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Girls soccer: Lady Lions set to improve on banner season

By Justin Thomas, jthomas@starlocalnews.com

Published: Tuesday, January 22, 2013 4:52 PM CST

Last season, R.L. Turner's girls soccer team had a banner year, qualifying for the postseason and advancing to the third round.

But if you ask head coach Drew Maher, with the return of multiple key players, this year's version of the Lady Lions could be even better.

Early, the results have been solid as Turner is 2-0 following a weather-shortened showing at the C-FB ISD Winter Classic. In the event, the Lady Lions notched wins over Bryan Adams (15-0) and rival Newman Smith (4-0).

"We've only played a couple of matches, but it has gone well so far," Maher said. "It's always fun to get to play against your rival and win. We'll get a lot more games in this week, too, and will have a little better idea of where we're at. But I think this is the best team we've had in my four years here and we expect to be back in the playoffs. That's an accomplishment in Class 5A."

One reason for optimism is the return of forward Hannah Barker, who had 27 goals and 12 assists last year en route to District 20-4A Offensive Player of the Year honors during her sophomore campaign. Barker - who has committed to Stephen F. Austin - already has eight goals this season.

"Hannah is left-footed and very quick," Maher said. "Her skills with the ball are outstanding, she has a great shot from distance and can take someone off the dribble. She has it all."

Forming a formidable duo up top with Barker is Claudia Rojas.

"She's been working very well with Hannah," Maher said. "She's always played forward but hasn't always looked to score. She is a great creator, but this year she has already scored four times and is looking very good. She and Hannah are working very well together."

The Lady Lions have also received contributions in the scoring column from Shorty Cortez.

"We like to play conservative and keep four players back," Maher said. "We have a holding midfielder, too, and then kind of let the other four attack and have free reign up top."

Joining Cortez in the midfield are Maite Patlan, Yanneli Diaz and Leslie Chavez.

"Our strength is our scoring ability up front," Maher added. "I think we'll be able to score on anyone. If we can put two goals in per game, that should be enough to win or at least be in every match."

Defenders include Vanessa Gomez, Ariana Arevalo, Brenda Hernandez and Jackie Torres.

"Ariana has been outstanding in the back," Maher said. "She's been a star defensively and can start the attack.

"We used to get countered on a lot. This year I'm really enjoying being able to keep numbers back and let our defenders focus on defense because we know the goals are going to come."

When the ball moves into Turner's end of the pitch, the Lady Lions are focusing on maintaining possession and finding the forwards to clear the zone.

"We're really working on where to go once we get up top and where everyone needs to be when they don't have the ball," Maher said. "We're more of a possession team than we've been in the past, but we need to play direct and have one or two sharp passes to keep the defense on their toes."

In goal, the Lady Lions will look to Nicole Ellis, Liz Aranda and Karla Cortes. Ellis is currently in and out due to her basketball obligations but is expected to assume the full-time starting position.

"We lost a lot of experience there and one of the biggest challenges early will be replacing what we lost at goalie," Maher said.

Maher is, however, excited about Turner's mix of experience and youth.

"We have five seniors, four juniors, four sophomores and four freshman," he said. "A lot of the girls were here last year and gained a lot of confidence from that season and are trying to pass that on to the younger players."

Though Turner moved to 5A from a competitive district in 4A, the sledding won't get any easier.

"We were always in a tough district, but I think it could be way more competitive in 5A," Maher said. "And the other thing about being in 5A is that if you get a lower seed, you could be facing a very, very tough opponent in the first round. It's a journey and we have to play good soccer to get there. But last year we didn't clinch a spot until the last match and I'd love to get that taken care of a little earlier this year so we can focus on our seeding."

Turner continues Friday-Saturday at the Hallsville Ladycat Invitational.

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