Coaches: William Allgeier (head coach), Kaitlyn Clark (assistant coach), Ronald James (assistant coach), Stephen Teal (assistant coach)
Top Returning Players: Gwen Hennessy (12), Sophia Takaki (11), Lauren Won (12)
Top Newcomers: Kate Gong (9), Olivia Pop (9)
Last Season: The Lady Lancers ended with an overall record of 10-8-5 and a league record of 5-3-2, and placed third in the Freeway League. They qualified for CIF playoffs, losing 3-0 against Ontario Christian High School in the first round.
Outlook: The team will need to adjust to many changes. Besides having a new coach, the players will compete in a new division called North Hills after CIF disbanded the Freeway League.
In the inaugural season of this league, the only familiar foe will be the Sonora Raiders, as the Lady Lancers will go up against the following other high schools: Brea Olinda in Brea, El Modena in Orange and Foothill in Santa Ana.
“Goals I have for the team this year are to win one of our two tournaments, win league and win, hopefully, more than two CIF games,” Allgeier said. “The seniors have shown that this is a program where everybody cares for one another without regarding playing ability; they also know that they don’t have to be best friends with one another, but they have to be respectful toward one another, just like a family.”
Despite not having much experience coaching a girls soccer squad, he said he only has positive things to say about his players.
“I’m loving being a new coach here, not only on the varsity team, but the whole program, and the girls have been absolutely amazing,” Allgeier said. “They understand that I am the coach and that I am able to discipline them, but I don’t have to because they know the separation between the two, so I’m able to be more vulnerable with them than I have been in the past coaching boys.”
Center-back Hennessy said what matters most is that Allegier has experience in being a head coach.
“The previous coach didn’t have that much experience with coaching; whereas, Willy [Allgeier] does, and he also coaches at Chapman University, so he has more experience with that,” Hennessy said. “Willy thinks more holistically, like what do we need to look at and how can we fix this as a team.”
Allgeier also has positive vibes about what CIF officials did with disbanding the Freeway League.
“I like the new North Hills League, and I like that [the conference of] 15 teams are broken into three subdivisions of five, which gives teams a little bit more access to games that are manageable for them,” the head coach said. “It allows more teams to get into CIF [playoffs], which helps represent our league in the best way possible.”
Like her head coach, Hennessy said she’s also approaching this season with a positive mindset.
“It’s a whole new program, really, since we have a new coach, a new league, a lot of newcomers and a lot of freshmen on varsity,” she said. “It really feels like we’re starting with a clean slate, which can be good because it sets up the rest of the four years for freshmen, for coach Willy and everything in regards to that.”
Allgeier has also named three captains for this season: center-back junior Madison Balkus, Hennessey and Won.
“They have some quality leadership skills that the coaching staff and their teammates are relying on this year,” he said. “I think if the coaching staff, the captains and the rest of the players are all on the same page, we’ll have a very successful year.”
Hennessy said that although she feels pressure to lead her team to success, she is glad she can rely on her fellow captains.
“I feel proud of my accomplishments but also anxious to live up to people’s expectations,” she said. “Getting to be captain has been a huge inspiration for me to be an admirable leader, and all I really want is for the girls to play soccer and have fun while they do it.”
Balkus said she’s in line with her head coach’s goals for the season and beyond.
“I personally want to work on my touch and really connect with the girls in all age groups from freshmen to seniors,” Balkus said. “I think the team will make it super far because of the chemistry we have on and off the field, and no one takes it to heart when they hear criticism.”
Hennessy agreed that she and her teammates have a chance to go deep into CIF playoffs.
“This year, our main focus will be fine-tuning each of our individual strengths,” she said. “Each girl has amazing potential, and our team chemistry is unmatched, so I believe that with a little time and effort, our team will grow stronger together, and we will be a force to reckon with.”
The girls soccer team started league play during the last week of winter break with a 2-0 victory Thursday, Jan. 2, in an away game against Foothill High School. Then on Tuesday, Jan. 7, the girls won 5-0 in their home league opener against El Modena.
“I’m hoping we get a league win because I think it’s very doable,” Takaki said after the first league game. “We have a really solid team right now, a really good defense, and our offense did really well in our last game, so I am very confident we will be able to make it to CIF.”
The Lady Lancers currently have a 2-0-1 record in the North Hills League, and they will take their confidence into their next league game at home on Thursday, Jan. 16, at 3 p.m. The score wasn’t available at press time.
