The fast start to the season is a helpful building block for the Hawks who lost 10 seniors to graduation after earning a district championship in 2011.

“We’re playing with four seniors this year, and the challenge for us is to play consistent, practice consistent and be more intense. We still have a lot of work to do in that regard,” said head coach Frank Hense.

The Hawks attacked the Hippos early and often, putting six shots on goal in the first eight minutes of play. Shot number six came off the foot of Mackinzie Browning and found the back of the net. In the 32nd minute Talia Graves put the second Hawk goal on the board with a long shot that deflected off a Hutto defender and into the goal. Senior center-midfielder Megan Baker tallied her first of two assists in the game in the 36th minute, sending a high-flying ball over the back line for Tyane Ramos to run onto and finish.

The Hawks’ second half dominance mirrored the first. Ramos scored her second goal of the night only 90 seconds into the second period thanks to a well-played ball on the ground from the foot of Browning.

“We don’t play soccer by accident. Everything we do is trying to play to feet and make good runs off the ball,” Hense said when asked about the solid midfield play that regularly sent offensive players through the back line. “We didn’t do as much of that today as we normally would. I thought the midfield played well, but we need to finish a little better.”

Baker sent another player into the scorebook with an assist to Anastasia Bradburn in the 65th minute, and Samantha Hentosh finished the sixth goal of the game on an assist from Amanda Garcia in the 68th minute.

“I thought we played well,” Hense said after the game. “I thought Hutto was much improved too. We can play better, and we need to play with more intensity than we played. The kids know that they can play better than they played.”

The loss put Hutto’s season record at 1-2-3 and 0-1 in District 50-4A play. The Hawks had 18 shots on goal while Hutto managed just one.

Round Rock Leader

Coach Jim Donahue and his defending District 16-5A champion Westwood Warriors got off to a good starter last Thursday afternoon in the eighth annual Round Rock Classic girls soccer tournament.

After starting the season with a 2-2 record on the road at the Smithson Valley tourney, the Warriors picked up their third win of the season with a 1-0 victory over league foe Pflugerville at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex.

Westwood outshot its opponent 16-3 at home and got solid play between the pipes from goalkeeper Becca Coplen, who had three saves.

Westwood controlled the flow of the game. But thanks to an outstanding effort by Pflugerville keeper Leah Henry, the game remained scoreless until the 88th minute when Kennedy Robinson found the back of the net, off an assist from teammate Marley Zochert.

Last year, Donahue was named UIL state coach of the year in girls’ soccer, doing so after pushing his record with the Warriors to 603-160-58 in 28 years and after coaching them to a regional tournament appearance in 2011. He noted the win didn’t rank among the top efforts he has seen from his squad – but he will take it.

“I thought we had the better of the game,” he said, noting that that the Warriors are rebuilding – despite a dearth of juniors on the roster – after graduating nine starters last year. “It was a little ho-hum. It was just one of those days. [We had] a slow start for an early game.”

While the win may have been business as usual for Westwood, Pflugerville (3-2-1) coach Kimberly Rowe saw the loss as a learning experience for her team and a good early barometer of how the Panthers might stack up with the competition during district play.

“It was a good effort by our team, them as well, but I feel good about how we did knowing that Westwood was undefeated in district last year,” she said.

Rowe also praised the play of Henry, saying that the goalie was the backbone of her team.

“Her communication, her effort, her heart, the determination that she plays with… Honestly, it could have been a 3- or 4-0 game without her,” Rowe added. “She’s what is going to keep us close, if not winning a lot of our game this season.”

All three of Henry’s saves were crucial, with two coming on dives. Late in the first half, Westwood’s Hannah Jolly found herself in front of the Pflugerville goal undefended but Henry stuffed the sure shot, coming out of the goal and breaking perfectly on the ball to make the save.

In the 86th minute late in the game, Zochert was poised to score for Westwood after a pass by Claudette Lassandro found her in the perfect position, but once again Henry was there, flying to the ground to kill the play.

