Seniors lead varsity soccer to state title

For this year’s Mountain Brook Varsity Girls Soccer Team, the key to surviving the state playoffs was being fast out of the gate.

After establishing a reputation as a “second-half team,” Coach Scott Flowers said, the Spartans focused on striking early and often on their way through the State Semi-Finals. And when they were face-to-face with Oak Mountain in the State Championship, they didn’t let up.

“In the first half we had plenty of chances, and we outshot them,” he said. “And when we met up at the half, we all felt really good.”

By the end of the game, it felt even better.

By a score of 2-0 over the OMHS Eagles, Mountain Brook earned the AHSAA 6A State Title in Girls Soccer in May in Huntsville. It was the fourth in school history for the sport and Mountain Brook’s fourth state championship this year.

Besides being aggressive, Flowers said, another of his team’s keys to victory against the notoriously quick Eagles was to apply defensive pressure. Slowing them down meant forcing them to play out of tight spaces, staying consistent on defense and avoiding counter attacks.

“We set our focus on pressing them as a team,” he said. “We sent anybody we could at whoever had the ball. If we did lose possession, we made sure to put on early pressure.”

The Spartans also excelled at defense this season, allowing only 15 goals in 27 games and shutting out all five opponents in the playoffs.

With about 12 minutes remaining, the Spartans’ tactics pushed the title further out of OMHS’s reach when they added a second score. Flowers said a confidence came over the sideline, and he began substituting players.

“My goal was to get all 19 of our players on the field to give everyone a chance to say they played in the state championship,” he said. “But the biggest goal for us was to end the game with all 11 seniors on the field.”

Flowers said he didn’t know of another team they faced this year with as many senior members as the Spartans, which he said meant expectations for on- and off-field leadership were high.

He also said his team rose to that challenge.

“Most of these seniors have grown up playing together since they were little,” Flowers said. “They have such good chemistry, and when we played all 11 at once, that always came through.”

Flowers said even with such a large portion of the team graduating, expectations for next season wouldn’t fall – mostly because his players won’t let it.

“I’ve already had this year’s junior team members in my office saying, ‘Coach, we’ve got to get after it. We’ve got to get to work.’ And it’s only been one day since the championship. They’re not even enjoying it.”

The 2012-2013 State Champion Varsity Girls Soccer Team (22-3-2) is: Adelaide Kimberly; Anna Catherine Gillespy; Annabelle Friedman; Ansley Joy Peacock; Catherine Armstrong; Elizabeth Clutton; Elizabeth Moore; Heitho Shipp; Jessica Wilson; Julia Grace Gillen; Katie Windle; Kayla Dowler; Laura Rice; Lowry Neil; Maggie Dodson; Maggie Jeffords; Marguerite Edmonds; Nicole Strahl; Olivia Lantz; Rachael Reddy; and Sarah Grace Lindsey.