Missing their leading goal scorer from a season ago, the Bayfield Wolverines will rely heavily on other seniors to fill a void this season.
Effie Nistler wore the Wolverines’ girls soccer team’s Golden Boot in 2013, but a torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered at the beginning of the basketball season will keep the sharpshooter sidelined for her senior season.
“We are hoping other girls can step up in her place. Senior leadership will be our biggest thing,” Bayfield head coach Jen Zelinski said after the Wolverines’ season-opening 3-2 victory against Salida on Friday at Wolverine Country Stadium. “I have five very dedicated and excited seniors ready to make the most of this season.”
Bayfield finished the 2013 campaign as Intermountain League champions with a 12-3-1 overall record and 10-1-1 record in the IML. But the Wolverines fell to Lutheran 3-2 in the first round of the state tournament, and Zelinski hopes this year’s team can get over that first-round hump.
“Our goal is to get past the first round. We only did it once, and that was two years ago,” Zelinski said. “It is hard being where we are and going into the state tournament, but we make the best of what we can.”
Zelinski said the Wolverines will play teams such as Salida because it will help the team be more prepared for the state tournament.
“Salida plays the better Front Range teams, and we are looking to play better and more experienced teams so that we can be ready for those kinds of teams,” Zelinski said.
The opening-day captains for Bayfield were seniors Sonja Fleming, Margaret Grayson, Grace Harvey and Jaida Ross, though Zelinski said she will continue to pick captains on a game-to-game basis.
Making a big debut Friday was freshman goalkeeper Kailee Millard, who hasn’t played soccer since the first grade, Zelinski said.
“She is a volleyball player with good size and hands. I asked her to come play goalie for me, and she is loving it,” Zelinski said. “She is dedicated and always looking for ways to get better. She is watching YouTube videos and is eager to learn.”
Zelinski credited Millard and her team’s defense for holding off Salida on Friday.
When the IML games begin, Zelinski expects tough competition once again this season.
“Pagosa Springs is going to have a very good team, and Alamosa will, too. It should be competitive,” Zelinski said. “It will be a toss-up between the three of us, but Telluride and Ridgway are always good. We are all pretty well-matched teams, and it is always a fight for who is No. 1.”