The Oxford Lady Chargers opened their season with a 7-0 win against Olive Branch on a brand new turf soccer field on Monday, Oct. 28. This win marked head coach Hunter Crane’s 200th career win as the head coach of the Chargers. The turf field is a recent addition to the sports complex behind Oxford Middle School and is one of the largest in the state.
“We are very blessed,” Crane said. “The Oxford community came out and supported the bond issue and the soccer field was included on the bond. They asked me what I wanted during the process of this and I wanted one of the biggest, nicest fields in the state. The town, the school board, and the school district came together and delivered on that. When you look at it, it is definitely very impressive. It is going to give us a huge home field advantage because of the space and the fact that we play on that surface every day. It’s going to be huge for our program and we are really excited about that.”
Along with the excitement over the new field, Crane has very high expectations for the girls’ soccer program.
“We’ve won several district titles in a row and several state championships in the time that I’ve been here,” Crane said. “ So that’s kind of always our expectation. To show up and compete for a state championship.”
The team brings back only three seniors, but according to Crane, they will bring a huge impact. The team also recently elected four captains, two seniors and two juniors.
“Madison Strum and Sonia Sandoval have been playing and starting for us since they were freshmen,” Crane said. “They are going to bring a huge punch and great leadership as well. You have to get the players who will get you there. Both Madison and Sonia were voted senior captains. Madison is a big goal scorer for us and we are going to lean on her. Sonia is a senior midfielder and controls the ball well. Addison Arnoldi is one of our junior captains and the anchor of our backline. Kate Nordstrom is also a junior captain and will step into a midfielder role.”
Crane is also relying on freshman center midfielder Jane Irwin who played varsity as an eighth grader last year.
“I am very honored to be a freshman on this team,” Irwin said. “I am very grateful for all my teammates and coaches who have given me this opportunity. My main focus with my teammates is building trust with them, and I think my teammates view me as someone they can trust.”
Irwin has a lot of goals for herself this season, but most importantly she wants to have meaningful on- field contributions each game, like an assist, crucial pass, or a goal. Irwin hopes to be able to dig deep and maintain a positive attitude when games get tough or during difficult situations in games.
“I think everyone on the team wants one main thing: to win a state championship,” Irwin said. “We always want to compete at our highest level in every game, giving 100% no matter what. The team expects everyone to work hard, play together as one, and to have fun too. And I want to be able to contribute everything I can to the seniors so they can graduate as state champions.”
Senior forward Madison Strum also has high expectations for herself and the team this year.
“As a captain, I know I have to be a leader every day and help this team,” Strum said. “As a senior, I feel like I need to be able to help make the team feel connected. I know the team is motivated because of the talent we all have and we all want the same thing.”
Crane explains that this team feels confident about competing for a championship title.
“This is the best I’ve felt about a group going into game one,” Crane said. “I think they are very talented. We lost a lot from last year’s team, but we also brought back a ton of experience. Some girls were really young last year and now they are a year older
with more experience.”
