Solid finish sends Gateway girls soccer team’s seniors out on high note

By: Michael Love
Sunday, October 23, 2022 | 11:01 AM

Gateway girls soccer coach Caleb Kyper wanted to see fight and determination from his team in the Section 3-3A and season finale at Latrobe on Oct. 18.

That is what his players gave him, he said, as they battled the playoff-bound and section-runner up Wildcats before falling 2-0 to finish 4-11-1 overall and 4-7-1 in the section.

“The girls went into the game as kind of a last hurrah to enjoy themselves together as a team one final time,” Kyper said.

“There wasn’t any pressure. The girls knew they were the underdogs, but they went in and gave it their best. I thought they really did well. We gave up two goals in the first half where we were out of sorts a little bit defensively. We got counter-attacked in space and didn’t handle it as well as I had hoped. But after that, in the second half, we really came into our own and had a few good scoring opportunities we just couldn’t finish off.”

Kyper said that a goal at the start of the season was to earn one of the four playoff berths from the section, but when the team was eliminated with a 4-1 loss to Hampton on Oct. 10, thoughts turned to making the most of the final week where the players could share some special moments with each other.

“We had a week with the seniors to let them know how much they were appreciated,” Kyper said.

“The underclassmen let them know how much they are respected. So it didn’t come to a crashing end like it might have if we needed to get a win in that last game to make the playoffs.”

Gateway celebrated its seniors during the home finale against section foe Greensburg Salem on Oct. 12.

Midfielder Madi Jesih, defenseman Hallie Grant, forward/midfielder Natalie Helman, forward/midfielder Daniella Garner, defenseman Julianna Guido and midfielder Emily Mannion were honored before the game, and the Gators went out and scored an 8-0 victory to complete a season sweep of the Golden Lions.

“That game had a real celebratory feel to it,” Kyper said.

“It was an emotional game, too, as a number of the seniors had played together since their early youth soccer days. They came into it with a passion to get the victory. That was probably our best-played game of the season which was great for the home crowd and families. The seniors really did shine that night.”

Despite not making the WPIAL playoffs, Kyper said he was proud of the way the team responded to adversity with injury to some key contributors. Guido, a key returnee from last season, was lost to an ACL injury before this season began.

Gateway tied playoff-bound Penn-Trafford, 0-0, and suffered a close 2-1 loss to the Warriors while battling section runner up Franklin Regional to losses of 1-0 and 2-0.

“The girls were disappointed in not making the playoffs, and they knew they gave up some points during the season in a couple of those close games,” Kyper said.

“There also was a healthy understanding of our team’s situation with depth of varsity starters and ready-to-play players. When we started to gain additional injuries after the third game of the season, it was kind of a carousel of starters and starting lineups as we worked to find continuity. We just didn’t get as comfortable as we wanted with one group of starters or formations. The players, especially the seniors, kept battling and competing while acknowledging that, in the end, the season probably wasn’t going to turn out the way we had hoped. But they never complained. They worked hard in practice to prepare themselves for every game.”

Mannion finished the season as the team leader in goals scored with nine, while Garner tallied seven goals, and sophomore midfielder/forward Hayden Price had five.

Kyper said it will be interesting to see how next year’s team takes shape. He noted that with only three juniors on the roster — starting goalkeeper Jada Settles, along with defenseman Rebecca Ryan and midfielder Mia Baish — a number this year’s sophomores and freshmen will be looked upon to step up into bigger roles.

“I am cautiously optimistic with the group we have coming back,” Kyper said.

“Like I had said, our varsity bench was relatively short, but we did use quite a few freshmen and sophomores. What the younger girls saw with the work ethic and skill set of the seniors has made an impact on what they know they need to do before the start of the season next year.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Gateway