The Panthers picked up a win last week in their first match of the season, knocking off Anderson 2-1. Morgan Hernandez scored both of Pflugerville’s goals.

The Panthers will be back in action this weekend at the Governor’s Cup tournament in Georgetown. Their next home match will be Feb. 3 when they host Stony Point.

Connally Cougars

Coach: Ryan Ford

Last year: 10-9-6, area finalist

Returning: Noel Arguello (midfield), Ahmad Akid (midfield), Chance Bryant (forward) and Joshua Villanueva (defense).

New faces: Arturo Rangel (defense), Ty Grubb (goal keeper), Trent Hurley (forward) and Joshua Garcia (midfield).

Strengths: “We are technically proficient,” Ford said. “We have good ball control and short passing and a strong midfield.”

Concerns: “We are lacking overall team size compared to many teams,” Ford added.

Keys: “We want to build on our success in the playoffs and in district play,” Ford concluded. “We were very competitive in district, and believe we have the tools to get over the hump. If we can do that, I believe we can best last season’s playoff record get a couple rounds deeper. To do this we will need to be more assertive in our attack and get the ball in the back of the net with more regularity.”

Hendrickson Hawks

Coach: Bill Anderson

Last year: 18-3-6, regional semi-finalist

Returning: Gabe Williams (forward), Dustin Trandai (forward), Alvin Escobar (midfield), Andre Tayar (midfield), Collin Lovett (midfield), Cesar Oviedo (midfield), Ryan Perez (midfield) and Brandon Essler (defense).

New faces: Jesus Muniz (goalkeeper), Johnny Drodzyk (defense), Santiago Escobedo (defense), Allen Linares (defense) and Noah Ringenbach (midfield).

Strengths: “We have a winning tradition, good work rate and excellent technique,” Anderson answered.

Concerns: “There is a lack of experience in the defense and at keeper,” Anderson said.

Keys: “This team will be successful if we can survive a steep learning curve for our defenders,” Anderson surmized. “They will be good players in time, but they need to hurry up.”

Pflugerville Panthers

Coach: Benjamin Boorman

Last year: 2-7-3

Returning: Diego Villafranco (defense), Ryan Kennedy (midfield), Abraham Leykun (forward), Adrian Galaviz (forward), Luis Maldonado (midfield) and Bilal Hjiouj (midfield).

New faces: Jesus Mora Trujillo (forward), Jesus Barrera (goalkeeper), Bernardo Perez Fonseca (midfield), Felix Rico (midfield), Jordan Richmond (defense), Josh Ianno (defense), Andy Ho (defense), Carlos Reyes (defense), Jeff Rodas (defense), Kanor Ebeheakey (midfield), Alec Palacio (midfield), Gerardo Palafox (goalkeeper), Justin Portillo (goalkeeper), Brandon Aviles (defense) and Jonathan Hernandez (midfield).

Strengths: “Ball control and passing come very natural to this team,” Boorman said. “They play the game the way it should be played, passing the ball seamlessly with easy transitions to each part of the field. The forwards are very strong at possessing and finding open space. They will score many goals this season. Finally, the team has worked hard at building their endurance, and will definitely dominate games late when the other team gets tired.”

Concerns: “The team is not very deep,” Boorman said. “I worry about injuries in a few positions. We also need to watch out that we don’t get to overconfident with early success in the pre-season.”

Keys: “This is a special group of young men that has the potential to make a playoff run,” Boorman answered. “They need to make sure that they don’t get in their own way. We have been working on building character and leadership within each team member, and we have to continue to foster these throughout the season. Every teammate is held accountable for their actions on and off the field. As long as these young men are willing to make sacrifices for each other they will go far.”

Connally Cougars

Coach: Jessica McCartney

Last year: 5-10-3

Returning: Anabel Alvarado (midfield/forward), Liliana Leon-Gomez (midfield/forward), Fali Garuba (forward), Jade Norwood (defense), Daisy Cantera (defense), Gigi Gutierrez (defense), Marissa Mendez (defense), Briseida Diaz (defense), Itzel Juarez (midfield) and Alyssa Morales (midfield).

