The secret to Kellam High School’s winning streak in girls soccer
Kellam High School Girls Soccer Team is dominating in 2024. Here’s how they do it.
The Kellam High School girls soccer team has established an influential presence in Virginia Beach and beyond. This year, their reputation has become even more formidable.
Coached by Mario Hurdle, the Knights have an impressive 7-0-1 record and have sustained the top spot in the 757Teamz Top 15 poll throughout 2024 season.
According to an article in the Virginia Pilot, Hurdle’s coaching philosophy emphasizes steady improvement and progress in each game. He attributes the team’s success to the competitive spirit of the players, their ability to work together, and the readiness of substitutes to contribute when necessary.
Kellam’s stellar offense continues to shine in 2024. Last year, they scored 74 goals in 19 games, averaging 3.8 goals per game. This year, in the first eight games, they’ve already surpassed last season’s count with 42 goals. The team is now averaging 5.25 goals per game, having scored over five goals five separate times this season.
Defensive strategy and contributions from all
Hurdle credits the team’s offensive success to the strategy of “sharing the load,” as 16 Knights have scored a goal so far. Sophomore Reagan Thompson leads the charge with eight goals. Plus, Hurdle believes their robust defense propels their offense.
The Knights’ defense has matched the offense in dominance. In eight games, they’ve conceded just two goals, both in the first half of a game against No. 2 First Colonial in March. This performance is a marked improvement from last year when they conceded three goals throughout the season.
Emphasizing the importance of defending, Hurdle believes that if a team doesn’t concede, they can’t lose. If they can take their chances while minimizing those of their opponents, they can be successful. This is achieved through good organization and keeping the ball in front of them.
Learning from past matches
The game against First Colonial was a critical lesson in resilience for the Knights, coming from 2-0 down to secure a 2-2 draw. Hurdle reflects on the importance of maintaining intensity and focus throughout the match.
Key contributors such as Brooke Owens, 2023 All-Tidewater selection Dylan McEntarfer, Avery Spell, Bailey Campbell, Anna Wise, Allysa Chuderewicz, and Ava Chuderewicz have positively impacted the team’s performance and will be crucial moving forward.
Looking ahead at future games, Hurdle emphasizes the need for consistency, staying grounded, and taking one game at a time to secure the Class 5 state title.
To cheer them on in-person, check out the Kellam High School’s athletic schedule and be sure to follow the team on Instagram. Go Knights!
Read More Virginia News
This article may have been created with the assistance of AI.
All Good Info News Wire articles are open source through CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. You are free to copy and redistribute the material in any medium, as long as you follow these guidelines:
-
You must give Good Info News Wire credit, including https://goodinfo.news/ and the author’s name.
-
Stories may be edited for in-house style or to shorten, but you must indicate if any changes were made.
-
You can publish our graphics and any photos that are credited to Good Info News Wire with the stories with which they originally appeared.
-
Don’t sell the story, publish it behind a paywall, or sell ads against the story. However, you can publish it on a page with ads you’ve already sold.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.
