By Josh Baker
Correspondent
Preparation for West Orange High School fall sports season has begun, and that includes the girls’ soccer team.
With their main goals of competing, working hard every day, and winning the state championship, head coach Sean DeVore wants to keep the team’s focus on their chemistry, because “when you graduate your players, it’s hard to do that.” Five seniors on the team graduated this past June, two of whom were starters: goalie Samantha Herbert and Kaylese Gist.
This season’s captains for the team are Hannah Villasin, Katy Charles, Nyah Harper, and Morgan Clark.
The team had an impressive record last season of 13 wins, 5 ties, and zero losses, so their performance was not one of their major issues. This record was due in part to the coaching staff of DeVore, assistant varsity coach Chris Maillet, JV coach Sebastian DePinho, and freshman coach Dave Perez.
DeVore has created an off-season fitness schedule for his players to follow. It ranges from a 3-mile run in under 29 minutes to a 5-mile run in under 44 minutes.
This summer, the team practices twice a week, dubbed “Captain’s Practices,” from late June through all of July, with a break from July 30 to August 3. Tryouts are August 13 and 14. Teams are selected after the evening session on August 14.
After the final rosters (ranging from 18 to 22 players) are created for varsity, JV, and freshman teams, double-sessions begin. These sessions are from 8:30 to 10:30 in the morning, and the players return for another session from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
DeVore has also scheduled four scrimmages against Ramsey, Westfield, DePaul, and Sparta, with their season opener on Friday, September 7 against Millburn at 4 p.m.
The Mountaineers will also utilize Snap Raise this month to raise funds for team supplies and other necessities. Snap Raise’s goal is to make life easier for players and coaches to raise money through a web-based platform. Snap Raise makes it safe and easy to launch an effective fundraising campaign.
With a strong coaching staff and a dedicated roster of players, WOHS is bound for another glorious season!
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