This year’s Lady Lions Soccer team has a bright future ahead of them, especially vested in three talented freshmen. It is not unusual to have one or two freshmen on a varsity team, but having three gives the team an amazing opportunity to improve and develop.

 The three freshmen, Meghan Hyer, Stella Keiningham, and Livia Richardson are developing in practice, and they are getting on-field experience at a varsity level.

“Having three freshmen on the Varsity side is a massive benefit to the program moving forward,” head coach Patrick Miller said. 

The freshmen are already showing their importance to the team. Hyer is a crucial defender. Keiningham is proving to be an increasing goal threat, and Richardson is a talented all-around player. 

“All three have made an impact in some capacity thus far, specifically Hyer making our defensive line more complete and having an assist already this season, and Keiningham having scored a goal with additional created opportunities.” Miller said.

Learning from older, more experienced players is a huge benefit to the freshmen. The mentorship that the young players are receiving will help them become mentors for others in the future.

“The older players have passed along their knowledge of the game, provided leadership, and taught me how to be a better player, both mentally and physically,” Keiningham said.

The experience that the freshmen are getting will help them become better players in the future, and Keiningham says she is loving her experience on the team.

“My favorite part of the season so far has been the opportunity to play with the varsity team as a freshman,” said Keiningham. “I’m always trying to improve my game and playing with a higher level of athletes allows me to do that.” 

The season has been tough so far, but the team is always getting stronger. Recently, they had a confidence boosting win against district rival Goochland 6-0.

“As the season progresses, each of the focused players continues to evolve into a more efficient, complete player. The future looks to be in good hands,” Miller said.