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St. Luke's Girls Varsity Soccer: Season Preview
Expectations are always high for the St. Luke’s Girls Varsity Soccer team and the 2018 season is no different.
Despite graduating seven players from last year’s squad the Storm is looking to make another challenge for the FAA title with a number of new additions.
Head coach Dan Clarke returns for his eighth season and is excited by what he has seen so far. “We have a number of new players who have done very well during preseason. Combined with the strength of our returning players we look to be in good shape,” he said.
Julia Lombardo ‘20 and Audrey Magnussen ‘20 are two of the new players who have really impressed in wins against Westhill and Hopkins and Clarke is pleased with how they have settled in. “They both have had seamless transitions into the squad, and I think they will just get better and better as the season goes on. It’s always tough coming into a new environment but they have shown tremendous character and their performances have been excellent,” Clarke said.
The team will be led by Senior captains Sydney Napolitano and India Otero as well as Junior Lea Panagiotidis. Clarke expects the trio to continue to help the new players enjoy the experience and to lead the team on and off the field. “Our three captains have all been around GVS for a long time and I am looking for them to really foster inclusivity and make sure we have great team chemistry. I’m confident they can show great leadership and maintain high standards throughout,” he said.
The Storm opened up the season on Wednesday, September 12, with a comprehensive 5-1 win against The Hopkins School but Clarke was cautious when asked about the team’s chances this year. “We always want to mount a challenge in both the FAA and New England’s but we still have a lot of work to do before even thinking about those things. Wednesday was a great start against a good team but we can’t get carried away as it’s just one game,” he said.
Goals from Panagiotidis (3), Caroline Lau ‘22 (2) gave St. Luke’s an opening-day victory for the first time since 2015 and Clarke heaped praise on his team. “I thought we controlled the game for large periods and looked very dangerous going forward. Defensively we were very solid too and I thought our back four of Ryan Weil (‘21), Jackie Thompson (‘20), Audrey Magnussen and Ellie O’Meara (‘22) were great throughout,” said Clarke.
The team narrowly missed out on a place in the FAA final last year losing in overtime to Greenwich Academy and Clarke expects it to be just as difficult this season. “We know who our biggest challenges will be so it’s about preparing in the right way. We have a lot of talent in this team but talent is not always enough. We have to continue to work hard and take it one game at a time.”
Next up: GVS travel to Wooster School next on Thursday, September 20 for a 4:30pm kick-off.
St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 35 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Center for Leadership builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.
