With an overall record of 8-10 (5-7 in league play) and a spot in Districts for the first time since 2012, the girls soccer team is considering their season to be a success.   

Lindsey Shughart, a senior midfielder who is also one of the team’s captains said, “It feels really good; I’m so happy with how much the team has changed since my first year as a freshman.”

Making Districts was one of the dreams of the team this season. While the game held on Wednesday, October 25 at Conestoga Valley did not end the way they would have liked (0-4), the team handled it with pride. 

Senior captain midfielder Devon Sweeder said, “It’s the first time that we have made it, or even been close since I’ve been here so, that’s really cool.  We knew this was our goal and I’m happy that I was able to be a part of getting us here.  We have put in a lot of work in the offseason and seeing it pay off is awesome!”  

The team’s goals are a result of the hard work and changes that they went through after current head coach, Greg Clippinger, left in 2012 and returned for the season of 2015.  

Elizabeth Weis, a junior said, “He had to help us rebuild and bring back a certain playing style.”

Since Clippinger has returned as head coach, he has added a couple new plays and has taken a different approach this year.  

“We tried out a new formation for the majority of this season,” Weis said.  “However, in my opinion, the biggest change from the last two seasons were focusing on staying disciplined for the full 80 minutes of the game.”  

Shughart said, “My coach has been pushing us really hard and he has always said that he pushes us hard because he ‘knows we can handle it.’”

This year, the team feels like their relationships have gotten stronger.

“We just have clicked more this year and have become more of a cohesive team,” Sweeder said. “We also became more relentless in our efforts on the field; we became more goal-driven and have scored more because of it.”

The girls each have a role and take it seriously.  

 “As a captain I try to keep everyone accountable, and I try to take responsibility for situations,” Shughart said. “I also try to make sure everyone has a positive attitude on and off the field. On the field, I play center mid so I try to mark up in the center and distribute the ball to the forwards.  But for the district game I am going to be switching to playing center back because one of my teammates that plays there got a concussion.”

Weis added, “I feel that we all play an equal part in how successful the season is going to be.  Personally, I try my best to show up and work hard at practices/games and make high school soccer and my teammates a priority.”

Not only do they take their roles seriously, they take playing for Carlisle seriously.

“It means a lot,” Weis said. “I really love that I have the opportunity to represent my school and to do it with some of my closest friends.”

Shughart added, “It means that you’re committed, motivated, and to just have a lot of passion for soccer.”

Sweeder also mentioned an important part about the sport. 

“It means being with a family of girls that have your back on and off the field,” Sweeder said. “The atmosphere at practices makes everyone play hard so we can be the best, not only in the technical skills of soccer, but also the aggressiveness that is necessary.”