Hoping to kick back to .500

The 2008 season was a struggle for the Jay County girls soccer program.

In 15 games, the team scored just 21 goals on the way to a 2-12-1 record and a shootout loss to Eastern (Greentown) in the opening round of the sectional tournament at Marion. More than half of those goals came from senior Brianne Wellman, who graduated as the No. 2 scorer in school history with 32 career goals.

With her gone, the Patriots return just two players who put the ball in the net more than once last season. But they are bringing back the all-time leading JCHS scorer ... on the sidelines.

Abby (Arnold) Champ, who tallied 41 goals for Jay County from 1998 through 2001, steps in as the third head coach in team history, and her No. 1 goal is to make sure her team can go hard for 80 minutes.

"We won't lose a game because we're not in shape," said Champ. "They've put in the miles, they've put in the practices. ... I've seen great improvements already."

The Patriots' top returning goal scorers are senior Loryn Horn, who is far and away the most experienced player with 40 career games under her belt, and junior Lindsay Moser with two apiece. Champ said Horn will be in the stopper position and Moser will play the midfield, but both will be looked at to push up and help the offensive front of junior Mallory Poole (one goal) and freshman Sammi Compton.

Midfielders joining Moser are LeAnn Horn, who earned All-Olympic Athletic Conference honors as a freshman, fellow sophomore Tiffany Huelskamp (one goal) and freshman Andrea Bruggeman.

"Tiffany Huelskamp ... is really shining as a leader for being as young as is," said Champ, while also pointing toward seniors Loryn Horn and Erica Butcher for their leadership. "Every day when we're running sprints or distance she's always first or working to be first.

"My main people that played last year are all really stepping up and helping the younger girls. I've got a lot of new ones, and they're doing a great job of showing them ... what to do in different situations."

Senior Kayla Phillips, a defender who scored her lone career goal as a sophomore, has been out for the early portion of practice with an injury and is expected to miss the first three games of the season. When she returns she will play defense again along with Brittany Manor, Nikka Chaney and Butcher.

Renae Ray and Shayla Gibbs (one goal) are also in position for significant playing time.

With just seven goals returning, the Patriots will expect everyone in their front group to contribute to putting tallies on the board.

"Any of my forwards or midfield are pretty solid with scoring," said Champ. "Sammi (Compton) has a lot of experience. ... She's comfortable in maneuvering.

"I have seven that could easily score, which is great not having to rely on one or two people."

A major step in the right direction this year will be numbers. Last season Jay County had just a handful of substitutes, and it was often necessary to leave players on the field for the full 80 minutes.

With 22 players out for the team, that will no longer be the case.

"We've got solid numbers. We've got solid subs," said Champ. "We're not just going to have a starting 11 and nobody else to fill in. ... My girls should get good breaks, so we should stay strong and solid throughout the game. ...

"Having the subs is one of the things that is a major strength for them, because they didn't have that last year. So when somebody got tired, they played tired. They don't have to do that this year."

Champ said her team's goals start with beating Heritage, a team it tied last season, in the season opener. From there they would like to climb back to .500 after back-to-back losing seasons, and win a sectional game after dropping out in the first round in two of the last three years.

"We found four games, five games, that we're pretty sure we can turn around, minus the ties," said Champ. "We think we can be very competitive.

"I think we look strong. The girls are working well together."[[In-content Ad]]