New coaches, fresh start for girls soccer
Jordan Dawson/Bigfork Eagle — Bigfork girls soccer coach Hauna Trenerry (with back to camera) leads her team in a drill at Carlyle Johnson Fields in Bigfork last week. Trenerry was a standout socccer player at Columbia Falls and later played at Carrol College in Helena.
By JORDAN DAWSON / Bigfork Eagle
The girls soccer team may have a new head coach and assistant coach, but they are no strangers to the Vals team.
"It really seems like they are absorbing everything I tell them," first year coach Hauna Trenerry said, who used to be an assistant coach for the Columbia Falls girls team. "They're really working hard because they want to improve."
Senior captains Ariana Shults and Christina Thompson will provide leadership for the team, along with senior returners Jami Podobnik, Becca Denning and Andie Sorenson. Juniors Kaitlyn Shults, Lena Olson and Logun Koch, now upperclassmen, have returned to lead the team as well.
Sophomores Caitlin Charlebois, Nicole Hagler, Jessica Killian and Quinci Paine are back for a second season.
Newcomers to the girls team are juniors Taylor Shiltz and Danae McCarthy, sophomore Sierra Fischer, and freshmen McKenzie Shults, Miranda Miller and Gracer Kramer.
"Things are going really well," Ariana Shults said. "It's more fun than last year. We have new coaches and they play with us and make it really fun. We lost a couple of players, including our keeper. But last year we ended on a good note beating Polson and Libby, so hopefully we can carry that over to this year."
Even though the majority of the team has been a part of the Vals soccer team, Trenerry is focusing on the basics with her team right now since many of the members are in different places, according to the coach.
"I think they're doing a good job," Trenerry said. "I'm impressed with them so far. They are working really hard."
Trenerry said that she foresees matches against Whitefish and Columbia Falls to be some of their toughest games, especially because Whitefish has so many returning seniors. She also said that the game against Billings Central will be a challenge because of the size of the school.
"We start tough right of the bat against Billings in our second game," Trenerry said.
The Vals first game will be at 6 p.m. Sept. 5 in Bigfork at Carlyle Johnson Fields against Laurel.