Try as she may, it’s hard for Lady Greyhounds head coach Mikayla Coley to bury the memory of a season ago, when a single overtime separated Jones County from being a region champion. But it went deeper than that a season ago for the Lady Greyhounds. Of their six losses, three were in overtime.
So, yes, last season does get brought up, but not in a bad way.
“We were one overtime from being region champion, I talk about it every day, but not in a bad way,” Coley said. “We want to remember the direction that we’re going in and what we want to accomplish with our goals.”
With that drive comes a new approach for the Lady Hounds, and it’s rooted in a sport besides soccer. It actually comes from Pat Murphy, the legendary softball coach at The University of Alabama, who has championed “Mudita,” a Sanskrit term rooted in finding joy in other’s success.
“For us, it’s just about playing more for each other, encouraging each other and just incorporating the team concept,” Coley said. “If we embrace that, the scoreboard will take care of itself.”
In the midst of that new approach for JCHS is a team that lost just two starters from last season. That means that there’s a roster of players that have played a good share of soccer over their careers, including a class of five seniors, three of which will be four-year starters.
“I’m so excited; this group is so fun. We have five seniors, and three have started for the last four years, so they have brought lots of passion, intensity, and leadership. I’m really, really proud of them.”
Not surprisingly, Coley says that all five of them — Lexi Oliveros, Cadence Tanner, Moriah Hursey, Daisy Blanton, and Mikayla Mallory — would start if the season began today.
Blanton was one of the Lady Hounds’ top scorers last year, and that’s expected to continue with scoring power on the opposite side in the form of Emory Sanford. But the offensive expectation goes past frontline, as multiple Lady Greyhounds are vying for three midfield positions. Those players include Cari Green, Elissa Taylor, Caroline Rickman, and Ava Gross.
“We have lots of people fighting for three midfield spots,” Coley said. “They’re all working well together.”
One of the few positions with a new face is in goal after the graduation of Wendy Ramirez.
Presley Pritchett appears to be the frontrunner so far with a handful of others also getting a look.
The Lady Hounds as well as the Greyhounds scrimmage Jackson at home Thursday, open the season next Tuesday at Jackson and host Jasper County Feb. 12. The region opener is Feb. 27 at Ola.
