By Nick Brockman, Messenger Sports Reporter, nbrockman@the-messenger.com
The Hopkins County Central Lady Storm led a trio of local soccer squads that attended the 25th annual Bluegrass State Games in Lexington during the weekend.
The Lady Storm, coached by Susan Phelps, took three of four games en route to a bronze medal with their play on Saturday and Sunday.
Last year, the Central girls finished 4-13-3, but endured a lot of major injuries to key players. This season, Phelps said it's pivotal to start strong and build confidence early.
"I had no idea what to expect actually because we had most of our players back that were injured last year and a lot of them were playing new positions," she said. "They looked really, really good at camp, but I had no idea what it would look like in a game situation when they're put under a different bit of pressure."
Central shutout its competition Saturday with a 2-0 victory against Owen County and a 1-0 win over Paducah Tilghman. Brooke Daugherty tallied both goals against Owen while Courtney Kolb recorded the lone goal in the nightcap.
The Lady Storm dropped their first game Sunday 4-0 to Mercy, but rebounded with a win against Bryan Station. Central tied Bryan Station 1-1 in regulation but won with four penalty kicks by Kolb, Rachel Gaddis, Allison Littlepage and Megan Linton. Senior Hannah Murphy scored in regulation.
Both the boys and girls teams from Madisonville-North Hopkins also competed in the event. First-year coach Jeremy Roach directed the boys to a 1-2-1 weekend mark while coach John Tichenor made the transition to the Lady Maroon program with two scrimmage losses.
The Lady Storm, coached by Susan Phelps, took three of four games en route to a bronze medal with their play on Saturday and Sunday.
Last year, the Central girls finished 4-13-3, but endured a lot of major injuries to key players. This season, Phelps said it's pivotal to start strong and build confidence early.
"I had no idea what to expect actually because we had most of our players back that were injured last year and a lot of them were playing new positions," she said. "They looked really, really good at camp, but I had no idea what it would look like in a game situation when they're put under a different bit of pressure."
Central shutout its competition Saturday with a 2-0 victory against Owen County and a 1-0 win over Paducah Tilghman. Brooke Daugherty tallied both goals against Owen while Courtney Kolb recorded the lone goal in the nightcap.
The Lady Storm dropped their first game Sunday 4-0 to Mercy, but rebounded with a win against Bryan Station. Central tied Bryan Station 1-1 in regulation but won with four penalty kicks by Kolb, Rachel Gaddis, Allison Littlepage and Megan Linton. Senior Hannah Murphy scored in regulation.
Both the boys and girls teams from Madisonville-North Hopkins also competed in the event. First-year coach Jeremy Roach directed the boys to a 1-2-1 weekend mark while coach John Tichenor made the transition to the Lady Maroon program with two scrimmage losses.
The North girls crew drew a pair of difficult opponents led by Ft. Thomas Highlands, who finished last season 17-4-4. The Lady Maroons fell 3-0 to Highlands and 4-0 to Bourbon.
Tichenor, who replaced former girls coach Steve Shepard, said his squad did not fair as well as he expected, but he's still optimistic.
"I'm teaching them things that they're just not accustomed to and it's going to take a while to learn," Tichenor said. "More than anything, I'm just learning what some girls know and what they don't know, what they can and can't do and that's what the Bluegrass Games are for, especially for my team right now."
Meanwhile, the boys started the tournament strong with a 3-0 victory against Ryle with goals from Maarten Adams, Logan Whitfield and Zack Yonts. Then, the Maroons tied George Rogers Clark in a scoreless match.
Eric Logan scored a goal early as North held a 1-0 halftime advantage Sunday against Daviess County, but the Maroons surrendered two second-half goals in a 2-1 loss. Adams tallied his second goal of the weekend in a 4-1 loss to Ballard.
Like the North girls team, the boys will be searching for leaders to take the offensive responsibility after some big departures.
Roach said he expects Adams to establish himself as a threat.
"One person we know we're going to depend on up there is Maarten Adams," Roach said. "We're not going to face anybody that is going to be able to match him as far as speed goes. He's the fastest guy on the field all season."
Although each team experienced mixed levels of success at the Bluegrass Games, all three have plenty of time to improve before soccer season officially begins Aug. 17.
Tichenor, who replaced former girls coach Steve Shepard, said his squad did not fair as well as he expected, but he's still optimistic.
"I'm teaching them things that they're just not accustomed to and it's going to take a while to learn," Tichenor said. "More than anything, I'm just learning what some girls know and what they don't know, what they can and can't do and that's what the Bluegrass Games are for, especially for my team right now."
Meanwhile, the boys started the tournament strong with a 3-0 victory against Ryle with goals from Maarten Adams, Logan Whitfield and Zack Yonts. Then, the Maroons tied George Rogers Clark in a scoreless match.
Eric Logan scored a goal early as North held a 1-0 halftime advantage Sunday against Daviess County, but the Maroons surrendered two second-half goals in a 2-1 loss. Adams tallied his second goal of the weekend in a 4-1 loss to Ballard.
Like the North girls team, the boys will be searching for leaders to take the offensive responsibility after some big departures.
Roach said he expects Adams to establish himself as a threat.
"One person we know we're going to depend on up there is Maarten Adams," Roach said. "We're not going to face anybody that is going to be able to match him as far as speed goes. He's the fastest guy on the field all season."
Although each team experienced mixed levels of success at the Bluegrass Games, all three have plenty of time to improve before soccer season officially begins Aug. 17.
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