New faces: Emma Mele (midfield/forward), Samantha Sandoval (defense) and Ashlynn White (goalkeeper).

Strengths: This is an extremely hardworking and scrappy group of girls who are now soccer savvy and have shown tremendous growth and improvement,” McCartney said. “We have players who gel well together to form a cohesive unit that will work hard regardless of the opponent or situation.”

Concerns: “As a team we will have to come out strong on a daily basis and work some things out early on, in order to continue to improve and be a competitive factor,” McCartney added.

Keys: “I think that Connally has long been considered the underdog as we have been rebuilding,” McCartney concluded. “I am anticipating a successful season with a few surprises for people along the way. This group of kids is one that our school and community can be proud of, both in the classroom and on the field.”

Hendrickson Hawks

Coach: Frank Hense

Last year: 22-1, regional quarterfinalist.

Returning: Megan Baker (midfield), Asia Williams (midfield), Haley Cantu (midfield), Mikaela Harvey (midfield), Annie Bradburn (midfield), Peyton Williams (defense/midfield), Niki Belt (goalkeeper), Tyane Ramos (forward), Madi Gale (forward/midfield), Ciarra Brubaker (midfield).

New faces: Whitney Woodard (defense), Bonnie Messing (defense), Mackinzie Browning Whitney, Bonnie Messing (defense) and Samantha Hentosh (midfield).

Strengths: “Our strength is our midfield,” Hense said. “We have a lot of experience and returning lettermen in the midfield.”

Concerns: “We are young in the back but that will be remedied by experience,” Hense replied. “I think athletically they could become a vey good group.”

Keys: “As always I think team chemistry plays a huge part in your success in high school,” Hense said. “We have a talented group of individuals and how we do this year will depend on our team chemistry and how we come together as a team. If we play for each other within the system and without concern as to who gets the credit they will be a fun group to watch play.”

Pflugerville Panthers

Coach: Kim Rowe

Last year: 11-11-2

Returning: Leah Henry (goalkeeper), Lillie Ehlert (midfield), Lindsey DeLaRosa (midfield), Morgan Hernandez (midfield), Moyra Tran (midfield) and Andrea Hernandez (forward/midfield).

New faces: Abby Burke (midfield), Katie Burke (defense), Jesica Cortez (defense), Victoria Galaviz (defense), Ashley White (midfield/defense), Shara McDonald (defense), Chelsea Reedy (midfield), Lauren O’Neal (forward), Kaitlyn Winn (defense), Grace Burns (midfield) and Erika Cervantez (defense/midfield).

Strengths: “Our versatility, youth and work ethic,” Rowe said. “I had to replace a lot of starters from last year’s team on both the offense and defense. With this group coming in I have seven freshman but they are a very talented and dynamic group. They work well together and have really started to become a very cohesive unit and I believe that was missing last year. This team has speed and a good understanding of how to play the game. I have a lot of versatility within the team without losing anything by way of ability when I move players into different positions. Another strength has to be our goalie, Leah Henry. She is a returning starter and brings a lot of focus and intensity to the team and to her position. She will be a great asset for us with such a young team.”

Concerns: “Our youth and the number of starting field positions I had to replace,” Rowe answered. “It has the potential to really be a success but I do think we will have our moments were we may struggle as the girls adapt to the speed of the game and quality opponents we will face in our district. But if we can continue to learn to work together and learn from every opponent we face, we could really surprise a lot of people.”

Keys: “Communication, continued hard work every time we step on to the field of play and the willingness of each person on the field to sacrifice of themselves for the team,” Rowe said. “So far I have seen all of these things from the girls and if we can continue to work on these areas and meet every challenge with the intensity and excitement that they have shown throughout off-season, we could be really pretty good.”

The camp drew 24 boys and girls to the pitch at Hawk Stadium where they were given the chance to learn the game for four days from both Anderson and Hendrickson’s girls coach Frank Hense.

