The Lady Bulldogs’ varsity soccer season officially opens next Tuesday, March 1st, on the road at Dardanelle. Head Coach Andrew Post and his staff are looking to improve on last year’s results after missing the playoffs in 2021. Greenwood’s first home match will be next Thursday against Farmington, the first of three consecutive home dates at Smith-Robinson Stadium, including a two-day tournament the weekend of March 4th-5th and the start of conference play against Russellville on Thursday, March 10th.
Coach Post, who came to Greenwood in 2014, managed a young and inexperienced team last spring, but still put a competitive group on the field. The Lady Bulldogs finished 5-9-3 overall and 3-8-3 against conference foes, finishing 6th in the 5A West, considered to be the toughest soccer league in the state across all classifications.
“The girls did not qualify for the state playoffs,” he said at the end of last season. “Ties against Van Buren, Mountain Home, and Vilonia cost us valuable points that would have placed us 4th had we won those games. We had the opportunity to make the [post-season]. It was a close race, but these girls played hard and I’m very proud of their effort. We lose five senior starters, but many young players received a lot of experience that will help us next year.”
Post is hopeful that last season’s struggles will pay dividends in 2022, although his squad remains on the young side with only three seniors projected as starters. The team roster has 26 names listed. “It’s up from last year,” said the coach. “We graduated [five] seniors and we have a good size freshmen class, which is good. I like that number (26).” The list includes five seniors, seven juniors, six sophomores, and eight freshmen.
Of those five seniors, three are expected to make big contributions. Two of the five have been in the program a long time, Kayla Rogers and Bree Steinfeldt. Both girls have played since they were freshmen and both are being counted on this season for leadership and significant playing time, though Rogers is currently injured and hopes to be ready early in the season. Chaise Hanna also returns after sitting out her junior year to play tennis and will be the team’s chief goalkeeper.
“She started part-time her sophomore year as a keeper, so we get her back fulltime this year,” said Post of Hanna. “She missed a year, so she’s got to get back into the swing of things. She’s relearning her footwork. Lateral movement is really important and diving for the ball. But she’ll get there.
“Eden Adams is new. She’s never played before, but she’s a good kid,” said her coach. “She practices hard and is trying to learn a position. She’ll bring some good leadership to the team, I think. Molly Denison is in her fourth year, and she got some starts last year. She’ll start this year at outside-mid. Bree is at center-back, Chaise is a keeper, and Kayla is at center-mid.”
The coach then talked about his junior class. “Probably my most experienced [junior] is Ava Thomas. She’s grown up playing club [soccer] and been a starter since she was a freshman. She’s my best center back, so she’s got a lot of experience back there, which is good. Kaylee Coble is another returnee. She’s been with us since she was a freshman, primarily on the junior varsity team. But she will have to help us out at right or left back or maybe a little at outside mid. She’s going to give us some minutes. Coble is going to have to step up, but she’s a hard worker.
“Tula Whittington is in her third year. She was a forward last year and returns with a little more experience, hopefully to get us a few more goals. We were a little light on the goals last year, so we definitely need help there. Madelyn Wilkinson earned a starter’s spot last year at outside mid. She’s in basketball right now and will probably work her way back into the starting lineup when she gets back. She’s a real workhorse and never has to come out of the game. She’s a cross country runner with a lot of stamina. She’s tough as nails and a good athlete.”
Other juniors who may contribute at the varsity or junior varsity level this year or next include Claudia Inzerillo, Elise Remerscheid, and Lexi Roots. “Claudia is a foreign exchange student from Italy,” said Post. “She played [soccer] a little bit growing up, but she’s a volleyball player. Like most foreign students, she knows the game and has pretty good vision. She will probably give us some minutes down the road. She has a pretty good understanding of the game.”
Remerscheid is new to soccer, but could fill a leadership role with the team as she learns the game. Roots is a recent transfer from Dardanelle with some skills and potential, but is currently ineligible for competition. She is more of an option for next season, explained her coach. Several sophomores will also compete for playing time with the varsity in 2022.
