WP Girls Soccer Team Fights for Playoffs; Track Stars Gear Up For State Championships
Trevor Phipps
During the 2024 girls’ soccer season, the Woodland Park Lady Panthers fought hard through adverse weather conditions and a slew of injuries.
Despite their spell of bad luck, the team has been making vast improvements and they just missed a chance at the postseason.
The girl kickers officially played their last regular season match on May 1 where they lost on the road to Pueblo Centennial 5-0. The Lady Panthers ended their season with a 5-9-1 overall record and a 2-2 league record.
But despite getting third in their 3A Tri-Peaks League, the team didn’t do well enough to get a chance in the playoffs. The team had a good run in mid-April when they won three games in a row, but they missed out on their chances at post season play after losing their last three matches of the regular season.
However, even though the team missed their chance at the state championship, the Lady Panthers’ head coach Marcie James was happy with the progress she saw during the season. And although she is sad to see the seniors on the team leave due to graduation, she is proud of what they accomplished during their high school soccer careers.
Senior midfielder Kara Wiley was one of the team’s top performers with 0.6 goals per match and 0.2 assists per match. She led the team with nine goals and a total of 21 points.
Senior goalie Kaite Roy picked up 155 saves during the season with an average of 10.3 saves per game. She also proved her stellar goalie skills with snagging a 2.1 goals against average for the season.
“The coaches want to especially honor our five senior soccer players by acknowledging the depth we have seen in their athletic and personal development on their future roads ahead,” Coach James said. “Kara (Wiley), Lilly (Urban), and Kaite (Roy) have contributed all of their high school years to playing soccer with WPHS. They are joined by two foreign exchange students: Tatia (Kartvelishvili) who learned soccer in her home country of Georgia and by Kregelin (Pari) who is learning soccer for the very first time before returning to her home country of Estonia.”
Even though the team this season was rather young and the future seems to be bright, James wanted to wish the departing seniors their best as they finished up their last time playing soccer in high school. “We have enjoyed watching these seniors grow this season through the discipline of soccer,” James said. “We appreciate all the individual qualities they have brought to our team, the effort they have given, and the lessons they have taught us. They will be missed!”
Track Stars Wrap Up Meets and Prepare for State Championships
During the entire spring sports season, the track and field athletes have probably snagged first place in overall achievements. Many started off the season surprising themselves with what they could accomplish as many school and personal records were shattered right off the bat.
In the middle of the season, many of the track and field stars had already qualified for the state championship. Others, though, kept pushing throughout the season to get high enough in the statewide ranks to qualify for the big tournament.
It seems like every week, stars on the team improve. “One athlete, Jaedyn Kohn, crushed her PB (Personal Best) in the shot (put) and, in doing so, set the WPHS record with a throw of 41’-8.5”,” the track and field team’s head coach Jeremy Grier said. “The girl’s Medley team is within one second of a new school record. Numerous other events and individuals have climbed into the WPHS top ten list.”
But even though the team has already seen much success, the season is not quite over yet. The team traveled to Pueblo on May 3, a partial team competed at Garry Berry on May 4, and the Panthers’ final meet took place on May 10 at Salida.
On May 12, the track and field athletes found out how many athletes qualified for state, but those numbers were not yet out at press time. The state championship tournament will take place from May 16 to May 18 at JeffCo Stadium.
“We are entering the part of the season where we will start to back off in practices,” Coach Grier said. “The athletes will have more energy left for the races, which should produce even greater PBs. This year’s team continues to impress me with their commitment, work ethic, and support for each other. It shows up every week in the results.”
