(This article first appeared in the August print edition of the Hendersonian.)
As the new soccer season kicks off, the Henderson County girls soccer team faces a unique blend of uncertainty and optimism. They have lost a lot of their offensive firepower, but should be able to rely on a staunch defense early in the season. With a strong group of seniors and promising young players, the Lady Colonels hope to get back to the state tournament after missing out last year.
“We’re optimistic,” said head coach Ben Dempsey. “We have a lot of new faces, but so far they’ve worked really hard this summer and I like where we are at. We’ve got a couple of really young, energetic kids who are pushing our older kids.”
Last season, the Lady Cols finished 15-7 and won the district title in dominant fashion, shutting out Union County 8-0.
However, Henderson County lost a heart-breaking match to Madisonville-North Hopkins in the regional championship in a shootout. It was their first time missing the state tournament after a run of three straight appearances.
The Lady Cols graduated nine seniors last year, including three of its four top goal scorers in Kacee Butler (30 goals), Taylor Dunn (16) and Marley Collins (12), who also led the team with 23 assists. The 2024 senior class accounted for over 70% of the team’s scoring.
“It’s going to be a development year for us,” said junior Olivia Joyce. “We want to win, have fun, and grow as a team. We have a lot of young kids this year, so creating those relationships early really reflects on how we play.”
It could take time for HCHS to fill the gap in offensive production, but there is potential on the roster in a couple of young talents. Sophomore Layla Gugel was the third-leading scorer on the team last season with 13, adding four assists as well. Expectations will also be high for incoming freshman McKinley Black.
“We’re hoping that McKinley Black and Layla Gugel can score quite a few goals for us. The biggest thing, I think, with our sport is if you can find a good goal scorer and a good goalkeeper, you’re going to be in business,” said Dempsey.
The Lady Cols will have to find a replacement at goalkeeper as well with last year’s keeper Sarah Mackey gone. Dempsey is not overly concerned however, as he has options with junior Addlyn Bishop and sophomore Jersey Gardner. Bishop has in-game experience and saw action in two games last season. Gardner brings great athleticism to the table as a multi-sport athlete—she played catcher for the softball team and was on the basketball team. Both have performed well so far this preseason.
Having a majority of the defense coming back will help, too. Hopefully, this will buy time for the offensive attack to develop throughout the season. Dempsey, calling himself a “defensive-minded coach,” feels that his defense will be the team’s strength early.
“Defensively, we return a lot from a region runner-up appearance last year and state quarterfinal the year before that, so a lot of these kids have good experience in those moments. Defensively, we should be pretty sound again,” Dempsey said.
Along with the defense, Dempsey will look to a strong core of juniors and seniors to lead the team and keep everyone on the same page. Dempsey mentioned seniors Baylee Womack, Addy Gish and sisters Ainslee Toombs and Paislee Toombs, as good senior leaders who will contribute much this year.
Dempsey also sang the praises of juniors Olivia Joyce and Annabelle Wilson, both he says have stepped into roles since they’ve been freshmen. He called it a rare feat for juniors to be named captains, but hopes that having them in this role this year will have positive carryover effects going forward.
Wilson, who went to Spain this spring to play soccer and improve her skills, knows that her team will reach its goals by focusing on themselves, maintaining a hardworking mentality and giving 110% effort.
“I’m feeling really good about our team this year. We’ve got a good group of girls. We’ll have our senior and junior groups [as leaders],” said Wilson. “I hope to keep my team extremely strong and connected and when we have our low moments to keep them high and keep our energy up.”
The Lady Cols will face some steep competition this year with at least four teams in the top 15 of the KHSAA RPI last year, as well as several games against teams from Evansville.