“We return Abbey Gatesman, who was our leading scorer last year,” said Coach Post. “She put in a lot of goals in for us, somewhere around nine or more. But she’s in better form than she was last year. She’s a club player, so she plays pretty much the year around. We’ll put her at center-mid this year and let her go. She’s going to have a good career here and we’re going to rely quite a bit on her again.
“Gracyn Newcity returns,” he continued. “Last [season] was her first year and she worked her way off the bench to help us out and give us some good minutes as a freshman. She’ll be a starter this year at right or left back. She came on strong and really progressed well last year. We’ll expect her to fill some big shoes after losing a couple of starters at the outside back positions. I’m looking forward to having her give us a lot of good minutes this year.
“Laynee Post is another sophomore with a lot of experience playing outside-mid,” said the coach of his daughter. “We’ll need her to give us some good minutes off the bench or even start some games early on until we can get healthy and get some girls from other sports.
“We also have Regan Zimmerman, who was a freshman last year at outside back or defender,” added the coach. “She’ll help us out and give us some more depth. Brooklyn Garza has never played before. She’s new to the sport and is trying to learn a position. Linda Bartok has played club and is kind of a home school player. She takes one class here on campus and joined us this year. She will be our backup keeper, but will also get some minutes on the field. Her older sister played for me for a couple years and was a pretty good player. Linda could help us out this year and give us some more depth, and maybe down the road in a starting spot.”
The Lady Bulldogs also have at least two ninth graders who will fill starting roles when the season begins next week, said their coach. “There are a couple, at least,” said Post. “Ally Thomas, Ava’s younger sister, is a club player, so she’s got some good skills. She reminds me a lot of Abbey [Gatesman] last year. She’s aggressive with good foot skills and can run all day long. I think the cross country coach is trying to get ahold of her, she’s that good of a runner. She’s going to help us out and will start right away. I’ll probably put her right next to Abbey and have them try to control the middle of the field. Then I’ll be able to move her around to different spots when we get healthy.
“Payton Scantling is another club player who is a freshman and will help us out,” said Post. “She’s got to learn the game at this level, but she will pick it up and get more physical. She will help us out right away. Ava Whitaker is another one who has played club soccer before. She’s a volleyball player, but I think she’s going to help us out this year. So we’ve got three freshmen who are going to help us out quite a bit this year.” Other freshmen on the roster who should contribute in the future include Annalise Johnson, Tori Vanderwatt, Hailey Mabry, Brooklyn Kelley, and Kaya Simpson.
Asked if he was concerned about scoring goals this season, Post said, “I think we’ll actually be better on offense this year. The addition of players like Ally Thomas and Payton Scantling is going to help us out on offense. I think Ally can score some goals and add to what Abbey [Gatesman] did last year, and having two young players who can score is a good thing.”
After losing a pair of key defensive players from last season, the Lady Bulldogs are looking for help to keep the opposition out of the net. “We’re having to fill outside backs with brand new starters, and only one of them has much experience, so that’s a concern. I have some players that I can shift around that might help us at outside back. We’re not very deep there, so we can’t afford many injuries.
“I’ve got a lot of young players who are getting opportunities to start, and that’s a good thing for the future,” said Post. “I’ve got four or five freshmen and sophomores who will contribute consistently, and sometimes young players surprise you as they progress throughout the year, and they can have a pretty good season.”
As for the competition, Post said, “Russellville always has a decent squad. Siloam Springs is always talented. Greenbrier will have some talented players. It’s those top three teams we’re going to have to worry about. Searcy took it all [in 5A] last year and are the team to beat [again] this year in our classification. But if we can beat the teams we need to beat – Van Buren, Alma, Mountain Home, and Vilonia – that gives us a great opportunity to get in the playoffs. I think we’ve got a good chance this year. We’ve got some things to figure out and we’ve got to get better on the defensive side, but I think we have a chance to be better than last year and get to the playoffs.”
Despite temperatures dropping into the 30s, both the Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs played a benefit match this past Tuesday at home against Pulaski Robinson from Little Rock. Still somewhat undermanned due to injuries and players still in basketball, the GHS girls lost their match, 4-0, while the GHS boys won, 2-1. Both teams travel to Dardanelle next Tuesday.