DYER BROOK, Maine — A new varsity coach hopes to continue the proud tradition of excellence in athletics for Southern Aroostook this fall.
Jessica Nye is entering her first year as the varsity coach after serving two years as the assistant. She takes over the program from Audrey Violette who led the squad last year.
Southern Aroostook has been a dominant force in most of its sports in recent years, particularly in girls basketball. Coach Nye is hoping some of that winning mentality will carry over to the soccer program this fall.
The Warriors finished 8-5 in the regular season and were ranked sixth in Class D North. SA defeated No. 11 Central Aroostook 3-0 in the preliminary round before falling to No. 3 Ashland 14-3 in the quarterfinals.
“We lost a few key players last season [to graduation], but had girls come into their freshmen year ready to fill those gaps,” Nye said.
The Warriors have a wide variety of upperclassmen and newcomers to the squad with three seniors, three juniors, six sophomores and five freshmen.
“We are a fairly young team, but with a lot of experience,” coach Nye said. “These girls have been playing sports together since they were in rec leagues, which is a huge bonus for me because they already know how to work as a team.”
Members of the Southern Aroostook squad are seniors Jennah Brooks, Madison Russell and Jayniece Wenzloff; juniors Cami Shields, Madison Shields and Emmalee Landry; sophomores Olivia Engerbretson, Libby Anderson, Savannah Anderson, Alaina Stevens, Rylee Kuliga and Tabitha Simpson; and freshmen Annie Hawthorne, Ally Shields, Hannah McGary, Ashlyn York and Kyliena Wenzloff.
Assisting Nye this season will be Olivia Shields, who has coached the middle school girls soccer team for several seasons and is familiar with the majority of the younger players. The managers are Amaya Boutlier and Mackenzie Lilley.
