Penn Hills girls soccer aiming to take practice lessons into games

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, September 1, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Myron Cook knows the Penn Hills girls soccer team was tantalized by the movement and pace of the Fox Chapel soccer team.

On Aug. 28 at Nate Ferraro Field, the defending WPIAL Class 4A champions defeated Penn Hills, 10-0.

“Even though we try to do the keep-away game, you’re trying to get them to focus on it, and it’s different when you are playing a team that does it as an offense,” Cook said. “They are pinging that ball around like ‘holy smokes,’ and our girls are sitting here like, ‘Isn’t that something?’ Yeah, it is.”

Penn Hills will be at a skill deficit against many of its opponents this season. The Indians only have one player on the roster, Callie Hankey, who plays club soccer.

Cook said that Penn Hills’ 21-player roster showed a lot of enthusiasm during training.

“I think they did real well this year,” Cook said. “They did a lot of running in the morning. We did two or three hours of practice in the evening (in preseason workouts). They were excited about it. A lot of the girls that are playing now saw the bench last year. The opportunity was there for them.”

Penn Hills’ lineup had no time to adjust to the rigors of section play.

The Indians opened the year with a 6-0 Section 1-3A loss to Gateway. The Indians followed that up with a difficult matchup against Fox Chapel.

“They’re doing the best they can,” Cook said. “I said that’s all they can do it to compete.”

Penn Hills had many underclassmen on the field against the Foxes. The Indians hope the group will grow throughout the season.

“I want to see if the girls are learning what is being taught in practice,” Cook said. “I want them to be able to relay what they learn in practice to the game. They knew what they were up against, and it would be a good challenge for them. Fox Chapel isn’t afraid to move the ball, and they give and go a lot. We need to try and get up to that level.”

Tags: Penn Hills