Lady Dogies have high hopes for campaign

Sonja Karp
NLJ Sports Reporter
 
Though Mother Nature has thrown a wrench into the start of the Lady Dogies soccer team’s 2019 season, head coach Bryce Hoffman and crew are excited for what lays ahead. Hoffman is returning 12 varsity letter winners to the roster this year, and despite being young all have played quite a few varsity games in their young careers and have accumulated some quality experience.
“We are primarily sophomores this year, but we have quite a bit of talent and experience despite our age,” Hoffman nodded. “Last season was one of adjustment for our young team, but this year I expect us to start playing pretty well and turning some heads.”
The Lady Dogies have started the season with some lofty expectations, having set their goal to play for a trophy the Saturday of the State Tournament, and Hoffman stated he believes it is a very reasonable goal given the talent that has assembled in conjunction with the soccer knowledge possessed by members of his squad.
Among the returning players is sophomore Hailey Wehri who was named to the All-Conference team for the East Conference last year. There are also three returning All-Conference Honorable Mention players in senior Kassidee Jeppesen, junior Madi Pearson and sophomore Alaina Laurence.
Jeppesen and Pearson are also returning to leadership roles, as each will resume their captain position from last season.
“We met a couple of times before the season, just so we made sure we were on the same page, and I really think they have matured and taken on the leadership mentality we need,” Hoffman stated. “ I’m excited to see how their leadership roles expand this year. They are more comfortable in their roles this year over last, so that should be a great benefit for the team.”
Hoffman is anticipating his lineup to shape up with Claire Beastrom, Caitlyn Pehringer and Lara Lopez playing up front in the attacking positions. The Lady Dogies midfield will include Pearson, Isabel Frank and Kelsey Bennett, while the back line defense will be Jeppesen and Wehri in the center with Emily Beastrom and Alaina Steveson as potentially playing on the outside.
As of now, Laurence will find herself in a new role this season as Hoffman is planning to start her off as goalkeeper. Though the permanence of the move is uncertain, Hoffman wants to see how that will shake out for his team. 
“I’m really looking for Claire, Caitlyn and Lara to put some shots in the back of the net,” Hoffman began. “And while you won’t see a lot of stats from the girls in the midfield, you will see a lot of very big plays from them which will make it possible for our front line to score.”
With 31 girls out for soccer this season, Hoffman has good numbers and plenty of talent within those numbers to work with throughout the year. In addition to the talented sophomore crew, there are several freshmen who are showing promise early on.
“We will be working in LaKacee Lipp, Shawnee Miles, and Olivia McVay in the varsity mix,” Hoffman stated. “LaKacee and Olivia  have played a lot of soccer and that has accelerated them to the varsity level. Shawnee’s athleticism, combined with being a three sport athlete, gives her the ability to take what she knows about basketball, translate that to soccer, and apply that right away. She’s a little inexperienced, but she makes up for that with her sports’ savviness.”
Hoffman is assisted this year by Ashley Reed as goalkeeper coach, and Kristine Rhoades who will be working with the attacking group. Rhoades is new to the staff this season and is a volunteer assistant coach who possesses an extensive soccer background having played at Creighton University.
The Lady Dogies’ first contest of the year against Scottsbluff was cancelled due to inclement weather, so the team will kick off their season with a varsity tournament in Green River this weekend. The tournament is large with 16 teams expected to play, including 11 3A teams from across the state.
The ladies first opponent on Friday is the Cody Lady Broncs, who are the returning state champions for 3A. Though not exactly the greatest draw to get started, Hoffman is looking at the silver lining of the matchup.
“Getting Cody first is tough, but it will serve as a great measuring stick to see where we match up right out of the gate,” he laughed. “We are guaranteed three games over the weekend, but we may get four depending on how the bracket shakes out.”