By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Lebanon Lady Yellowjackets had success fielding a young team in 2021, which has coach Matt Jernigan excited about the 2022 season.
“(The year) 2021 was a good year for us in many ways,” said Jernigan, who is heading into his ninth year leading the Lebanon girls’ program. “First of all, it was just nice to get out on the field together after the COVID year in 2020. We had several of our underclassmen step up and play well at a varsity level, which was nice to see. We had great numbers on the girls’ team and hope that will continue this year as well.”
The Lady Yellowjackets, who finished 13-12 overall and 4-5 in the Ozark Conference, graduated five players from last year’s squad including defender Alyson Johnson, a Class 3 District 9 first-team, All-Ozark Conference first-team selection, who scored 11 goals; midfielder Amanda Dewitt (1 assist); defender Taylor Miller; midfielder Jordan Denson; and midfielder Reagan Hathaway (1 goal).
“Our senior class had a lot of resilience,” Jernigan said. “After not playing in 2020, they were able to step in and lead a young team. We had a lot of success last year because of our seniors and how they led on and off the field.”
Lebanon’s strength this season is in the return of a great deal of experience, including nine starters and 15 players who earned varsity minutes.
“We are returning three of our four defenders and most of our scoring from last year, so we are hoping to hit the ground running,” Jernigan said.
• Jaidyn Collins, junior, midfielder (18 goals, 9 assists) – All-district first team; All-OC first team. “Jaidyn is a playmaker,” Jernigan said. “She sees the field really well and has the ability to not only score goals, but to make the pass to set up a goal. She is a great athlete and has a great soccer IQ.”
• Brooke Frank, junior, defender (5 goals, 1 assist) – All-district second team; All-OC second team. “Brooke really stepped up last year in the defense. We are looking for her to take over at center back this year for Alyson and we think she will do a great job there.”
• Kaitlyn Frank, junior, midfielder – “Kaitlyn is a great player and has great instincts on the ball. We are excited for her to have a breakout year this year.”
• Jayden Piercey, junior, forward (20 goals, 9 assists) – All-district second team; All-OC second team. “Speed – that is what Jayden brings. She is extremely aggressive and finds a way to put the ball in the goal. She is going to give backlines trouble again this year.”
• Chloe Shivers, senior, midfielder (1 assist) – All-OC honorable mention. “Chloe is a competitor. She is tough and makes the game tough on opposing offenses. Her efforts don’t always show in the stat book, but she is the key to our team. Her leadership will be our biggest asset this year.”
• Jewell Shockley, senior, defender – “Jewell is a senior who has played all four years and knows our program. She is a great young lady on and off the field. She will be in the defense again for us and we are excited to have that experience on the backline.”
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Jernigan has a mix of players he is looking to continue developing and make an impact this season.
“We were able to get some games in this summer and then have been doing offseason workouts from November through February,” Jernigan said. “Some of our girls have been able to play club soccer in the offseason, but most of our girls are multi-sport athletes. They have been playing volleyball, cross country, basketball, wrestling and swimming. We love having athletes who are not just soccer players but compete in other sports as well.”
• Sydney Wilson, junior, goalkeeper – “Sydney did well for us last year in goal. We had six shutouts with her in goal and we expect her to continue to develop this year.”
• Mahayla Smith, freshman, midfielder – “Mahayla has really been impressive in the offseason, and we expect her to contribute at the varsity level immediately.”
• Kaylyn Rogers, senior, midfielder – “Kaylyn stepped into a starting role last year as a junior and really played well. She is a top-level wrestler and was part of the Lebanon state championship wrestling team last year. She knows how to win and brings that to our soccer team.”
• Maddie Jay, senior, forward – “Maddie is a great young lady and will be a good leader for our team. She is a speedster and will bring us another threat up top.”
The Lady Yellowjackets are hosting a jamboree on March 11 with Marshfield, Crocker and Bolivar, and will open the regular season by hosting the Heritage Bank Tournament on March 18-19.
“We are excited about the players we bring back this year,” Jernigan said. “We are expecting a good year and always have the goals of competing at the district and conference level. We are in a very tough Ozark Conference and know we will have to play well every night to compete.”
