When Jon Lipsitz took over as head coach of UK’s women’s soccer team before the 2009 season, he brought with him the mentality that his team would start with defense.
“We really see the game as building from the back,” Lipsitz said. “If you’re not strong in the goal, you’re going to have a big problem starting out.”
In just his second season on the job, Lipsitz’s philosophy and system are already beginning to pay dividends. UK enters Southeastern Conference play this week against Florida having already surpassed last season’s win total (five) with a record of 6-2-0.
One of the key reasons behind UK’s strong start has been the play and leadership of senior goalkeeper Syndey Hiance, who this week was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season and a school-record sixth time in her career. Hiance and a stingy Wildcat defense posted their second and third consecutive shutouts against Evansville and South Alabama to close out non-conference play with two wins. Kentucky, with Hiance’s help, has yet to allow a goal at home this season.
Hiance’s position is one that naturally calls for leadership, since goalkeepers are typically responsible for communicating with the coaching staff, making key defensive calls and aligning defenders.
“It makes sense for me to lead the team and help organize (as a goalkeeper),” Hiance said. “It’s really easy for me to see everything that’s going on because it’s all directly in front of me.”
However, leadership is not a quality that comes instantly and easily for everyone. Hiance started at keeper her first two years on campus and was successful in the role. Lipsitz, though, upon taking over, immediately recognized that Hiance was capable of taking her game to the next level.
“Sydney has been a tremendous leader for us, but when I first got here, she struggled to take a leadership role,” Lipsitz said. “Now, she’s really embraced it. I’ve really pushed her to not just be a keeper.”
Goalkeepers are often thought of as separate from field players, occupying a position that call them to be in correct position and make a few saves a game. Lipsitz observed that mentality in Hiance and, having manned the keeper position in his playing days, encouraged her to shed that attitude.
“When (the new coaching staff) got here, she was not very fit,” Lipsitz said. “She saw herself as someone that sort of stood back there and made saves. What she did in the offseason this year was get herself very fit. That gives confidence physically and also mentally.”
That growth in confidence has been instrumental to Hiance’s growth as a leader, allowing her to assert herself much more freely. Additionally, confidence goes a long way for a keeper because the position is not one for the faint of heart.
“You have to be not afraid of getting hurt; confidence is huge,” Hiance said when asked about what it takes to be a successful keeper. “If you go out there looking like you’re scared, the other team is going to exploit you right away.”
Lipsitz sounded much the same when he talked about the most important trait of a goalkeeper.
“You have to have a presence in the box,” Lipsitz said. “The other team has to know that if the ball gets to you, you’re coming for it.”
Hiance’s blend of fitness and confidence makes her one of the best to ever play at UK. Her two shutouts last week brought her career total to 19, good for third on the school’s all-time list with more than half her senior season left. Her goal against average of 0.63 is a career low, besting her average of 0.69 last season.
“A lot of my improvements have come along with the new coaching staff,” Hiance said. “We are focusing on a different style of play than I played my first two years and it’s allowing me to be much more successful. I really give credit to my goalie coach Aaron Rodgers. His instruction has been incredible.”
Hiance also cites the on the job experience she gained during her first three years on campus as a major factor in her development.
“I remember as a freshman not knowing what was going on at all,” Hiance said. “I’ve been there before, so I know ‘Oh, this is what’s going to happen.’ It makes my job a lot easier and I have a lot more fun because I’m not caught off guard.”
Ironically, Tyler Beadle is in the exact same position as Hiance three seasons ago. Beadle is the starting goalkeeper for UK’s men’s soccer team in his freshman season, replacing departed all-conference performer Dan Williams.
However, Beadle had the benefit of spending a season watching Williams from the sideline in 2009 during a redshirt year, something that Beadle partly credits for winning a four-man preseason battle for the starting keeper position.
“The redshirt year helped a lot spending a year behind Dan,” Beadle said. “It really helped me get used to the speed of the game in college.”
Only six games into his college career, Beadle has shown a great deal of talent playing for a team that is young across the board. He has posted shutouts in three of his seven outings, with a goals against average of 1.29. The majority of the goals he has allowed came in a loss to No. 6 Connecticut last weekend and a 3-2 overtime loss to Michigan on Wednesday in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Beadle, though inexperienced, is gaining confidence in his role as leader of UK’s defense.
“I am getting more comfortable with with the leadership role,” Beadle said. “It’s a process of gaining my teammates’ respect and building a comfort level with them.”
The next challenge for the youthful Wildcats is a stretch of four road games out of five, which began Wednesday in Ann Arbor against the Wolverines. Beadle had four saves and Ellis Vienne scored a 90th-minute goal to send the game to overtime before Michigan scored an overtime goal.
The loss is UK’s second overtime defeat in a row and third of the season. There have been close calls throughout, but Beadle is excited for the rest of the year.
“We are a young team,” Beadle said. “I look for us to click better and better as the season goes along.”
