Hopedale first year coach Leaha Siefring is hoping that she can help guide the Blue Raiders girls’ soccer to a better record than the team had last fall. Hopedale finished last year with a 2-18 record while also saying goodbye to six impact players, but the coach is optimistic about the upcoming season.
‘I am very excited to see what this season holds for us,” the first year head coach said. “I’m looking for growth individually as well as the team.”
Siefring, who played soccer for the Blue Raiders for five years as well as for Salve Regina University in Newport Rhode Island, thought coaching would be the next phase of her career within the sport.
“The main reason I decided to coach was that I loved teaching and the sport of soccer – coaching was the perfect combination of both,” she said.
Looking to aid the first year coach will be her three senior captains in forward Lena Swift and midfielders Taylor Maddalena and Maddy Tucker. While Siefring is looking for the trio to primarily provide leadership on and off the court while setting the culture of the team so that the squad can succeed.
Individually Swift will be a main focus of the team’s offense and the two midfielders will hold down the middle of the field while controlling play for the Blue Raiders.
Having not played a game at the time of this writing the Coach is not totally sure what is going to happen on the offensive side of the field, but she does know Swift will be a big part of it.
“Lena will be looked upon to score for us, but after her I’m not exactly sure who else will also find the net,” the Coach said. “We do have a couple of players (juniors and sophomores) who have the potential to score, but we will rely on the three captains for controlling the play in the middle of the field and getting the ball into the offensive zone.”
IN addition to having three senior captains Hopedale also has two other seniors on their roster. Grace Mandoni and Cassie Langley. The two girls will be playing on the defensive line when they return from their current injuries.
Having graduated so many talented seniors, the 2019 version of the team will have a lot of new faces starting this season many who have not seen a lot of playing time in the past, but the Coach is hoping that she sees a lot of growth throughout the year. The Blue Raiders have 5 seniors, 4 juniors, a big sophomore class and a handful of freshmen and eighth graders on this year’s squad.
Sophomore Elena Gaust will be starting in net full time for the first time and although she was not the coach last fall, Siefring has heard that the second year player is solid between the pipes.
“From what I understand, she had played the position when she was younger,” the Coach said. “Last year she was a field player and we needed a backup so she worked with our senior goalie to improve her skills. I’m very excited to see what she can do for us this year back there,”
Not being on the sidelines last year Siefring is not all that familiar with the Dual Valley Conference teams and what each school has lost or has coming back.
“At this point our goals are to improve on and off the field each and every day,” she said. I’m hoping to see their confidence come through as their soccer ability improves.”
Issue Date:
October, 2019
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