Soccer Meets Early Season Goals
April 5, 2016
This year is a very exciting one for the Manitou Springs soccer team. Along with the large amount of freshmen that joined this year, the team’s connection is very strong this season. Mo Heiniger (11), who has played for the varsity team for three years, brings lots of energy to the field. She said that this year’s team had the chance to do great things. “This season, in comparison to other seasons, I feel that we definitely have a stronger back line, which I appreciate so much. I think that we have a lot more distribution of skill throughout the team. It’s going to be a really great season,” she said.
“We had a great number of freshmen join the team this year, and they’re making a big difference on the field,” said Heiniger, “I think that a huge part of the bonding is freshmen. When the freshmen came in over the summer, when we would do these little kick arounds, we were so excited. I’ve honestly been excited about this season since last year, watching the 8th graders, now freshmen, play in the playoff game at the middle school level. Knowing that they could get to that skill level down there, and seeing how they can impact up here was really cool. I think that the new additions to the team are really coming at a great time and I don’t think that they’re letting it hold them back, that they’re new to high school, or to the team, whether they be freshman or not.”
One of these new freshmen is Molly Arndt (9), who is on the junior varsity team. She is very excited for her first season of high school soccer, and hopes to one day make the varsity team. This season in particular, she has high hopes for her team. “This season we’re trying out a new formation and stuff. We’re always trying getting people to better themselves and get them better aquatinted with soccer, but it’s also helping people with what they need to get to varsity.”
There’s another freshman, who’s not exactly playing on the field, but making a difference just the same. David Misyura (9) is the junior varsity team manager. This is his first year managing, but he looks forward to many more good times with the team. He thinks the team’s bond will make the difference on the field. David says, “The teams are learning how to communicate with each other and to use teamwork to further their goals.”
Heiniger says that the team is focusing on more of the mental part of the game, and the connection with the team. “I think a really big goal is more than just the physicality of the game,” she said. “It’s really important to bond and have this emotional connection going into games, and I think that will get us further than we have in years past. I think its a pretty tight group already, and also just to play physically and aggressively, as in every year, but especially this year with the defense that we have and the strong offense that we have. I think that it will really benefit us if we work that way. I feel that a lot of times we get our heads down after a goal, after a misstep or a misplay or something. I think that it’s just a mentality kind of thing, and we’re overcoming that with everybody. I think another thing to overcome is tiredness during the last bit of the game. Any game in particular, but especially when losing it’s really hard to keep that energy up after you’re being crushed. Hopefully we’ll overcome that, and I think we will.”
