Sports

Scared straight

• A new coach, a new style and a 1-4-1 start to the season would’ve been enough to scare anyone on the DWS girls soccer program — that is, until they started winning, and now sit one win from the GISA Class AAA Final Four.

Derek Barichello

ALBANY — The Deerfield-Windsor girl’s soccer season was one that started with a bit of anxiety.

Some would say maybe a little fear.

Not knowing what to expect from their rookie coach on the first day of practice, newcomer Tony Voyles initiated his Lady Knights immediately with a new formation and an intense practice of running.

“It was scary,” senior defender Devin Webb said. “It was like, ‘Whoa, he doesn’t take any crap.’ ”

Now, the pain and exhaustion from those early season practices — ones that resulted in a dismal 1-4-1 start — are just a distant memory as the Region 3-AAA champion Lady Knights (10-5-2) host Stratford Academy (7-9-2) today at 1 p.m. in the second round of the GISA state playoffs.

“I saw we were losing games (last season) because we weren’t fit enough,” saidVoyles, who is soft-spoken in his demeanor, but still demands a full effort in his drill-filled practices and is quick to share jokes with his team at the end of it. “We did a lot of work on fitness, and now we’re running all over the place and utilizing our speed.”

But before the Lady Knights won nine of their last 11 games en route to a region title — and a first-round bye — there was a change that needed to take place.

Much like a Voyles fitness drill, the beginning of the season was grueling as the Lady Knights lost games to the tune of 6-0 and 8-0 to Frederica Academy, 8-0 to Mount de Sales Academy and 5-1 to Westminster Schools of Augusta.

After Voyles saw his staple formation of a “box midfield” (four midfielders and three forwards) — a completely new set to the Lady Knights — give up 32 goals in seven games, he knew it was time to move on.

“They weren’t grasping it,” said Voyles, who coached six years at Ware County and one at Castlewood, also playing two years of professional soccer, one in Iceland and one in North Carolina. “We were giving up a ton of goals and we needed results. So we reverted back."

That meant back to the five-midfield, two-forward formation the Lady Knights ran before Voyles arrived.

Subsequently, the turnaround came April 7 in an 8-1 win against today’s opponent, Stratford, which started the season No. 4 in the GISA AAA Coaches’ Poll.

“We just felt comfortable,” said sophomore Lacey Kincheloe, who has recorded 22 goals and nine assists. “Everyone knew their position and we could just play. Once we beat Stratford, we knew we could beat anybody.”

And since then, the Lady Knights have showed it.

With seven wins, 53 goals netted and only seven allowed in the last eight games, DWS appears to have hit its stride — and just in the nick of time.

Their improvement showed most when the Lady Knights, who lost by a combined score of 14-0 in two games to Frederica, played them to a 2-2 tie to conclude the regular season on May 6.

"We started doing a good job of communicating and passing it around the field," said DWS leading scorer Shelby Cosby, who signed with Division I Kennesaw State on Thursday and has 26 goals and 11 assists. "We tire out teams with our height and speed."

With recent success against Frederica, which is ranked No. 1 in the GISA AA Coaches' Poll, serving as the road map of progress, the Lady Knights are hoping to return to the Final Four for the first time since 2006, when they lost to — coincidentally — Stratford, 4-0, and avenge a second-round exit last season 1-0 at Mount de Sales.

“I think we can win a state title,” Voyles said. “But it’s not an easy road. There are teams like FPD and Mount de Sales in our way. Hopefully, we can sneak up on them and show them how much we've improved.”

But first, the Lady Knights will have to get by the Lady Eagles for the third time this season after winning, 8-1, at home on April 7 and 3-2 on April 22 in Macon.

To do so, the Lady Knights know it starts with stopping the Lady Eagles' leading scorer, Mary Del Holleman.

"If we shut her down, and do a good job controlling the midfield, we'll be all right," Voyles said.

Leading that charge for the Lady Knights will be Cosby and Kincheloe, along with Ivy Puckett, who has netted 12 goals and recorded 14 assists. And protecting the goal will be Katie Williams, who has allowed 39 goals in 16 games for a 2.44 goals allowed average.

Still, one thing is for sure, after those grueling early season practices, they will not be tired.

"That's part of our game now," Cosby said.

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