By Allison Goldsmith
I&M Sports Editor
For a first-year varsity program, the expectations might have been set high for the Nantucket girls soccer team, but that was only because they were capable of playing to that level.
Under the watchful eye of head coach Jorge Rojas, the Whalers assembled a successful season that brought them within two games of both a Lighthouse Conference championship and a playoff bid.
The Whalers were eliminated from playoff contention in the final week of the season with a 3-1 loss at the Vineyard. But in the final game of the season, they were able to play the role of spoiler, erasing Mashpee’s chance for a playoff bid with a 1-1 tie.
Despite missing out on the playoffs, Nantucket finished with a record of 6-8-4 overall and 3-1-2 in the Lighthouse Conference.
“We were two games away from a (Lighthouse Conference) championship and we were two games away from making the playoffs and for the first year that’s a big accomplishment,” Rojas said. “We need to keep playing and stay together and make the program bigger. We are building a championship team for 2007 and it showed.”
Graduating senior Evesha Kenlyn is the only player departing from the roster heading into next season. The returning squad will look to build on the experience from this year’s varsity schedule, Rojas said.
“We are improving. We are not going backwards. We were ecstatic to compete to make the playoffs. To get that intensity and get that experience to understand what is the life of a varsity team and what does it take to compete. They are very excited about next year and they know how good they can be,” he said.
Freshman Shantel Hanniford led the Whalers in scoring this season with nine goals overall, while splitting time in net with goalie Sarah Poor. Kate MacLellan was Nantucket’s most consistent and dangerous offensive threat, notching seven goals and creating a number of chances for her teammates. Aileen Fredericks and Justine Paradis each scored six times from the midfield, while Mandy Cahill, Haley Cabre, Molly MacKay and Whitney Jennison all scored for the Whalers this season.
The Whalers improved tremendously in the second half of the schedule and that improvement was evident in many late-season games, but most pointedly at home against Mashpee in the final game of the season. Nantucket had lost to the Falcons 7-0 earlier in the fall. Mashpee needed a win over the Whalers to earn a playoff berth and Nantucket wanted to end the season on a high note.
“That is the best way to end the season, playing good soccer. It shows we did improve,” Rojas said. “Knowing they needed to win, they had extra pressure and we kept our composure and didn’t give them the game.”
It wasn’t the only game that showed the growth process of the Whalers squad. Against eventual Lighthouse Conference champion Cape Cod Academy, the Whalers lost 5-2 in the first meeting. Later in the season on their home field, the Whalers matched the Seahawks in a 0-0 tie.
“That was an unbelievable and amazing game,” Rojas said after the game. “This is a result of a lot of hard work, training and maturing as a soccer team.”
Nantucket opened the season with three straight losses over Martha’s Vineyard, Mashpee and Cohasset, before getting on track with wins against Provincetown, Chatham and Sturgis. The middle of the schedule yielded mixed results with ties against Savio Prep and league foe Provincetown. The Whalers defeated Chatham for the second time, but lost at Cape Cod Academy. Two back-to-back match-ups against a tough Norwood team signaled the turning point in the season. The Whalers showed they could equal the fast-paced style of play in the second meeting, despite losing both contests. The result was the impressive tie against Cape Cod Academy.
Down the stretch the Whalers defeated Sturgis and Savio Prep before eventually losing to Cohasset and Martha’s Vineyard to fall out of playoff contention.
Reach Allison Goldsmith at sports@inkym.com
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