ALL-CVA GIRLS SOCCER COACH OF THE YEAR: Pat Campbell, Covenant

In the two years before Pat Campbell became coach, the Covenant girls soccer team was very good, but not yet great. The Eagles made it to the VISAA Division II semifinals in both 2007 and 2006 but were unable to push any further.

“We’ve always had a good team,” said goalkeeper Martha Hay, the team’s lone senior this year. “But this team this year was better skill wise than any of the teams before,”

With Campbell taking the reins as a first-year coach, taking over a team that had just one senior, it’s safe to say that not many expected Covenant to make it back to the semifinals — much less win the tournament outright.

“You know we were a very young team,” Campbell said. “And I was new. Most of them hadn’t seen me coach. So everyone was a little nervous. They had to learn how to play with each other and had to get to know me.”

Hay admits that she and much of the team weren’t sure what was in store for them when Campbell took over.

“He’s an ex-Marine, so we weren’t too sure what to expect,” Hay said. “But he was definitely well organized and he knew what he was doing.”

In what probably should have been a rebuilding year, Campbell was able to steer his team to the state title behind the netminding of his lone senior, outstanding play from Emily Klein and Erin Hauser, and quality play out of a handful of eighth graders.

While Covenant had little trouble dispatching Atlantic Shores Christian 6-0 in the championship game, the Eagles were put to the test in the semifinals against Wakefield, the team that ended their season in 2007.

“We were out-playing them,” Campbell said. “We deserved the lead but it was still 0-0. We couldn’t figure out how to score. And then in a span of five minutes, Amy Inouye was able to score twice from 25 yards out.”

Getting production out of his younger players made all the difference. While Hay was posting shutouts, players like Inouye, just an eighth grader, were scoring goals.

The Covenant roster boasted more eighth graders and freshmen than it did juniors and seniors. For the Eagles to be successful, Campbell had to get quality minutes out his younger players. He did, and he credits area youth soccer as a major reason why such a young team did so well.

“We had a few exceptional players,” Campbell said. “It helps to have that. But, we owe a lot of debt to SOCA. It’s a super program. It’s an amazing local resource. These kids who come out of it are just very talented.”

Because he felt comfortable with the skill level of his players Campbell was able to focus less on individual drills and more on getting the group to jell, managing his players’ positioning and conditioning.

But while his practices were responsible for his team being game ready, Hay notes that Campbell’s best attribute is his ability to communicate with his players.

“He was really good at telling us what to do on the fly,” Hay said. “He was very good at telling us things in a discussion. He would listen and always offered constructive criticism. He’s really one of the nicest guys, but he’s there to coach.”

Hay’s performance between the pipes may have been the most amazing part of this team.

With Klein’s help at sweeper, Hay posted shutouts in the team’s last seven games.

“For about two weeks after we won I would see some of the kids walking in the hallway and they’d just have this big smile,” Campbell said. “It was just a really great accomplishment.”

Everyone except Hay returns, so those kids — and Campbell — might be smiling the same way next season.