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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend September 9, 2005 Panthers picked to win SOC girls crown Former Crater coach Fretz takes over South program that has enjoyed much success By TIM TROWER Mail Tribune High expectations are nothing new for the South Medford girls soccer team. Even with a new coach in Terry Fretz, late of Crater, that hasn’t changed. The Panthers were picked to win the Southern Oregon Conference in a preseason vote by the coaches, earning six first-place votes and 47 points. That was seven points more than Grants Pass, which got two first place votes, and North Medford. A year ago, South placed second in the SOC to North by one game. It proved to be an aberration, as the Panthers have owned at least a share of the SOC crown in 10 of the past 13 years. Fretz, who replaced Cindy Jolly at the helm, witnessed South’s success from a distance. Now he has a front-row seat. Advertisement "It’s not so much me," says Fretz, "but the girls expect it (to be the SOC’s best). Those are the ones you go by. They have high expectations and believe in themselves. We’re running some new things, and they’re starting to see how it really works. They’re really buying into it. It’s a great group of girls to work with." He enjoyed his six years at Crater, where he lifted the Comets from the cellar to consecutive state-playoff appearances. But there’s a difference at South, which lost in the first round of the state playoffs last year to Newberg, 3-1, and completed the season with a 12-3 record. "I’m 18 deep," says Fretz. "It’s fun to see. You can pull somebody off the field and not skip a beat." Senior center midfielder Jessica Janes, one of the team captains, should be a force for South. "She’s a great distributor of the ball," says Fretz, "and as of late, she’s also showing she can finish the ball. We’ll probably get a lot of assists from her, but also some goals." Junior forward Chelsie O’Neill suffered a knee injury in basketball, and it’s hoped she’ll be able to play by midseason, says Fretz. Up front, the Panthers expect to get much of their scoring from junior Kendall Gallop and sophomore Damiann Compher. Junior Samantha Matthews, who missed last year because of a knee injury, is also back with the team. "We’ve got a lot of speed," says Fretz. "Basically, we’re just going to push ball as much as we can. We have a lot of speed on outside. That’s where we’re hoping to capitalize, getting it down on the outside to our two strikers, who can finish." North Medford knows about finishing. It finished off the competition last year en route to winning the SOC championship, and it isn’t likely to give up the title without a fight. Asked where his team falls into the mix, coach Dick Darcy was succinct: "First," he said. The Black Tornado made it one step further than South last year at state, falling in the second round to South Eugene, 3-2. There are few holdovers from that North team that went 14-2. "This team is very young," says Darcy, who counts four freshmen on the roster. "But fortunately, we probably have the best defense in the league and the best goalkeeper in the league. That will help a lot. That’s where our experience is, in the defense. We’ll be able to keep the goals out and need to find a way to get the goals in." Junior Megan Ross, a midfielder last year because the Tornado was loaded in goal, returns to her customary position, where she would have "been a starter for any other team in the league" last year, says Darcy. The fullbacks are senior Alicia Stormberg, junior Caitlin Engle and sophomore Ashley Chambers. Alex Batzer returns to anchor the midfield. The scoring should come from halfbacks Irene Kendig, a junior, and senior Shauna Spano. A newcomer to the team who should help immensely, says Darcy, is former Tornado star Lu Crenshaw, who will serve as an assistant coach. She starred at St. Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif. The SOC went to a 14-game, round-robin schedule last year, meaning each team plays the others twice. Play begins Saturday with Eagle Point at South Medford, North Medford at Klamath Union, Grants Pass at Crater and Ashland at Roseburg. All games start at 1 p.m. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail Panthers picked to win SOC girls crown ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. 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