Coach Scott Parillo is hungry for a championship.
The girls’ varsity soccer team has been in a championship game three times, but they’ve come up short every single time. He hopes that this year might be the year to change that.
“We would love to have a regional championship,” Parillo said. “In previous regional championships, we have come up short, losing the final spot. This year we have a really good shot at going that step further. We have been playing very well so far.”
Rosary, IMSA, Aurora Central Catholic and a new team, Yorkville, will be fighting Kaneland for the regional championship title this year.
The Lady Knights were 10-8-2 in the regular season, as of press dead, and 5-3 in conference, with successive conference wins again Yorkville and Sterling.
The 6-2 victory over the Yorkville Foxes and the 7-0 victory over the Sterling Warriors were lead by senior Emily Heimerdinger, who scored two goals in each game.
“I’m okay with our record so far this season,” Parillo said. “I wish it was better, but we are playing better than we were in the early part of the season. I am proud of all our wins that we have got.”
The girls have kept focused and have fought hard for their wins, Parillo said.
The hardest loss of the season so far was against Plainfield East, Parillo said. The team was up by two goals three times during the game, but in the end they still lost.
Junior Taylor White agrees that the team has improved this season compared to last.
“We’ve been playing good recently, improving as it goes, but we have a lot to improve on because we have six new freshmen,” White said.
The team has been working on getting to know their new players strengths and weakness, in order for the team to be more successful.
Key players this season include seniors Emily Heimerdinger, Sophia Blank, Amy Fabrizius, Sam Wantuch and Anna Henrichs, Parillo said.
“All the players are extremely important to the team, but with such a young team, the seniors are key in keeping everyone and everything about the team positive,” Parillo said.
Freshman Michelle Ortiz replaced sophomore Jordan Ginther’s position as goalkeeper, since the nationally-ranked Ginther has taken the year off from the team to compete for a national championship with her club team.
Ginther is expected to return to the team next season. Although with Jordan gone, Ortiz has taken over and done an excellent job so far this season, Parillo said.
The team is continuing to work hard practicing together five days a week. They are determined, and will not take their eyes off the final champion title.
