This year at The Nest, boys and girls varsity soccer teams hit the ground running, both with winning records. Boys soccer faces coaching changes while the Lady Hawks are seeking redemption for last year’s loss in the semi-finals against Hereford. 

     Boys soccer boasts a 4-1 record as of 9/22. A last minute change in coaching staff has not been detrimental for the boys. Former head coach and guidance counselor Mr. Johnstone has coached the boys for many seasons before leaving North Harford this fall. He has now handed down the torch to Coach Erik Lane. 

     Lane coached boys JV for the 2021-2022 season and has many aspirations for the coming season. The team’s keepers, juniors Mikey Lawry and Tony Fuggitti,  have been supplying, “excellent shot stopping this season.” With a defensive line led by senior captain, Tyler “TJ” Berger, the Hawks have had three shutouts. Anchors in the strong midfield include seniors Kian Pucher and Austin Smith. 

     Co-captain Smith thinks this season the team “has the potential to go as far as [they] want.” Everyday, the boys have been building chemistry and hosting team dinners too. Smith is excited to “get to the playoffs this season.”

     Making an appearance on the field for his second season, senior Cameron Radomsky thinks that the team “will definitely make regionals this year.” Radomsky, the right defensive back, is most excited by how the ball movement has improved on the field. 

     Agreeing with Radomsky, junior Matthew Siedlecki comments that “the team has a high chance at regionals this season.” As this is his first official year on the varsity team Siedlecki has high hopes to “take back the regional title” for North Harford. 

     Returning girl’s soccer coach Ora Cummings is pumped up for the 2022-2023 season. The girls varsity soccer team is 4-1-1 as of 9/23, Cummings took on a team of 24 girls this season consisting of six freshman, three sophomores, ten juniors and five seniors. There is a “very young, new talented group of freshman” ready to hit the fields, says Cummings. She says to look out for freshmen Savannah Picha, Mia Honig, Ashley Shelton, Presley Caslin and Zoe Shum. Cummings is ready to play C. Milton Wright again this season after “they got the best of us [the team] last year.”

     Senior and co-captain Jenna Amrhein is hyped for the season to be in full swing. In the past three regular season games Amrhein has scored three goals. She thinks that the girls are a “strong team” and they “play with a lot of heart.” As a co-captain, Amrhein is trying to be a role model and encourage all new and returning players.

    New on the pitch this year, sporting a Hawks jersey is freshman Zoe Shum. As a freshman, she said she  is nervous to start high school soccer because it “is a whole different level of aggression.” Shum is excited for a competitive first season accompanied by her friends.

     Both teams are in a battle to be the first to bring home a state championship trophy to North Harford since 1995. According to the players, captains, and coaches of the teams, bringing home a state champion trophy is a realistic goal.