“The numbers have been good, but not where we want them to be,” Anderson said. “Like in the game, we need to keep improving.”

Participants in the camp learned about six aspects of the game each day. Anderson said they were taught “hardware” which included the physical, technical and tactical aspects of the game, and “software” which included the emotional, lifestyle and mental parts. After learning these things, each day ended with scrimmages, which Anderson said were the player’s favorite part of the day.

“They are soccer ‘players’ not soccer ‘practicers’,” he added.

In a time of economic trouble for local schools, Anderson says the Hawks soccer camp serves two purposes.

“This is grass-roots community outreach,” he explained. “We need to make the kids aware and keep them interested and excited about Hendrickson soccer.”

He then added, “as our athletic budgets shrink it is important for our program to have more kids attend camp. The money goes to our soccer activity account to help fund purchases for our players, and that money is really needed.”

Anderson said everyone enjoyed their four days, despite the unseasonably warm temperatures.

“The campers were awesome,” he said. “They worked hard all week, and never complained about the heat.”

Hendrickson had four players on the first team; Julio Espinosa (midfield), Anselmo Jimenez (defense), Andre Tayar (midfield) and Augustin Vargas (goalkeeper). Connally’s Noel Arguello (midfield), Nahum Hernandez (forward) and Fernando Morales (forward) were also first-team selections.

The second team included Hendrickson’s Collin Lovett (midfield), Chuy Martinez (defense), Ryan Perez (midfield) and Casey Tilly (goalkeeper) as well as Connally’s Chance Bryant (midfield), Josue Chavez (defense) and Dat Nguyen (defense).

Honorable mention was given to Hendrickson’s Alvin Escobar (midfield), Brandon Essler (defense) and Dustin Trandai (forward) and Connally’s Ahmad Akid (midfield), Jeffrey Brindle (defense) and Trent Hurley (midfield).

Hendrickson’s Megan Baker, Yesenia Morales, Juli Saba and Asia Williams were all first-team selections as was Connally’s Anabel Alvarado. Hawks Katelyn Frederick, Kamille Johnson, Haley Cantu and Reaghen Coleman were on the second team with Connally’s Fali Garuba. Honorablem mention went to Hendrickson’s Layde Benitz, Courtney Bieda and Nicole Hays and Connally’s Daisy Cantera, Jade Norwood, Jessica Garcia and Itzel Juarez.

Hendrickson had four players on the first team; Julio Espinosa (midfield), Anselmo Jimenez (defense), Andre Tayar (midfield) and Augustin Vargas (goalkeeper). Connally’s Noel Arguello (midfield), Nahum Hernandez (forward) and Fernando Morales (forward) were also first-team selections.

The second team included Hendrickson’s Collin Lovett (midfield), Chuy Martinez (defense), Ryan Perez (midfield) and Casey Tilly (goalkeeper) as well as Connally’s Chance Bryant (midfield), Josue Chavez (defense) and Dat Nguyen (defense).

Honorable mention was given to Hendrickson’s Alvin Escobar (midfield), Brandon Essler (defense) and Dustin Trandai (forward) and Connally’s Ahmad Akid (midfield), Jeffrey Brindle (defense) and Trent Hurley (midfield).

Hendrickson’s Megan Baker, Yesenia Morales, Juli Saba and Asia Williams were all first-team selections as was Connally’s Anabel Alvarado. Hawks Katelyn Frederick, Kamille Johnson, Haley Cantu and Reaghen Coleman were on the second team with Connally’s Fali Garuba. Honorablem mention went to Hendrickson’s Layde Benitz, Courtney Bieda and Nicole Hays and Connally’s Daisy Cantera, Jade Norwood, Jessica Garcia and Itzel Juarez.

