Lions have all the makings of another title teamLions have all the makings of another title team

Lions have all the makings of another title teamLions have all the makings of another title team

A COMMON GOAL-Above, Oaks Christian's do-it-all senior Caitlyn MacKechnie shields a Notre Dame defender from getting at the ball. Right, junior Brittany Peterson (No. 17) makes an attempt at a header while ponytails fly. According to head coach Jan Hethcock, this group of Lions has as much all-around talent as any of the squad's he's coached in his 31 years in soccer. Blessed again with talent and plenty of depth, the Blessed again with talent and plenty of depth, the Oaks Christian girls’ soccer team remains a Oaks Christian girls’ soccer team remains a favorite to repeat By Kyle Jorrey jorrey@theacorn.com

Oaks Christian head coach/athletic director Jan Hethcock has seen a lot of teams come and go in his 31 years of coaching soccer, but there’s just something about this year’s Lion soccer squad that strikes him as special.

And what pleases him most about the group of 12 goes far beyond talent and skill—beyond knowledge of the game and a desire to win. To Hethcock, the Lions’ greatest asset is their clear-cut understanding of what it means to be a team, and that, above all else, is what gives him the most satisfaction.

"These kids all play for each other . . . they are not separate, they all encompass one body," Hethcock said. "They work together, they walk together, it’s almost impossible to split them up. At a school like Oaks Christian, we don’t just want to win. We want teamwork, we want bonding, we want these kids to walk away knowing they were a part of something special, and this team has got it."

With the help of this philosophy, and a bevy of soccer talent, the Lions are on their way to another successful season. Following wins this week over Notre Dame, 4-1, and Santa Paula, 4-0, Oaks Christian is 12-2-3, and again looking like it will compete for a CIF title. The Lions are two-time defending co-champions after tying in the Div. V championship game the past two seasons.

"I think when you put all 11 out there, top-to-bottom, this is the best team Oaks Christian has ever put on a soccer field," Hethcock said. "And what’s really encouraging is that we just keep getting better and better."

This year’s squad is anchored by senior midfielder Caitlyn MacKechnie, considered by many to be Ventura County’s most complete high school player.

When she’s on the field, MacKechnie is soccer’s version of a point guard, able to draw opponent’s defenses to her and then quickly find an open teammate. She has a team-high 10 assists on the season and five goals.

"She’s our field general, she is so unselfish," Hethcock said. "She’s one of those players that forces you to be aware whenever she’s on the field. If you’re not paying attention, all of a sudden the ball could be at your laces, and if you’re not ready, you might trip over it."

After the graduation of O.C.’s all-time leading goal scorer, Alysha Hoven, the coach was concerned about how the Lions would make up for the loss of production.

Luckily, this concern was short-lived thanks to the performance of freshmen Kelsea Smith and Hannah MacKechnie, and former-striker-turned-midfielder Nicole Sweet-man. The three have combined for 28 of the team’s 51 goals on the year. Sweetman leads the way with 11 while Smith, the team’s brightest young star, is just behind with 10.

Like many of the girls on the roster, Sweetman has proved this season that she has the ability to play multiple positions. In fact, Hethcock’s decision to move the sophomore from the front to the middle has opened up more long-range scoring opportunities for her powerful left-footed shot—something Sweetman has enjoyed.

"Nicole had played striker her whole life, and I told her that she didn’t want to be known as a one-dimensional player," the coach said. "So I just asked her to give it a try, and in the first game she got two goals. At halftime she came over to me and said ‘Man, I like this position.’"

The Lions versatility has allowed Hethcock to act as the "mad scientist" on the sidelines, constantly switching up different combinations in search of just the right fit in just the right situation. This constant shifting of positions has made the already goal-savvy Lions even more difficult to defend because it’s hard to know where the attack will be coming from.

"I get the feeling sometimes I could put any one of these players anywhere on the field and they could get the job done," Hethcock said. "That’s just the kind of soccer players they are."

Marked by an uncommonly balanced scoring attack, the Lions have gotten three or more goals from seven different players. Also contributing are Alexandra Kaplan (5), Whitney Acton (4) and Brianna Cox (4).

In goal again this year is talented shot-stopper Julia Humphries, who Hethcock calls "the best high school goalkeeper in the county."

"She is a second-baseman on our CIF-title winning softball team, so she has great hands," he said of the junior. "Plus she anticipates well and she is extremely athletic. She doesn’t have years and years of experience, but this kid has so much athleticism."

With only six matches remaining, including a road game today at Nordhoff, the Lions are looking ahead to another run at the title. In addition to its remaining Frontier League games, OCHS has games scheduled with Francis Parker (San Diego) and El Camino Real, two private school programs with impressive resumes.

Hethcock hopes that scheduling tough late-season matches like these will have the Lions better prepared for the playoffs.

"This season we’ve played the toughest schedule we’ve played in the history of the program," he said. "We don’t play in the strongest league so we have find ways to keep them motivated by playing other quality schools."

Though he’s led the Lions to a stellar 80-16-16 record over the past four seasons, Hethcock is still pursuing the one goal that’s eluded him: an outright CIF title. Sure, being co-champion is nice, but the OCHS players still want to know what it would be like to have the trophy all to themselves, especially after a disappointing tie in last year’s playoffs with Notre Dame.

"The girls have talked about it—wanting to win this one for ourselves—but they’re not worried about it," Hethcock said. "Each year the pressure gets tougher—is this going to the year? Even at school, the players are constantly hearing that nobody can stop them and that we’re unbeatable, but that’s not our mindset. We have to remain focused on getting better week-to-week and not start thinking we’re better than we are. In situations like these, our biggest enemy could be ourselves."