) Ea THE Po ST dig Sports Week ® | ® | Success is their goal Elite Eight ey leads Dallas ar Post Editor DALLAS TWP. — What will they do for an encore? Despite having eight fresh- men in the starting lineup, the Dallas girls soccer team cruised through the 2005 sea- son, winning the Wyoming Val- ley Conference Division I and District 2 Class 2A champion- ships. The = Mountaineers didn’t lose a game until the state quarterfinals. This season, the Elite Eight returns to the field along with several other solid players. But head coach Chris Scharff isn’t ready to have his team’s name engraved on any championship trophies. At least not yet. “This - sophomore class hasn’t lost a (WVC) game yet,” said the sixth-year coach. “When you start eight fresh- men, win a district champion- ship and not lose until the state quarterfinals, it’s a great sea- son. But the other teams are going to come at them even harder this year. We can’t over- look or underestimate any- one.” Scharff says his team’s big- gest opponent might be wear- ing a blue and white uniform. “lI think our biggest chal- lenge is ourselves,” he said. “A bad attitude or being overcon- fident could hurt.us. I'm trying. to make sure theyre not too overconfident after last year’s success.” The returning eight sopho- mores include midfielders Ki- ley Williams, Sammi Elston, Michelle Givens and Kelsie Givens; forward Melissa Gor- ski; defenders Lindsey Ellis and Alyssa Pyros; and goal- keeper Jill Spring. They will be joined in the starting lineup by senior midfielder Celia Pam- bianco, junior forward Megan McDonald and freshman de- fender Stephanie Ashley. Se- nior midfielder Alia Pyros also receives plenty of playing time. Scharff says his team is very balanced. “We're really good at every- thing, but at the same time we're not great or bad at any- thing,” he said. “The girls have a combination of intelligence, skill and quickness. Even though they're young, they're smart for their age. Soccer smart. They're veterans when it comes to the amount of soc- cer they've played over the years. They're very excited and they really want to win.” The Mountaineers are led by Williams, who was an all-state selection as a freshman. In ad- dition to playing in high ~school, the daughter of Judy» and the late Walt Williams is a member of the U-16 Player, De-.. velopment Academy of New Jersey. The team is ranked in the top 10 in the nation. Williams, who is also a mem- ber of the Olympic Develop- ment Program, travels 2 hours, 20 minutes each way twice a week to practice with the New Jersey team. “When you consider all of her strengths, I believe she’s the best overall player in the conference,” said Scharff. “She makes the players around her better. She can be a very spe- cial player before she leaves Dallas and plays in college.” Dallas has struggled a little out of the gate this season. The Mountaineers have posted close wins against Coughlin, Lake-Lehman, Crestwood and Wyoming Valley West. “Sometimes their inexperi- ence shows through,” said Scharff. “They’re under a lot more pressure this year. The expectations are much higher. Last year, they were freshmen not much expected from them. Things aren’t coming as easy as they thought. If they don’t play well, they could easily lose. But I think we’re a very good soccer team.” TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/DON CAREY Dallas soccer player Kiley Williams is one of the best in the WVC. TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/FRED ADAMS Head coach looking for heart from Black Knights By DAVE KONOPKI Post Editor LEHMAN TWP. — The little things are going to mean a lot. They always do. A good high school soccer team must to able to play defense, effectively pass the ball and put the ball in the net when a scoring opportunity presents itself. But head coach Kelly Spencer says one thing will most likely determined whether or not the Lake-Lehman girls soccer team will be successful in the Wyom- ing Valley Conference: Heart. “I honestly believe it’s a mat- ter of them playing with heart,” said the first-year coach. “Right now, they're giving up too eas- ily. They have to play the game because they want to. We're not playing with a lot of heart right now.” The Black Knights suffered four losses in their first four games of the season. They jumped out to a 2-0 lead against Crestwood before dropping a 3-2 overtime decision. They bat- tled defending champion Dallas in a 3-1 loss before losing against Abington Heights (4-0) TIMES LEADER STAFF PHOTO/FRED ADAMS Lake-Lehman's Aime Sgariat is an excellent defender. and Bishop Hoban (5-1). “We played well against Dal- las, but we kind of gave up against Crestwood,” said Spen- cer. “We need to play well for all of the game.” The Black Knights have only two seniors in forward Lauren Roderick and midfielder Britt- ney Hillard. The other mem- bers of the starting lineup are ju- niors Caroline Boris (defend- See LEHMAN, Page 8 Dallas cross country, track standout running to Sunshine State Adams accepts offer from University of North Florida By DAVE KONOPKI Post Editor DALLAS TWP. - Eight months ago, Hillary Adams knew noth- ing about the University of North Florida. Now, she plans on it be- ing her home for the next four years. The Dallas High School cross country and track standout re- cently accepted an athletic schol- arship to attend the school in Jacksonville, Fla. The daughter of Keith and Marjorie Adams of Dallas announced her decision during a ceremony earlier this week in the high school library. Last fall, Adams visited the Web sites of several Division I and Division II colleges and filled out the athletic questionnaires. A few weeks later, 16-year North Florida head coach Mark VanAl- styne responded with a phone call. Adams visited the campus in February and was offered the scholarship a week later. Although it wasn’t a full ride, the 18-year-old said the school of- fered a “very good” financial aid package. “To be honest, I never heard of the University of North Florida until my mom pointed it out to me,” said Adams, who has earned three varsity letters in cross coun- try and two in track and field go- ing into her senior track season. “I was really happy. That’s where I wanted to go. I told myself that if the (financial package) was good, I'd go there. My mom want- ed me to wait a little bit, but I called back a couple of days later and took the offer.” The Ospreys compete in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Of the 24 women and 17 men on the cross country and track rosters, only one — a freshman from Ser- bia — is not a product of a Florida high school. Adams, who plans to major in elementary education, says the climate played a big role in making her college decision. “I like the warm weather. I've always’ been attracted to the south and I looked for schools in that area,” she said. “I think the warmer weather might help me be a better runner. I've always done better when it's warm. I don’t run as fast in the cold.” For the past three years, Adams has been a standout per- former in cross country and track for head coach Matt Samuel. She finished in the top 15 all three years at the District 2 Class 2A cross country championships, in- cluding a personal-best fourth- place finish as a junior. As a se- nior, Adams placed sixth in help- ing to lead the Mountaineers to their third consecutive team championship. In track and field, she won gold and silver medals at the District 2 Class 2A championships as a member of the 4x800 and 4x400 relay teams, respectively. Adams also won a silver medal as a soph- omore in the 800-meter run. Not too bad for someone who didn’t run competitively until the 10th grade. FH ag adie Py oct pr : “I'was a field hockey and soccer player,” she said. “My sister (for- mer Dallas standout Whitney) wanted me to run as freshman, but I didn’t. When I was a sopho- more, I decided to give it a shot. FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK From left, first row are Marjorie Adams, Hillary Adams and Keith Adams. Second row: coach Matt Samuel and Jack Wolensky, AD. “I think I'm better in the relays. I like them better. Track is a team sport, especially the relays. You get a chance to make up time or get out to a big lead. It’s a lot of fun.”
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