The waiting
is over for Xavier Prep’s soccer team.
It’s been a
long time for the Gators to get back onto the field. They had to wait close to
a year as the Covid pandemic wreaked havoc on everyone and continues to do so.
And there was the drought that brought no rain for 110 days before a cool rain
drifted in on Thursday (Dec. 10).
There also
was the elimination of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy in April. That
enabled players that previously had been prevented from playing for their high
school teams to return to their high schools.
So now it’s
the job of Xavier head coach Barb Chura and assistant Rafael Rios to put all
the pieces back together and field a competitive team.
The pandemic
also caused a reduction of the schedule and pushed it back to January,
signaling more of a wait.
From the
looks of things, the Gators appear to be on their way to making the most of
their opportunity. The team lost eight players to graduation but will have 11
players returning along with 12 “new’’ players, many of them having played for
the Gators in the past and a pair of promising freshmen.
After
winning a “play-in game’’ to reach last season’s state tournament and falling
in the first round, the Gators will be “much improved. Our level of play has
jumped significantly. We have some good players,’’ Chura said.
While the
Gators’ skill set creates optimism, the team’s success will ride on another
important factor -- team bonding.
“That’s
really the No. 1 thing,’’ Chura said. “There are a number of things we used to
do that we are not able to for now and we have to find ways of getting the
players to know and support each other.’’
Two of the
holdovers from last year are senior middle backer Emmie Paulson and sophomore
forward Eva Allen.
“We are very
happy to get back on the field,’’ said Pauslon, who was injured as a freshman
and served as a junior-varsity manager, and played on the JV as a sophomore before
moving to the varsity last season.
Said Allen,
one of the team’s top scorers a year ago: “With a lot of new players, it will
be a big adjustment, a big challenge with the team bonding. But we are doing
pretty well with it so far.’’
Supporting
each other and holding each other accountable both on and off the field are
byproducts of the bonding, according to Paulson.
Also, better
communication.
“And it’s
important for us to support one another,’’ Allen said. “It’s really important
when you’re out on the field to have your teammates cheering for you.’’
Allen would
like to at least repeat what she did last year, to add to the momentum.
In the early
days of practice thus far, the Gators have been concentrating on conditioning. It
may be difficult at times, but it will help in the long run, the players said.
“It will be
interesting to watch how the former Xavier players come back and how everyone
fits together,’’ Chura said.
Other
players to watch are senior goalkeepers Jaden Campbell and Ella Eberhardt,
junior midfielder Ansley Burns (a top cross-country runner), senior
forward/midfielder Megan McGinty, senior forward Kendall Warner, junior forward
Olivia Castrichini and senior forward Ololade “O’’ Adebayo.
Xavier’s
11-match regular season begins with three home contests at Petznick Field –
Jan. 5 against Glendale Mountain Ridge, Jan. 11 against Phoenix Desert Vista,
and Jan. 12 against Phoenix Pinnacle.
XAVIER COLLEGE PREP
2020-21 VARSITY SOCCER ROSTER
(Players
listed alphabetically)
Head coach – Barb Chura. Assistant coach – Rafael Rios.
Players
Ololade
Adebayo, F, Sr.
Eva Allen, F,
So.
Savannah
Angell, MF, So.
Jayme Brown,
D, Jr.
Ansley
Burns, MF, Jr.
Jaden
Campbell, GK, Sr.
Olivia
Castrichini, F, Jr.
Talia Coury,
MF/D, Fr.
Ella
Eberhardt, GK, Sr.
Taea
Eberhardt, D, So.
Collins
Entz, MF, So.
Bianca
Felix, D/MF, Sr.
Mia Felix,
D, So.
Tatum
Kramer, F, So.
Lourdes
Lauterborn, MF, Fr.
Bella
Leonard, MF, So.
Megan
McGinty, F/MF, Sr.
Tessa
Montanile, D, So.
Emmie
Paulson, D, Sr.
Hennessy
Perez, MF, Jr.
Kendall
Warner, F, Sr.
Bailey
Wolcott, D, So.
Lizzie
Woudenberg, F, Sr.
SEASON SCHEDULE
(Revised
from AIA original)
All games, 6
p.m.
Jan. 5 – vs.
Glendale Mountain Ridge
Jan. 11 –
vs. Phoenix Desert Vista
Jan. 12 –
vs. Phoenix Pinnacle
Jan. 14 -- @
Phoenix Mountain Pointe
Jan. 19 –
vs. Phoenix South Mountain
Jan. 26 -- @
Gilbert Perry
Jan. 29 -- @
Chandler Basha
Feb. 1 – vs.
Chandler High
Feb. 8 – vs.
Chandler Hamilton
Feb. 10 -- @
Phoenix North
Feb. 19 -- @
Phoenix Sandra Day O’Connor