ROSSFORD – Lake’s girls soccer team started preseason practice as a group of talented
individuals.
But in the less than a month, the Flyers finally developed into a cohesive team.
The change is paying off. PHOTO
GALLERY
Lake
remained undefeated in the Northern Buckeye Conference Thursday with a 9-0
victory over Rossford.
The Flyers – ranked ninth in the first Division II state poll announced this week –
are 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the NBC. Their only loss came Aug. 27 in a 2-1 defeat
at home against No. 3 Toledo St. Ursula.
The Flyers’ season has been filled with solid offense and defense. Lake has scored 27
goals and allowed just four in its six games.
"I’m really pleased," Lake coach Kevin Lanning said. "It is early, but
I do like what I’m seeing, especially the competitiveness, the edge to our team
– that’s something that’s a lot more consistent than it was last year.
"We’re always wanting to play hard in practice and we’re doing the little things
well, even things like taking care of injuries the right way, hydrating, eating
the right foods and making sure practices are as intense as the games."
Lake dominated against Rossford, scoring four of its goals in the first half.
The goals resulted from excellent plays and they also played well defensively when
tested. Lake senior goalkeeper Ashley Timmons didn’t have to make a save.
"We have that winners mind-set," Lanning said. "The wins are nice, but
I like seeing them develop as individuals and as a team, and the wins are coming
as a result of that."
But the season didn’t start easily. When practice began in early August, the players
were more concerned with their individual statistics than the team’s success.
Now, the Flyers are playing for the team.
"We’ve come a long ways since the preseason and really picked it up because
we’re more of a team than individuals," Lake senior forward Shelby
Antonacci.
Six Flyers scored goals against Rossford, including Tabitha Aikman with three, and
Nicole Jones with two goals and one assist. Alyssa Shaffer and McKenzie
Brittenham both added one goal and one assist.
Antonacci and Alexis Hansen scored the other goals, while Jordn Taylor added two
assists and Makenzie Mazey had one.
"Coach Lanning just told us we wouldn’t be successful as a team if we played as
individuals and were concerned about who got the credit," Timmons said.
"We finally realized it doesn’t matter who gets the credit as long as the team
wins," Antonacci said.
The offense has been complemented by the defense of Allison Perry, Rebecca Boos and
Reed; and the goalkeeping of Timmons.
"The bottom line in my job is I don’t care who gets the credit," Lanning
said. "It’s about the team and I’ve seen a collective shift in the mind-set
of the team and it’s only helped us. It’s a lot easier when they don’t care who
gets the credit and they’re only worried about the team’s success."
The Flyers are no strangers to success, though.
Lake returns 14 letter winners from last season when it was 12-4-1 overall and won
the NBC with a 9-0-1 record.
Entering this season, the Flyers were 59-11-8 overall in the last four seasons and
won their league title each time. Lake won the final three Suburban Lakes League
championships before joining the NBC last fall.
The Flyers have a good mix of youth and experience. Their 18-player roster has seven
seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and four freshmen.
"Our goal is to continue to be successful," Antonacci said. "We just
have to keep our confidence as individuals. We’re all good players and we know
if we have a bad game, somewhere else is there to back us up."
The Flyers’ primary objective, aside from winning, is to improve each day so they’re
ready for the big games in the NBC and the tournament at the end of the season.

"Our girls understand when it’s time to play," said Lanning, who is in his
second season. "We know it’s early and the ranking is just people saying
we’re good, but you still have to go out on the field and prove it every
game."
The Flyers will receive even more attention, now that they’re in the state rankings.

"That’s really exciting. It’s pretty cool," Antonacci said. "But coach
Lanning keeps us in line. He always lets us know there are things we can be
doing better and he pushes us to do our best every day."
Kirsten Keller made 19 saves for Rossford (0-7, 0-3).
The Bulldogs are a young team. Only three of their 18 players are seniors. They also
have eight sophomores and three freshmen.
"I’m really pleased overall," said first-year Rossford coach Erika Kimple.
"The girls are working hard and they’re improving every day."