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Physical play, power shots lift Lady Hawks
(by Tony Lange - September 07, 2012)
Physical play, power shots lift Lady Hawks
By TONY LANGE
Let's get physical.
In so many kind words, that was the message Hawken School head girls soccer coach Stan Shulman relayed to his Lady Hawks during halftime of their Chagrin Valley Conference matchup against West Geauga last Thursday.
Hawken had a 1-0 lead at the break.
While talented, the Lady Hawks are young with just five seniors and two juniors, but that doesn't give them an excuse to play lackadaisical, Shulman said.
"We have to start to be physical in the second half. That's how we win the ball," he said during his halftime speech. "And you have to take the shot, that powerful shot, instead of dribbling, dribbling, passing, passing and hoping something is going to be given to you in front of the net. You all can score from 25 yards out. Let's put the game away. It's too close."
Five minutes into the second half, Hawken sophomore forward Daniela Brkic unleashed a 30-plus-yard shot that was far off target, but Shulman yelled, "That's what I want," from the sideline.
During the 18th minute of the second half, senior midfielder Courtney Yoke triggered a shot far post from just outside the goal box. The bullet ricocheted off the right goal post and buried itself into the net.
Yoke was assisted by sophomore midfielder Marley Magruder.
Staying on the attack for the final 22 minutes, the Hawks held on to win, 2-0, and improved to a 3-0 record, including a 1-0 mark in the CVC.
The Lady Wolverines dropped to 1-2-1.
Yoke attributed her goal to repetitions at practice.
"In practice we always do those shots, so I guess practice paid off," she said. "It was awesome, because I'm not really much of a goal scorer. I'm an assister. So it was nice."
While Hawken was on the attack for the majority of the first half, it was a 0-0 ballgame with five minutes left before the whistle. That's when Shulman re-subbed senior striker Sydeny Constantini into the game.
Two minutes later, she scored for the 1-0 advantage.
It too was a 25-yard far-post shot from outside the box that bended into the upper right corner of the goal.
"That was great," Shulman said. "In a school like ours, size is a problem. I mean, we have great kids, but they basically have to play the whole game. Once you get that five-minute break for a player and she comes back in and scores - it's great to see what fresh legs can do."
Starting the season at 3-0 is a real accomplishment, especially without Hawken junior striker Katherine Zalar, who led the ladies in goals last season and was a second-team All-Ohioan in Division III.
She suffered a broken chin in the summer but is nearing a return, Shulman said.
Meanwhile, sophomores like Bianca Medancic have had to step up, he said.
On her speedy feet, Medancic had several breakaways in the second half and even gift wrapped the ball in front of an open net, but it was shanked past the goal.
"Getting those breakaway runs, it's really exhilarating," Medancic said. "It's like the best feeling in the world to fly past everyone and try to put it in the corner. It's obviously a downer when you don't put it in the back of the net, but you keep doing it until you can."
On defense, Shulman largely attributed freshman Dana Fann for the shutout as she marked West Geauga senior standout Marley Praprost.
"It wasn't that hard," Fann said. "I just had to contain her and keep on her so she wouldn't get the ball. She was physical, but I was physical right back. A lot of people rely on me, and I have a big role on the team, but it's nothing that I can't handle, and I'm really happy that I get to play as a freshman."
While they lost 2-0, the Lady Wolverines definitely had beautiful moments where they dominated the game, West Geauga first-year head coach Paul Reed said.
"So the key for us is to get the fitness to where we can maintain those good moments," he said. "The girls know how to play really, really well. Now it's putting together 80 minutes of quality soccer and good fitness and good combination passing."
Up next, the Lady Wolverines host Kenston at 7 p.m. Sept. 6.
The Lady Hawks travel to Aurora at 7 p.m. Sept. 6.
"Us five seniors, we really want to get past districts, because we've never gotten past districts since I've been here," Yoke said. "States is always the goal."
The Hawks rallied for a 14-1-2 record last season, losing only to Laurel School, 3-1, in the Division III district finals.
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