The Fountain Hills High School girls soccer season came to an end last Tuesday, Jan. 31. The Falcons finished higher than 14 other teams in the final conference rankings, and they won three of their last six games.

There was a different feeling to the girls team this year than last season. The Falcons were shorthanded both years, but they forfeited their last game last year and finished 0-10. The Falcons fought to the bitter end this year and went 3-9.

The Falcons scored five times as many goals this year compared to last year, and junior Erin Hooley was the leading scorer two years in a row. Hooley scored a three-goal hat trick in the 4-0 win over Anthem Prep on Friday, Jan. 20, and she scored the lone goal in the final 2-1 loss to Madison Highland Prep last Tuesday.

“Maybe it’s because I’m on soccer this year, but everyone’s just talking about it a lot more,” sophomore Lucia Kalmbach said. “Even my teachers are coming up to me, like ‘oh did you win your game,’ and I definitely feel like that didn’t happen last year. I didn’t hear what happened at soccer games at all last year.”

Kalmbach was one of five new players, and the last to join this season. She said her teammates called her joining late a “saving grace,” because they finally had 11 players. The Falcons were thrilled to have a complete roster, but Kalmbach felt much different at the beginning.

“When I first joined, I thought I would literally be trash,” Kalmbach said. “I was a little scared, but it came back to me.”

Kalmbach played soccer in middle school, but only played volleyball last year. She said muscle memory helped her, but she had a rough start in her first game.

One of the two freshmen, Jaden Dunkeson, felt similar to Kalmbach. She didn’t have high expectations since she hadn’t played soccer since she was five years old, and she was also scared at the start of the season. Like Kalmbach, she worried about her skill level and even thought the other players would make fun of her.

“I thought they were going to be a little judgey because I kind of suck, but they were really nice, actually,” Dunkeson said. “I have been really happy with this team, and how we’ve been doing, and how they treated me.”

Each player was invaluable since they had no substitutes, and everyone was a starter. Dunkeson said all she remembered coming into the year was to kick with her laces, and she learned more with every practice and game this season.

“At the start of the season, I was really timid, very scared going near people, touching people, doing throw-ins, all that kind of stuff,” Dunkeson said. “Now I can confidently do a throw-in, guard someone, all of it…It was a lot more fun than I thought it was going to be.”

Sophomore Zoe Kohoutek was another addition that relearned the sport along Kalmbach and Dunkeson. Sophomores Sara Dethlefs and freshman Paula Graber came into the season with club experience, and they both made big plays for the Falcons all year long.

Racine Homyak was the only sophomore that played for the Falcons last year. She showed much improvement on the defensive end and was in better shape after running on the cross country team for the first time last fall.

Hooley and Homyak each were part of the girls cross country state team last fall, and they were in great shape for the soccer season. Not only was head coach Malcolm Cutting happy to have players in shape, but he also wanted to thank cross country coach Kevin Clancy and other teachers for helping to recruit soccer players.

Dethlefs was one of the leading scorers, and she and junior Hailey Chandler were second and third behind Hooley in goals scored. All three scored in tough situations because they were double-teamed, or even triple-teamed defensively in most games.

“I love the dynamics on the team. The girls really gelled together, that’s what held them together,” Cutting said. “When we got some bad losses against better teams, even though we were shorthanded, you really have to take your hat off to them because they really played their hearts out.”

Cutting had to coach every aspect of the game, and mental toughness and confidence was a top priority. He said he didn’t care about players’ skill level coming into the year, because he saw them give maximum effort every time.

“There wasn’t any game that those kids didn’t give me 100%,” Cutting said. “When I see youngsters, and especially Jaden, and you look at how she has grown, that’s why I coach.”

The Falcons had two seniors, Liv Sopeland and Jordan Pena, and both missed the last several games. Rising seniors include Hooley, Chandler, goalkeeper Jeneya Boone and Stella Grieco. All four of them were returners from last year and crucial to the Falcons’ success this year.

Grieco was one of the most vocal girls on the team and helped the rookies adjust to the games as they happened. She moved to a midfield position this year, and Grieco played both offense and defense as opposed to just defense last year.

The girls had fun, but they were exhausted by the end of the season. Cutting said a professional soccer player runs five or six miles in every game, and the Falcons’ one chance at a water break was halftime.

Cutting would like to return and continue building up the soccer program at Fountain Hills and he thinks consolidation could have a positive effect on recruiting middle school athletes. The Falcons found a way for every player to improve and contribute, and they made sure to keep each other’s spirits up when times were tough.

“I didn’t realize how tight-knit this team is,” Kalmbach said. “It kind of surprised me how supportive they are.”