The Hawks played the Chargers to a standstill for over 60 minutes before Champion’s Alex Rubio tickled the twine, taking a long pass and beating Hendrickson goalie Agustin Vargas for the first tally of the night. The score was just the beginning of an eruption by Rubio and the Champion offense that the Hawks could not stop. Eight minutes later the Chargers were awarded a free kick from just outside the box and again Rubio beat Vargas for a score. Less than two minutes later Rubio was at it again, scoring the final goal of the night and hammering the final nail in the coffin for Hendrickson’s season.

“Rubio hit us on the counter,” Hawk coach Bill Anderson said. “We contained him to that point, and the boys felt he was offside when he hit us. These are the risks a team must calculate and take if they are to play a certain style of soccer. The game unraveled from that point, and Boerne Champion deserves full credit for moving on while we move into our off-season preparations for 2012.”

The fact the Hawks found themselves in a scoreless tie with Champion for most of the game was a testament to their great defense, which kept the Chargers out of their goal despite many decent chances. On the flip side, the Hendrickson offense struggled to find its rhythm. The Hawks first real shot at the Champion goal came at the 25:13 mark off the foot of Cesar Alvarez and went wide of the goal. The Hawks won a couple of corners late in the first half but were unable to make anything out of them. Andre Tayar also got off a shot from the 30-yard line but it was stopped by Champion’s goalie and both teams went in at half with the score 0-0.

“Boerne Champion gets eight players behind the ball on a consistent basis,” Anderson said. “They play their restraining line at the edge of the box, like our district foe Hutto, who were also very difficult to score on. We knew going in to the game that there would not be a lot of shots, so we were focused on keeping possession and frustrating them in their attack. I feel that after the first 10 minutes that we were able to follow that game plan. The Chargers were not seeing the ball much in any good attacking positions, and we were controlling the midfield.”

The first 20 minutes of the second half played out much like the first 40 minutes that preceded them. Champion had a few looks at the Hawks goal just as Hendrickson had some chances to score on the Chargers. Anselmo Jimenez booted a long free kick in toward the Champion goal and Collin Lovett was able to fire a header off the pass but his shot was kicked away by the Charger defense. Lovett had a nice run at the 21:28 mark, speeding past the Champion defense but his pass attempt to Dustin Trandai went a little long and was corralled by the Charger goalie.

Hendrickson’s best chance to score actually came with just over two minutes left in the game when Mike White broke free from the Champion defense and fed a nice pass to Patrick Perez who’s shot just missed the net, sailing over the top of the goal instead.

While Anderson was disappointed his team is no longer playing he was happy with all they accomplished this year, including getting to the fourth round of the playoffs, which is the furthest the Hendrickson side has ever gone. They also won their district for the third year in a row.

“Our boys enjoyed their greatest post-season success this season,” he said. “Playing in the regional quarterfinal is a great honor and we were proud to represent our school and our community. We played what we thought was an entertaining brand of soccer. Our boys were able to produce their third straight district championship, and close out the most successful run in Pflugerville soccer history. Our senior boys were second place their freshman year, and finished champions the rest of the way. This is a major accomplishment for any school in any district across the state. We have two words written on our wall in the locker room “Tradition” and “Legacy”. We feel we have lived up to those two ideas this season, and produced the foundation for those ideas to continue in the future.”

The loss ended the season for a team that had been undefeated while rolling over the opposition. They finish the season 23-1.

“I was proud of our effort, we certainly never gave up,” Hawk coach Frank Hense said. “We brought pressure and kept trying to equalize.”

Hendrickson had a loud crowd, that brought lots of signs and spirit to support the team. Like a heavyweight title fight the two teams came out looking for a weakness and a opportunity to score. The two teams traded corner kicks early on, with no threat coming from either one.

Lake Travis won a corner kick four minutes in and came up with a nice chance. Katie Eaton crossed into Caitlin Pritchett who smacked a shot on target. Hawk goalie Reaghen Coleman came up huge, lifting the ball up and over the net to deny the goal.

Hendrickson threatened with a chance of their own four minutes later. After receiving a penalty kick in the midfield, Megan Baker lined up to send it forward. She put a nice ball in that Samantha Nunez ran towards, but was denied by the hard charging Jade van Streepen.

