Sophie Small “has been instrumental in the success of leading the girls’ soccer program this year,” said John Cowan, coach of the Huntsville High School girls’ varsity soccer team.
The team’s striker, she also plays the same position for the Huntsville U18 Rep soccer team. She has played volleyball as a Hoya and hockey for the Huntsville Sting, but soccer is one of her true passions.
Small began learning the game six years ago and picked up skills quickly. She wanted to score after stealing the soccer ball every time from her opponents.
Now, she is the leading goal scorer for the Hoyas with 16 goals in total over the course of the 2019 season.
“Sophie has a very competitive side in her that she will take on the fastest runners to win the ball,” says Cowan.
Sophie Small (in blue) loves to challenge her opponents (supplied)
One of Small’s most successful plays is the ‘dump and chase’.
“My favourite part about soccer is definitely sprinting after the ball,” says Small. “Since I’m fairly fast, I can beat most of the defense to the ball which gives me the opportunity to take a shot.”
“Her accuracy and speed of her shot is outstanding,” adds Cowan.
Sophie Small (centre, in yellow) became a top player in just six short years in the game (supplied)
The Hoyas recently won the Muskoka Parry Sound championship. They will compete at the Georgian Bay Secondary Schools Association championships in Bradford on Tuesday, May 28, where they aim to earn a berth at the OFSAA provincial championships again this year. Small was on the team that went to OFSAA last year, and hopes to end her high school soccer career there this year.
Small plans to try out for the soccer team when she attends post-secondary school, but in the meantime she will continue to play hard for her U18 Rep team for the 2019 season.
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