The offseason is a time for growth, to improve skills, strategy and team chemistry.
Idaho soccer is taking full advantage in 2019.
After some turmoil and turnover with the head coaching position in summer 2018, Jeremy Clevenger was hired from Northern Iowa to take the helm and lead the program, coming away with better results than most fans expected.
With a group of seniors that held the record for most wins by a class that included the likes of Kelly Dopke, Claire Johnson, Makayla Presgrave, Josilyn Daggs, Bridget Daley, Megan Goo, Kayla Watanabe and Jordyn Dion, there was a lot to live up to for the first-year head coach.
“I’m thrilled of how the 2018 season went,” Clevenger said. “Obviously we would have liked to have won the championship — but just reflecting on the staff coming in late, players and coaches trying get to know each other and implement new philosophies and structures, the players adapted well, and I thought we were playing some of our best soccer by the end of the year.”
But after a successful season, the core of the old team is gone and a new era of Vandal soccer is set to begin in 2019.
Sophomore midfield Sidney Schmidt takes the ball up the field on Sunday at Martin Stadium against Washington State.
Clevenger now has a young group, with new leader- ship roles in need of filling. He will look to take advantage of his first spring season — a time to learn, not just in a practice setting, but with game-like conditions against solid teams in the northwest.
The spring season is a bit odd when compared to the fall. With no stats or announcers and few fans in the stands, some wonder if there is any reason for there to even be a spring season.
“This is a great time for our team to develop,” assistant coach Nicole Randle said. “Especially for younger players who maybe didn’t see as much time in the fall. It’s a great time for them to get game time in these spring games for the players and our team as a whole to grow.”
Randle said this time of year is more for the technical parts of the team’s game — passing, shooting, ball control, communication and technique when on the pitch.
The spring schedule consists of five games: two on the road and three at home against various teams in the Pacif- ic Northwest. Idaho played its first game Sunday against Washington State in Pullman, which despite ending in a 1-3 loss, had positives and was a good starting point for the season.
“In the first half, we came out and really played well,” Clevenger said. “We controlled the game, moved the ball — Washington State did a good job of pressuring us and made it hard to switch the point of attack, they are a really good defensive team and we were leading at halftime 1-0.”
But in the second half, Clevenger acknowledged the Cougars came out with a new game plan and a high level of intensity that caught the Vandals off guard.
This led to mistakes and miscues for Idaho that led to the loss, but this was not seen as a negative.
“We had a couple youth mistakes that you don’t normally see in the fall season, but regardless, I think it was a great learning lesson for us, we need to be more prepared to finish games, especially when we are up on a Pac-12 opponent,” Clevenger said.
Spring is also a time for evaluation, seeing where the team stands after seniors leave the program and new players are excited to step into those roles.
The coaching staff is confident though in what the current players and how they will lead this team during a transition period, pointing out how graduate student Kayleigh Frederick, senior Julia Byerlein and junior Taylor Brust are all strong leadership presences and play at a high level on the field.
“When you lose a big senior class, there are opportunities for people to step up and that is what we are looking forward to within the upper class — to step in and take on those vacant leadership roles for the team,” Clevenger said.
And in terms of skill on the field, the coaching staff has been impressed with the team’s ability to continue to play at a high level, saying that they very well could continue to be one of the best teams in the Big Sky conference if the players continue to develop and grow to their expected potential.
Idaho plays its next game against Gonzaga at 1 p.m.Saturday in Spokane, Washington.
Zack Kellogg can be reached at [email protected]