By Rich Fisher, Sports Editor
If casual fans watching soccer games complain about a lack of goal scoring, just think how coaches feel when their own teams can’t find the range.
Lawrence High girls coach Dana Williams knew the feeling all too well during last year’s 3-14 season, as the Cardinals scored just seven times.
This year, however, some new blood could get the offense pumping as the coach is excited about the presence of freshmen Briana Banegas and Kate O’Rourke.
”I think they are two freshmen people will be excited to see,” said the always-upbeat Williams. “Kate O’Rourke is incredibly fit, a phenomenal swimmer. We do a fitness competition every year and she won it as a freshman. It’s kind of unheard of to do that. She has a great strike on the ball.
”Briana Banegas is a lot like a gnat on the backs. Whenever the backs get the ball she’s all over them. Those two are gonna be fun to watch. They’re little spark plugs up top which is something that’s really gonna get the whole team pumped up.”
Another threat at forward is junior Kelly Shillaber, who is up from the JV and scored from 25 yards out in a scrimmage.
”She can strike the ball,” Williams said. “She can hit it, she can absolutely hit it.
”So we have a nice dynamic up top which is something Lawrence hasn’t been known for, even when I was a player here. We were always a defensive-minded team. We’d put one in the back of the net and then defend, defend, defend. This season we’re really looking to attack.”
Of course, when teams attack, that also opens up opportunities for other teams to counter-attack quickly. The good news there is, the Cards will be ready for that as they have two outstanding sophomores in the nets.
Caoimhe O’Sullivan-Roche returns after making about a million saves her freshman season, and she is joined by Marisa Visco. O’Sullivan-Roche had to play almost every minute last year and Williams held her breath whenever the goalie went down, so it’s nice to have some depth there.
”That’s one of the best issues we have right now, two awesome goalies,” the coach said. “Caoimhe just improved every game last year and Melissa Visco had intense training all summer. They are really working on their game. At practice, it’s been really tough to score on them.”
They will be aided by senior tri-captain Stacey Adamcik, who “can just shut down pretty much anybody,” according to Williams. “She’s fast and she’s physical.”
The other two senior captains are center-midfielders Adrian Glass and Erica Scardelletti, “who are doing a great job knocking the ball around, so that’s encouraging.”
Rounding out the roster are juniors Sarah Borajkiewicz (FB), Emma Freedman (FB), Elizabeth Hernandez (MF) and Lauren Turkowski (MF), sophomores Leanna Glass (MF), Gabriell Pascarella (FB), Amanda Toto (FB) and Natalie Wilson (F/MF) and freshman Marie Buschman.
”We start with two good goaltenders and a solid defender, so we’re looking to be .500, absolutely,” Williams said. “We’re looking to improve from last season, which we all agree from our quad-scrimmage, that we already look better.
”It’s hard to judge because everybody loses people and gets new people. But we’ve moved the ball around really well and we’re scoring. We didn’t score last year. We were great in the back but we couldn’t put the ball in the net. This season, we’ll be a bit different with that.”
Sounds exciting
For fans and coaches.

