Chesapeake Girls Reloaded, Ready To Take Next Step

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By Colin Murphy 

To hear it from Chesapeake girls soccer Head Coach Liz Farrell, the biggest challenge she sees for her team at this early stage in the season has nothing to do with the competition and everything to do with personnel.

“I know I have a lot of good players out there,” said Farrell as her team worked through one-on-one drills during practice on August 17. “It’s just a matter of finding the right combination and putting them in the right spots to be successful,” she continued.

It’s an enviable position for any coach to be in - loaded with talent, tasked with placing it - and it’s only a matter of time before Chesapeake’s skilled and experienced core of players begins to gel. The Cougars return nine seniors from last year’s 12-4 squad, including two 2010 All-State selections in senior striker Tori Luc and senior center midfielder Jaclyn Ward.

“We lost some key players, but we have a good group coming up from JV,” said Luc after the Cougars wrapped up their August 17 practice with an intra-squad scrimmage. “It’s a new group, so we’re working on chemistry, but we’re going to be good.”

While Luc and Ward will power what is sure to be a fearsome Chesapeake attack, the Cougar defense is in need of restocking; all four starting fullbacks and the starting goalie from last year’s team graduated in May, and Ferrell sees resetting the back five as a priority in preparing her team for the 2011 season.

“True statement: defense wins championships,” asserted Ferrell simply, pointing to this summer’s Women’s World Cup as an example. “[The USA] defense was lackadaisical [against Japan], and they didn’t win.”

Despite the void left behind by Chesapeake’s graduated defenders, Ferrell is wholly confident the team’s optimal defensive unit will take shape organically as the Cougars move through their preseason schedule. “We have a lot of scrimmages to sort it out before the real season begins,” she said assuredly.

Ward is likewise untroubled about the inchoate defensive unit, understanding that establishing the team’s most effective lineups is part of the preseason process. “It’s going to be rough in the beginning because some of us will be playing positions we don’t really know,” said Ward, before adding without worry, “but once we get it we’ll be fine.”

This relaxed confidence is one of the many fruits of experience, and in her seniors Ferrell knows she has a special group to guide the younger players this season. In her fourth year in the varsity post, this year’s class of seniors will be the first Ferrell graduates as Head Coach, and she has seen them develop collectively into a poised group of leaders.

“Definitely the biggest strength I’ve noticed so far is our leadership. The nine seniors - they’re just a great group together - have been playing for two or three years on Varsity, so they know each other very well and they know what to expect. Their leadership and their positive attitude has just been awesome,” she concluded.

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