ROCHELLE — Injuries and inexperience created challenges for the Rochelle Lady Hub varsity soccer team throughout the 2024 season. With a full varsity season under their belts, however, head coach Brad Male is optimistic that the experience gained by Rochelle’s young players, particularly the freshmen, will lead to more positive results when the girls return next spring.

Rochelle finished with a 3-20 overall record and a 0-10 record in the Interstate 8 Conference during the 2024 season. The highlight of the season was undoubtedly the Byron Tournament, where the Lady Hubs defeated both Rockford Christian Life and Rock Island to bring home the third-place trophy. Rochelle also scored a 9-0 victory over Pecatonica late in the season.

“We dealt with a lot of injuries this year and that was the most unfortunate thing because we were never really at full strength,” Male said. “We had a lot of young players who received valuable playing time and we’re hoping that will inspire them to make a commitment and take the next step. The girls continued to come out and improve every day and we’re hoping they can carry that over to next year so we can continue to find more positives next year.”

Rochelle will lose a trio of key seniors including four-year starting goalkeeper Danica Ward (226 saves) as well as four-year starting forward Kara Martinez (two goals, one assist) and three-year starting forward Sydney Thorne (five goals). The Lady Hubs are expecting to be strong on defense next season, as Rochelle will return most of its back-row players including junior center back Betty Flores (two goals, one assist) and outside defender Anahi Cervantes. 

“I thought our teamwork started to come around toward the end of the season,” Male said. “We started the season with 15 freshmen and we struggled at first to put our players in the right spots. I thought our girls gained more confidence toward the end of the season and they played well with the seniors. Hopefully we’re able to continue building on that for next year.”

Other notable defenders eligible to return next spring include sophomore Abby Bozinovich as well as freshmen Cali Zies and Adyson Carter (79 saves), who all earned varsity starts this season. Among the midfielders eligible to return are juniors Makayla Lara (nine goals, eight assists) and Emma Kennay (three goals, one assist) as well as sophomore Evileth Mendez. Junior Jeanette Valle and freshman Taylor Olsen are two key forwards eligible to come back.

“We should be in a good position defensively next year,” Male said. “I think we should be OK in the back with the experience we gained this year… I thought we struggled in the midfield this year, but that was mainly because of the injuries we suffered. We’re hoping that everyone can come back healthy next year and if we can do that, I think our teamwork will be a lot better.”