Girls Soccer features

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

Canyon Randall senior Andrea Carpenter was at a crossroads last year.  She'd played basketball and soccer most of her life, but Carpenter made a choice between the two sports before the 2008-09 Randall basketball season.

"That's the hardest decision I've ever had to make," Carpenter said. "I didn't want to leave the basketball team. They were my friends and I loved them, but I wanted to play college soccer."

If committing to play for Abilene Christian next season and becoming the Lady Raiders' all-time goals leader are indicators, it appears Carpenter made a good choice.

Amarillo Globe News

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

Katy Seven Lakes sophomore goalkeeper Kylie Hambleton had four saves in a shootout on Saturday. The last one sewed up the Class 5A Region III title for the Spartans.

Hambleton, however, didn't know that it was over.

“Is that it? Did we win?” she yelled as her teammates rushed toward her in celebration.

Hambleton wasn't in the dark because she wasn't paying attention. The all-state goalkeeper was just so focused on the task at hand that she hadn't stopped to consider the bigger picture.

Houston Chronicle

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

Lesslye Uribe is in her second year playing soccer at Baytown Sterling. And of course, she’s in her second year playing soccer and living in the United States.

The sophomore forward moved here from Mexico City and she said the biggest adjustment is an obvious one; the language barrier. But Uribe and her Lady Rangers teammates understand each other on the field.

“We talk as a team,” Uribe said. “(We talk) about what to do to win. Most of them (teammates) speak Spanish too.”

Baytown Sun

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

The Fort Worth South Hills girls soccer team needed its coach, but a lacerated liver left him far from the field, far from the school.

Coach Jamie Southern wasn't there for the two months leading into the high school season.  Yet the Lady Scorpions and Southern have pulled together. The 4A playoffs begin tonight with bi-district matchups including South Hills vs. Fort Worth Polytechnic at 6 o'clock at the Galvan Complex.

Five months ago, Southern wasn't sure he'd be there for it.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

There’s no sibling rivalry here.

And that’s a big reason why the Corpus Christi Flour Bluff and Corpus Christi King girls soccer teams are having such successful seasons, as two sets of unselfish twins have done their part to help their teams build plenty of momentum heading into the playoffs.

Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Girls Soccer - Girls Soccer features

There’s one central theme to Chad Onhaizer’s coaching philosophy.

“I want (the players) to have fun,” Onhaizer said. “Most of these girls play competitive select soccer. It’s not always a fun environment at club. We work hard, but we really put an emphasis on them having fun and enjoying being here.”

The Houston Cy-Fair girls soccer coach’s philosophy has translated on to success on the field. Earlier this month, the Lady Bobcats clinched their fourth district championship during his seven-year tenure as head coach.  That’s an impressive feat for a coach who didn’t even set out to be a soccer coach when he was hired at Cy-Fair nine years ago.

Houston Community Newspapers