We know we’ve got a capable team. We just need to prove it in the playoffs and making a run deep into the playoffs is what we’re really after this year.”
The Mustangs will have a nice array of weapons available this year with a veteran group and five talented freshmen that Amrantos is very high on.
“It is an interesting mix,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of talented juniors and seniors and a couple of sophomores that will help us, but we’ve also got five freshmen that are very advanced players. I could see three of them starting for us, but right now I’m just trying to incorporate them into the mix and seeing how it works.
“But they’re all going to get a substantial amount of playing time or I wouldn’t have them on the varsity roster because we’re not going to bring freshmen up to sit and watch. They need to be playing and I really believe these girls are ready to play varsity soccer right now.”
Junior left midfielder Molly Walker, who scored 14 goals, and junior center-midfielder Kylee Piatczyz, who scored 13 goals, were the second and third leading scorer on the team last year and have looked good in the preseason workouts, the coach said.
“They will give us a nice 1-2 offensive punch,” said Amrantos. “It is always a little easier coming in when you have a couple of girls who can put the ball in the net. But from what I’ve seen, I think we’re going to have a couple of others that can as well.”
Senior center-midfielder Rebekah Carl, who has signed with Campbellsville College in Kentucky, and senior goalkeeper Beth Herlin, who has signed with Rice, are the only two three-year lettermen on the team.
“Beth is an excellent goalkeeper,” said Amrantos, who took over the team last March in the playoffs when the previous coach had to take a maternity leave. “And Rebekah has looked really good in practice as they all have. It feels good to know that we’re pretty strong in the middle and we’ve got a good goalkeeper and we’ve got a lot of experience in those areas.”
Junior left defender Taylor Goodwine, senior center-defender Katherine Mathews, and junior defender Merritt Shivetz are the other returning starters.
Senior right midfielder Claire Lensgras, senior forward Emily Anderson, junior defender Rachel Bett, junior forward Leah Lappin, sophomore midfielder Allie Russo, and sophomore forward-midfielder Mary Claire Bruce are the other 2008 letterwinners on the team.
“I do feel like we have a great deal of experience,” said Amrantos. “I know that I feel like we are farther along as a team than I thought we might be at this point and one of the reasons is because we do have a lot of experience and the freshmen are all pretty advanced. But we’ve still got a lot of work to do because experience doesn’t mean anything if we don’t come together and work together as a team.”
Defender Kendall Fitzpatrick, defender Emily Donnan, forward Rachel Owens, midfielder Rebecca Dunn, and defender Reagan Porter are the Fab Five ninth-graders coming in.
Defender Anna Grace Martinson, midfielder Michelle Coan, defender Rachel McCormack, and defender Katie Heinz are four seniors that round out the roster.
Amrantos said she has a lot of players who could make vital contributions.
“Right now, I do feel like as a coach I’ve got a lot of options regarding players,” she said. “We’ve got it all. Experienced seniors and juniors and a couple of sophomores that played last year as freshmen and freshmen that are going to play a lot this year, so I’m very excited about it. And I’m looking forward to it. And I think the girls are too.
“We’ve been practicing for some time now and we’re ready to see how we look against somebody else.”
The Mustangs first scrimmage is Saturday, Jan. 3, at Elkins. Tuesday, Jan. 6, is a workout against Katy at Rhodes Stadium before opening the season Thursday, Jan. 8, against Spring Woods in a first-round game in the Spring Branch ISD tournament.
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