Jason Olson, Deseret Morning News
Waterford Eyeing 3A
by Michael Black, Deseret Morning News
To lose one of the best soccer players in the state, regardless of classification, in Nicole Taylor, one might think that the Waterford soccer program might be entering a rebuilding process — it's not.
"Anytime you lose a player of Nicole's caliber, it is tough. You really can't replace her," said coach Tim Dolbin. "But we had a very young team. Eight of our players are ninth- and 10th-graders, and we have some other good freshmen that will join us next season. I think that we will be competitive no matter where we are playing."
After cruising to the 1A/2A state title — no team came within four goals of the Ravens on the way to the championship — Waterford would like nothing better than to not be favored entering next season. That is because the team does not want to defend its title, it wants to play in the 3A classification.
"We would rather come in fourth place in 3A than win it all in 2A," said standout forward Lanie Ward.
Dolbin felt the team did exactly what it needed to do to prove it should be in the upper levels. "We accomplished what was necessary," he said. "We did the job and showed that we belong in 3A."
That decision will be re-evaluated before the next season by the UHSAA. It denied the Ravens' petition to stay in the classification before this past season. Should the team lose the motion, it will again be the favorite to win a title.
With players like sophomore Ward, freshman Gina Soto, sophomore Kimi Miyashima, freshman Jackie Tillotson and freshman Cami Phillips, the Ravens will have a high-level offense regardless of where they play. Ward, who scored a hat trick in the championship, is capable of carrying the offense next season.
"It was good to see Lanie explode like that," said Dolbin of her performance in the title contest. "She is a player that can really be dominant. I think everyone knows that."
While Ward will be counted heavily upon, she isn't even the returning leading scorer. That distinction belonged to Soto — Ward had 18 goals on the year while Soto scored 19, both behind Taylor's 27.
"Gina is a terrific player," said Dolbin. "She is fast, has skills and knows how to put the ball in the net."
While the offense was impressive this season— it averaged nearly six goals per game against all competition and nearly nine against 2A and has plenty of firepower returning — the defense was just as important. The team gave up an average of only 1.17 goals. Katie Crosland, Sally Meehan and Mika Miyashima were catalysts at the back, and all should be returning to keep the defense stout. Add the experience that junior goalkeeper Katie Pelo received, and goals will be tough to come by against the Ravens.
One thing that may affect the team is a loss of players before next season.
"We almost always lose a player or two to some of the bigger, public schools," Dolbin said. "But we have some good young players ready to come into the program as well. I think we should be in good shape."
Where the team will be playing next season doesn't matter to the players, they want to perform. They all love the game and are happy to be playing together.
"We are all good friends that just love to play the game," said Taylor. "This is a tight team that loves to compete. We don't care about who it is, we just want to step out and play soccer and keep getting better."
Although Taylor will be taking her skills to Penn State next season, she knows that she is leaving the team in good standing. The Ravens will look back at their championship 2006 season and smile, but they also hope it is the season that was marked as a stepping stone and not a benchmark of what the team can accomplish.