Vinton – For the second night in a row, a young and knowledgeable Carroll County High School Soccer coach led a Cavalier team into battle against an opponent who has been playing the game a long, long time. Wednesday night 🌙 it was Forrest Johnson and the Boys falling 4-2 at Bassett while last night it was Adrienne Harris and the Girls coming up short by a 3-0 score to William Byrd.
Carroll County (10-6-2) played the Terriers scoreless for the opening 27 minutes of play, thanks in large part to Karmen Smith and Keeper Alexis Sheffey. William Byrd maintained possession at a 90% ratio but the Lady Cavaliers finished each play with a save and a Smith boot that took the ball out near midfield.
The first noticeable difference was that every time that the clearing kick came down, William Byrd had a player in position to corral the kick and re-engage the pressure.
Ahliyah Riffey and Savannah Swecker did manage to break free for a couple of runs in the opening half. Callie Harris took the ball deep as well but WBHS was able to turn the Lady Cavaliers charges away before they turned into serious scoring opportunities.
William Byrd found the back of the net at 12:22, 8:10 and 2:00. Each goal was set up perfectly, leaving Sheffey little to no chance to make a save. Carroll County did manage a Corner Kick in the final minute of play and it turned out to be the strongest scoring possibility of the opening 40 minutes.
Down 3-0 on the road, playing in the rain 🌧 and being given ten minutes of halftime to formulate a response, Adrienne Harris was able to show the progress of the program in the season.
Carroll County played the final 40:00 to a nil-nil draw. Sheffey continued to fend off point blank shots, some that looked like they were coming out of a cannon.
Harleigh Riggins, Riffey, Maiya Caudill, Smith, Laurel Sutphin, Alexis Boatman and Dalexandra Avila Estrada combined to play their final half of Soccer with a purpose. The Senior Class led by example on a night when they were under attack from the Terriers non-stop.
Callie Harris continued to press forward and in her best effort, found the side of the net late in the match. Inches away from pulling the Lady Cavaliers to within 3-1.
Coach Harris will look to build her second squad around Sheffey, Swecker and her little Sister. Freshman Alisia Torres-Lopez will have three more seasons to grow under Harris.
The fact that right out of the gate, Harris realized that she needed to generate numbers and criss crossed The Hill looking for Students who might be willing to give Soccer ⚽️ a try. Add Brittany Kinney to the mix and a Junior Varsity team arose from the ashes.
Thursday night was simply a case where a group of hard working and dedicated Student Athletes represented their School in a manner they can be proud of. The difference between the two teams was the fact that William Byrd has been playing the game their entire life.
Going forward, there is little doubt that Carroll County Soccer is being led by the right two people, separated by a few years of age. Both Harris and Johnson have unlimited knowledge of the game and possess the ability to teach, both on and off the Pitch. As Johnson prepares for a second child and Harris has her Wedding next month, the duo figures to be around for a while.
Youth Soccer is a MUST and finding players who strive to have Soccer be their main sport is a must. The amount of progress that the Lady Cavaliers made in one season is spectacular but for it to grow into a program that reaches the dedication of their Coaches, Harris would be wise to follow the lead of her Pitch partner, Coach Johnson.
Forrest has surrounded himself with other people who have a desire to see just how far up the ladder they can take their Cavalier program. Jeremy Puckett and the Hicks Brothers create a Group of people that share the same dream. A dream of taking a game that they Love and finding away for more and more folks to play it on a regular basis.
Corey Williams, Ches Helmick and Marion Harris share the same dream and all three will be a key 🔑 player in the pursuit of truly making Soccer a legitimate player in the Sports arena here in Carroll County.
Harris hit the ground running and accomplished so much in one year but somewhere she hears a wise voice of her Father, saying its a Marathon not a sprint. Our rookie Coach reflects on her first trip around the Sun 🌞.
First I just want to start out that these girls have worked and improved so much over this season!! What a season we’ve had! We made it to double digit wins (10) and had 9 shutouts (which means half of our games we held teams to 0). We had many very young players that stepped into big roles this year! We were also lead by a very strong senior group that were amazing leaders for all of the underclassmen!!
” William Byrd is a solid team. They play in a hard district and we knew this was a big test for us. If you could take out the last 13 minutes of the 1st half then it would have been a 0-0 game. The small span of the last 13 minutes of the first half was when William Byrd found the back of the net 3 times. The second half the girls came out very strong and did not give up.
They left it all out on the field and gave it all they had. During the second half we began creating some offense and had a couple good opportunities. The final score did not show how the game went. I am very proud of the girls not giving up the second half and giving it all they got. The second half ended at 0-0. It is very sad to see the season come to the end but the girls have so much to hold their heads up for what they have accomplished. I have absolutely loved my first year being the head coach and I’m very excited for the future!!”
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For the purposes of the story for The Carroll News, its a wrap.
On a personal note 📝, fresh from just capping off two months with Coach Johnson and Coach Harris, I would like to personally applaud 👏 their efforts with their programs. They are both the type of people who you want to have in leadership rolls! If you see either one of them out and about, Please offer them your encouragement 🙏.
Assistant Coach Shana Parnell adds her thoughts on the season :
” From game one until today we’ve shown tremendous growth as a team and have certainly come together as a true family this season. Our ladies have shown remarkable resilience, dedication, and teamwork, they have embraced challenges, both on and off the field, they have pushed their limits, and they have delivered unforgettable performances. I’d like to give a special thank you to our seniors, who have lead these ladies through example and love. Your impact on this program is immeasurable. Thank you to our parents and our fans for their unwavering support. We are incredibly proud of this team and I am forever grateful for the memories we’ve made together.”
A.S.P.N on The Hill 