By FRED KRONER
fred@mahometnews.com
The most misleading statistic in all of soccer is goalkeeper saves.
The natural assumption is that a high number of saves reflects a high-quality keeper and a small number represents one that is not as strong.
The truth is, that a goalkeeper who is peppered with frequent shots each match means the person is playing behind a defense which is not adequately keeping the ball out of the scoring zone.
The defense played by Mahomet-Seymour’s girls’ soccer team this spring is raising the standard of excellence that was exhibited by its 2018 predecessor.
And that translates into less work for the goalkeeper.
In 19 matches this spring, the Bulldogs have scored 18 victories and shut out 13 opponents.
Junior goalkeeper Noelle Bailey has had just one match all year where she was required to make more than three saves.
Her totals are indicative of the strength of the players in front of her.
Center backs Maddie Louis and Maddison Claybrooke are fixtures who rarely leave the field.
At the outside backs positions, sophomore Kelsey Jacobs, junior Chloe Buzicky and senior Ainsley Jessup share time and have excelled in their roles.
Louis is a fourth-year varsity veteran who didn’t start her prep career on defense.
“I played attacking mid until my sophomore year,” Louis said.
The Bulldogs had a need for help on defense in 2017 and Louis was summoned. It wasn’t a position that she immediately embraced.
“I’d grown up wanting to score,” Louis said. “I had trouble at first, but I found an appreciation back there.
“If that meant that we’d win, I felt happy about that.”
Louis will complete her prep career on the defensive unit.
“Our defensive goal is to make sure there are no shots on goal,” she said.
In five matches thus far, the defense has successfully executed that feat.
Louis shares a common trait with many of her defensive comrades: They are converted offensive players.
Claybrooke, a sophomore, was a forward until reaching high school.
Buzicky wasn’t even a full-time defender when this season began.
First-year Bulldog head coach Kelsie Donley Briggs shifted Buzicky from a wing position to defense in an early-season match.
“We put her there because of her speed,” Briggs said. “We wanted speed on our back line and she had an amazing game.
“She can pretty much match anybody’s speed and played like she had been playing it for a while.
“If it was a tough transition, I don’t know it because she didn’t show it. Her and Louis are our two fastest players.”
The results speak for themselves. None of M-S’ first 19 opponents have scored more than one goal. Overall, the Bulldogs have permitted six goals. Total.
“I knew the defense would be strong, but I didn’t expect this ,” Briggs said.
Louis and Claybrooke were a good starting nucleus.
Louis was an all-sectional player in 2018 and the Bulldogs’ most valuable defender.
“She is extremely talented, hard-working and aggressive,” Briggs said.
Claybrooke is a nice complement in her second season as a varsity starter.
“She is quick, fast and strong,” Briggs said. “I’ve never seen her get knocked down.”
With Jacobs, Jessup and Buzicky utilizing their quickness as well, Briggs never has any concerns when the ball gets into the M-S defensive zone.
“Once the ball is in the defensive line, it’s just out of there,” Briggs said. “It’s not necessarily a clearance.
“They usually play it out to someone, a center-mid or a wing.”
M-S (18-1) will conclude its regular season next week, playing two Apollo Conference games early in the week as they travel to Taylorville on Monday before hosting Mount Zion on Tuesday; then finish with a non-conference game at home against Normal University High on Thursday.
In the two years since joining the Apollo Conference, the Bulldogs have won every league match, rolling to 18 consecutive conference wins.
Though the defense has been outstanding, Briggs added, “we’re definitely not taking anything away from our goalkeeper.
“Noelle has made some exceptional saves. She is calm and collected and doesn’t get rattled.”
In nearly half of the team’s wins (eight of 18), Louis wasn’t called upon to make a save or only needed to make one save.
For the season, Bailey has made 34 saves. The junior varsity goalkeeper last season, Bailey is in her first season at the varsity level.
“She has really stepped up,” Briggs said.
In 2018, the defense set a high standard of excellence for the M-S girls’ program.
The Bulldogs won a school-record 21 matches and registered a school-record 15 shutouts last spring.
From that unit, goalkeeper Sarah Hohenstein graduated as did two of the other defensive starters, Cassidy Collins and Melissa Singleton.
A year ago, the Bulldogs outscored their opponents 107-15 with six different opponents finding the net twice. Last year, M-S goalkeepers combined for 83 saves.
A good portion of the team’s personnel changed for 2019, but the production not only remained strong, but also showed improvement.
“We’ve pulled together,” Louis said. “There’s good chemistry.
“We’re really close. We connect with each other.”
The defense prefers not to wait for the opponent to attack.
“We like to play a high line,” Louis said. “If they kick it over us, we’ll beat the girls to the ball.”
Each of the M-S athletes who are regulars on defense have had opportunities to showcase their offensive talent.
Buzicky, Claybrooke, Jacobs, Jessup and Louis have all scored a goal and contributed at least one assist each.
“We do get chances,” Louis said, “and that’s enough to hold us until next year.”
Overall, the Bulldogs have amassed 108 goals this season with 17 different squad members finding the net at least once.
For Louis – one of seven M-S seniors – this is her final season of varsity soccer.
She plans to enroll at Purdue University, where she will major in biology with an eye to entering medical school. Her long-term goal is to work in an emergency room.
Louis hopes to join a club soccer team in college, but is realistic about her athletic future.
“Long-term, I won’t be a professional soccer player,” she said.
Louis hopes to extend her high school playing career as long as possible.
M-S will start postseason play as the top seed in the Urbana Class 2A Regional on May 14, facing Danville in a 5 p.m. semifinal match.
That winner will face either Centennial or Urbana for the regional championship on May 17, also at 5 p.m.
The Bulldogs are seeking a fourth consecutive regional title in girls’ soccer.
