CRMS getting a late start to soccer season

Weather has prevented many teams from practicing outdoors

By Joelle Milholm
Post Independent Staff
Glenwood Springs, CO Colorado
March 22, 2008

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Class 3A, Colorado Rocky Mountain School

Head Coach: Amanda Leahy, seventh year. First Game: April 1, vs. Aspen at CRMS. Class 2A, Grand Valley Junior Varsity Head Coach: Kelly Clark, second year. First Game: March 20, vs. Aspen JV at GVHS.

CARBONDALE — The Colorado Rocky Mountain School girls soccer team is scheduled to have its first game weeks after most of its opponents in the Class 3A Western Slope League.

It doesn’t necessarily mean that CRMS gets more time to practice, however. In fact, it will be facing the same problems teams who started their seasons in the second week of March did. Even with an April 1 date as the season-opener, CRMS won’t have any more time playing on grass than anyone else did.

“Our schedule is certainly compromised due to our calendar. We have had seven indoor practices and then the players are off for three weeks (one week of Interim and two weeks of spring break),” said seven-year head coach Amanda Leahy. “The students return Monday, March 31 and our first game is against Aspen on Tuesday, April 1st. Hence, some of our girls will play on grass for the first time in a game against Aspen.”

Despite the long break, Leahy is staying optimistic and hopes some of the 24 girls on the team will be around for some voluntary practices during the time off.

Leahy said the team will be very young, with only eight girls returning from last year’s team and only two of them being seniors. The junior class makes up 11, then 11 more are underclassmen. She is hoping Tess Freeman will anchor the forward line and Jade Bath will bring experience to the goal. She’s also looking to Hillary Roberts and Aisha Weinhold to lead the team as veterans.

Grand Valley shaping up in last JV season

In just its second year of existence, almost 30 girls are playing soccer for Grand Valley High School’s squad. With numbers looking strong, and one year of junior varsity experience under its belt, the Cardinals head into the 2008 season as the last season it will play before turning into a varsity team next year.

Most of the team is composed of underclassmen, which gets head coach Kelly Clark excited for the future.

“There are a ton of lower classmen,” she said. “They were who we projected this for when we started this last year. This group of girls have been playing together for a long time.”

The Cardinals are made up of two seniors, four juniors and the rest sophomores and freshmen — with the largest chunk being freshmen. The team is reaping the benefits of being a little west of most of the snowfall and was able to start practicing outdoors the last week in February.

Grand Valley will see a variety of JV team this year from Class 5A teams like Grand Junction, to 4A teams like Battle Mountain, to 3A squads like Coal Ridge and even a few 2A opponents. Clark is hoping the schedule will prepare them for when they are a varsity squad next year and play in the 3A Western Slope League.

“We are definitely going to be ready for varsity next year,” she said.