Storm saves, scores for SJCP girls soccer in season-opening win
Aug. 31—BUCKEYSTOWN — Kaylee Storm typically occupies the left side of the midfield for St. John's Catholic Prep girls soccer, and indeed that's where the senior was for much of Thursday's season opener against Key School.
But for the final 20 minutes of the first half, Vikings coach Hugh Hatfield told Storm to put on a yellow pinnie and head between the pipes to give regular starting goalie and fellow senior Kristina Hindle a breather.
Storm has been Hindle's backup for all four years, but rarely does she get to showcase her versatility like she did in Thursday's 2-0 home win. Storm made five saves before returning to the midfield and potting a second-half goal.
"I try and be a better athlete," she said. "Be strong, fast, do what I can to change the game."
In the first half, that meant staving off a trio of tough-angle shots by the Obezags to keep the match scoreless and bail SJCP out of what had been a sloppy stretch of play to begin the afternoon.
She was so strong in net that some of her teammates initially mistook her for Hindle.
"My defense did not notice I went in. They were like, 'Storm? Oh, OK,'" she said, laughing.
And in the second half, she returned to her natural spot in the midfield, where she nearly broke the ice on a breakaway in the 47th minute.
Eventually, Storm added an insurance tally in the 67th minute to cap her season debut.
"Awesome," Hatfield said of her versatility. "Being able to plug her in like that is huge."
Storm is one of eight seniors on the squad, most of whom were around when the Vikings won the IAAM C Conference championship in 2021. Though Storm missed most of that season with an ankle injury, she said being part of that team helped her class understand what it takes to win.
And after a middling 2022 campaign, SJCP feels Thursday's victory could be the start of competing for another conference crown.
"It's just building off what we did from that year," Hatfield said. "It's been working forward, doing the small stuff correct, the passing ... it's starting to show a little bit."
The main dilemma has been playing a complete 80 minutes. Though teams are often tentative in the first game of the season, the Vikings looked sluggish for stretches of the first half.
But soon, their passes became more crisp, they worked more in space and they began producing more shots on goal. The final stretch against Key looked like the type of soccer SJCP wants and needs to play to get back in contention.
"We just needed to kind of balance out in the beginning and read the game," sophomore midfielder Sydney Wilson said. "In the second half, we always come back stronger."
Wilson joined Storm on the scoreboard with a 50th-minute strike. Junior Reagan Hough and sophomore Julia Riordan each picked up an assist on the afternoon.
But Storm took the spotlight thanks to her saves and score. That utility role is one she relishes, and she hopes her efforts help the Vikings return to being elite.
"We're now finally building our confidence back up," she said. "If we try and give it our best, we can go for it."
