By Chris Parker
Hillcrest soccer will have a completely new look on the pitch this season after last year was canceled.
“Last season was lost due to COVID, and it has affected our program tremendously. First, we lost seniors and a foreign exchange student from Demark. Secondly, the freshmen class lost a year of experience. Thirdly, I was not able to get into my feeder schools in the spring the way I would have like to help promote the program. Basically, it feels like we are starting up a new program from scratch because of COVID,” Hillcrest coach Roy Hardy said. “For me, I’m excited to get back on the pitch and coach again. It has been a year since I was on the pitch and I might even be rusty myself. I’m hoping the players are just as excited as me to get back out and ‘kick it’ with their peers.”
Seniors Halle Pyle (keeper) and Hailey Flores (midfield) will be leaders this year.
“Halle’s character and her work ethic are two qualities that helps her be successful at anything she puts her mind to and our program will need her qualities in the goal box this year,” Hardy said. “Haley, during her sophomore year, had the ability to anticipate plays happening before they actually happened. This feature will be enormous for the young program this year in the midfield.”
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Sophomore Mackenzie Smith along with freshmen Kendyl Tolliver and Yeniva Gonzalez will be the key attackers at forward.
Freshman Addison Grant will join Flores in the midfield. Flores earned all-district honors in 2019.
The defense in front of Pyle is still being decided.
“The program lost its entire defense core due to 2020 graduation. Our defense is still a work in progress as we have all new faces back on the defensive line. This is definitely an area of concern that will need to improve pretty quickly if we are to be competitive during the 2021 campaign,” Hardy said.
Hillcrest opens the season on Mar. 23 at Neosho.
“The strength of the team that I have noticed is its lightheartedness. I hope this lightheartedness continues throughout the season because the girls are smiling, laughing, having fun, and coming back each day eager to learn. Hopefully this will be the trend, whether we win or lose games, because if we do those things they will see a transformation,” Hardy said. “My overall expectations for this season, more than winning, is to see the ladies believing in the 11 on the pitch becoming into one, being coachable, and enduring the daily grind (Getting Results I Need Daily) of the schedule with consistent effort each day.”