The two sides attempted to solve one another’s defense for most of the first half. With 24 minutes left on the clock the Lady Cavaliers were awarded a penalty kick right on the edge of the box due to a hand ball call. Emma Jones took aim and fired a shot that went over the goal.

The Hawks kept the pressure on as they nearly got on the board. Makeala Harvey brought the ball up the middle and played a great pass to her teammate Nunez who was running forward. Nunez was met by the out stretched van Streepen who’s finger tip kept Nunez from running in all alone on the net. The crowd leaped to their feet in anticipation of a break away goal, but were rudely denied by the finger-tip save.

Lake Travis brought heat of their own with a rush up field. Stephanie Lara crosses to Lauren Klein who whips a shot from distance off the left side. The shot swerved down and in past the out stretched reach of Coleman to give the Cavaliers the 1-0 lead.

The Hawks tried to turn up the pressure right out of the half. Katelyn Frederick launched a shot off of a a pass from Nunez that misses it’s mark.

With 31 minutes left on the clock the Cavaliers were given a gift as the referee made a controversial hand ball call and awarded Lake Travis a penalty kick. Emma Jones stepped up and put the shot to the right of Coleman who guessed correct, but could not keep it out of the goal, putting Lake Travis up 2-0.

The Hawks went right back on the attack. Nunez took the ball down the right side weaving in and out of several players to send it home cutting the deficit to 2-1.

With time running down the Hawks nearly tied it as Megan Baker hit a beautiful shot that rattled the cross bar from 30 yards out and bounces up for another chance. Asia Williams joined Nunez with time running off and got off one last shot but it was blocked.

“I’m proud of the boys,” Hawk coach Bill Anderson said. “All of their practice really paid off. A win like this helps propel the team even further. This is the type of win that builds boys into men.”

Neither team was able to crack the other’s goal for 100 minutes, forcing the contest to be settled by penalty kicks. Hawk goalie Agustin Vargas, who had stood tall in goal all night for Hendrickson, came up big in the shootout, stopping two of the first three shots he saw. His play opened the door for the Hawks to take the lead as Julio Espinosa and Collin Lovett both beat the Jaguar goalie, putting Hendrickson up 2-1 heading into the final kick. LBJ’s Julian Santos took the final shot for the Jaguars and as he raced toward the goal Vargas sped out to meet him, deflecting his kick away and winning the game for Hendrickson.

“I knew he was left footed so I tried to force him to his right,” Vargas said. “This feels great, especially for my seniors. I wanted to do it for them.”

Thanks to two tenacious defenses, both teams struggled to get decent looks at the opposing goals the entire night. The Hawks won a corner early in the game which resulted in a Lovett header that sailed over the Jaguar goal. Gomez had a 15-yard shot at LBJ’s goal at the 23:40 mark but his shot also sailed over the top of the goal. Late in the first half the Jaguars mounted a couple of decent runs at Hendrickson’s goal but both times Vargas came up with the save and the contest was scoreless going into the first intermission.

“We knew they had a really solid defense and a good keeper,” Anderson said. “Their back four were very hard to break down. We were really hoping to come away with this win.”

The second half was more of the same. Andre Tayar fired an early shot over the LBJ goal. Anselmo Jimenez had a 35-yard free kick that didn’t pan out. In the 27th minute, Hendrickson got one of their best chances to score as Michael White beat the Jaguar defense and got off a shot but it was stopped by the LBJ keeper. White made another good run 17 minutes later, weaving through the Jaguar defense, but he was not able to get much on the resulting shot and it was easily turned away.

The stingy defenses continued to dominate in the two overtime periods. LBJ had the only two good looks in the first overtime, but were turned away both times by Vargas.

“The three seniors in the back help out a lot,” Vargas said of his team’s tough defense. “We try to be very vocal.”

The Jaguars had the most chances in the second overtime as well, getting three decent looks at Hendrickson’s goal. The Hawks had just one, on a 30-yard free kick with 2:51 to play, but nothing came of it.