| We entered the 2003 season with a great deal of excitment and anticipation. We knew the team would be very young and we knew that we had a promising schedule, both in and out of the MSL. With the very big exception of the record we looked pretty good this season. The freshman and sophomores have really come along from the start of play back in August. We only a handful of upperclassmen on this squad but they really dedicated themselves to playing hard and to sheparding the younger girls along. We did a great job recognizing our new situation and adapting to it. The results did not show up this season, but delayed gratification is one of the important life lessons that a sport teaches it's participants (especially soccer). This second generation of Lady Braves soccer looks quite strong. The goals which we set for the team this season proved a bit too lofty for us to achieve, but we will be back next year to try and mak them a reality. Here is the breakdown of what we set out to accomplish and what we ended up with. 1) To earn a good record and earn a favorable tournament seed Didn't happen this season. We did however turn in our best performance ever in the tournament and we did in our third match against state ranked rival Circleville. 2) To improve communication both on and off the field This season saw (or should I say heard) the best quality and quantity of team communication so far. With all the new faces on the team this year that is quite an accomplishment. Next year this continuing goal will be easily within our reach. 3) Team members should run the mile under 9 minutes, the 100m under :16, and the 40m under 6.5 seconds. This was the closest we have ever come to reaching our general fitness goals. The bottom line remains unchanged, this goal becomes a reality in the off season. I have two words for everyone: track team! Summer conditioning sessions and open field workouts will be vital in continuing our seasonal improvment in this area. 4) To hold all opponents to less than 7 goals. Losing a 3 year starter at goalie to Urbana University meant that this defensive goal would be tough to achieve. Then having the first string goalie miss a full third of the season due to paper work obstacles pretty much doomed this team goal for 2003. However, all four of the girls who played in goal this season did a great job when they were in. The defensive unit simply lacked enough continuity to create any real or lasting rhythm which could translate into back line chemistry. In reality the amount of goals conceeded was too large, but not as large as it could have been given all the obstacles we faced on defense. We gave up a total of 84. 5) To score more than 15 goals this season. We came close scoring a total of 13. We wanted to score in every match, but couldn't put it all together. Moving the ball through the midfield requires a great deal of comfort with your teammates and the new fresh faces meant that this type of connection would probably only develop over the course of the season. The real concern comes from a combination of conceeding 84 goals and only earning 13. This gives us a -71 goal differential which is never desirable. The total of 13 is bit misleading though, in many games we had serious trouble, not earning opportunities, but finishing them. We missed penalty kicks, and back door goals, as well as trying to hold possession too long or shooting too early. Sometimes we even tried to make one too many passes in the offensive zone. In short these were mistakes of youth. 6) To hold possession and protect the ball This looks to be possible strong point for LE Girls Soccer in the next few years. Passing is too much of a fundamental skill to not be comfortable with it at the varsity level. Off-season work, both as individuals and as a group, is essential to this skill. And passing is key to holding possession. The strides that we made in developing field vision was remarkable even to an optimist like Coach Lytle. However, it was frustrating to have teammates work to get into position, and work to find an open teammate, but then to have the pass and/or trap go bad. 7) Defensive organiztion should continue to develop We have some promising future fullbacks among our current players. The backs from past seasons and from this year have provided a good example of how to implement a system. The next few years could be quite good from the back line. To make this happen we all must understand our personal and collective responsibilities and we must communicate and work as a unit. 8) To win 4 MSL matches Well this didn't make it into the realm of reality. The MSL is a good league, we simply need to get better physically and get tougher mentaly. 9) To finish with a .500 record or better The key matches against Teays Valley, Logan, Canal Winchester, and Fisher Catholic did not turn out as desired. In fact some of the key matches ended up being against Zane Trace, Fairfield Union and Unioto. We struggled to string together full 80- minute games and the few moments when we let down were when we lost games. 10) To win our first tournament game Though we lost, we played the best tournament game of our short 4 years in existence. We were proud of the girls despite the losing result. The team really pulled together and rallied for this third match against Circleville. Though we lost it was a culmination of our season. Our destiny remains in our own hands. The upcoming 2004 season will be pivotal. We are on the verge of attracting strong young players who have grown up knowing that there is a varisty team for them to play on. This upcoming, third generation, of our LE Lady Braves Soccer family looks athletic and talented. How long will it be before Circleville falls, how many seasons until we compete in and win the MSL, how far off is that first OHSAA tournament win? Surely these things are on the horizon. Please continue to be involved in the program throughout the off-season and for the graduating players; please plan to attend the 2nd alumni game this summer and continue to encourage soccer in your communities. Thanks to everyone for a great season, we all had fun and we learned a lot! BACK TO ARCHIVE BACK TO HOME |