Quickly, name a four-syllable reason Simon Kenton’s girls soccer team is 8-0-1 so far this season.
The answer: seniority.
The Pioneers are off to their best start in coach Hillary Johnson’s three-plus years in Independence and best start since 2015 (when they started 8-0) thanks largely to 10 seniors – Ella Smith, Reese Johnson, Alexis Howard, Niya Johnson, Annika Derks, Meg Gadzala, Macie Bach, Marren Goetz, Meredith Boots and Ellie Bunch.
“We’ve got a great group of 10 seniors,” Hillary Johnson said. “They’re focused, and they’re ready to leave a good legacy on this senior season of theirs. So they’ they’ve been focused and ready to go since Oct. 15th of last year. And it’s showing.”
Wednesday’s 8-0 win at Grant County was the latest example: Smith had four goals and two assists, Gadzala had one and an assist, Bach, Howard and Reese Johnson each scored once, and Boots added an assist.
Smith leads the team with 14 goals, Reese Johnson (no relation to Hillary) has eight, Howard has four, Gadzala has three, and Bach and Niya Johnson (Reese’s cousin and not related to Hillary) have one apiece. Niya Johnson leads the team with six assists, Gadzala and freshman Aniah Zembrodt each have five, Bach and Howard have four, and Reese Johnson and Smith have three.
You may know Howard better for what she’s done in track.
She won the state Class 3A indoor long jump, finished third in outdoor long jump and fourth in outdoor triple jump. What is more, in July she became an AAU Junior Olympic qualifier by finishing seventh in the long jump (with a personal-best 18 feet, 7 ¼ inches) and joined Chris Nowak, Sophia Maki and Alayna Hocker to place 19th in the 4×100 relay.
So, does Howard favor leaping into sand over running on grass or artificial turf?
“It definitely varies by the season; I love both equally,” she said. “ I like (soccer) being a team sport and making a lot of friends on a team, and track kind of the same thing, isn’t it? I mean, track’s a little bit more individual, and I kind of look at that for track.”
Peanut butter peril
Howard said the speed she needs for track helps her in soccer.
“I just have always naturally had speed, and that’s why I joined track because I had speed,” Howard said.
A severe allergic reaction to peanut butter before last year’s Notre Dame game on Aug. 28, 2024 in Park Hills almost cost Howard a lot more.
Simon Kenton’s bus had just arrived at the Pandas’ field when Howard started feeling sick.
“I was rushed to the hospital,” Howard said. “We were getting on the bus to go to the game … and we had gotten a pregame meal.”
Accidental cross-contamination of a smoothie was the culprit. The best news: Howard was back for a 7-1 win over Walton-Verona the following week – she scored two goals and served an assist.
A Panda predicament
Reese Johnson transferred to Simon Kenton after playing at Woodland Middle School; she would’ve been a freshman at Scott this year.
“I would say I love soccer because of everything that it’s taught me that I apply to my real life,” she said. “This year especially; we’ve been working hard since the spring till now, and it’s nice seeing results.”
Smith’s four goals against Grant County was the third time she’s netted at least three – she scored three in a 5-1 win over Ryle on Aug. 11 and another three in a 4-1 victory over Scott on Aug. 20. Smith likes scoring, but it’s not the most important thing.
“Just winning as a team is what … makes me happy,” she said.
Smith and Johnson play on the Kings Hammer SC Midwest team of Covington. Smith committed to Central Michigan in March, and Johnson’s headed for Youngstown State.
A more pressing obstacle, however, awaits: Notre Dame visits Independence at 7:30 p.m. next Wednesday. The Pioneers are 0-26 against the Pandas, including last year’s 5-0 debacle in Park Hills.
It’s especially exciting for Howard – her peanut butter reaction scare kept her off the pitch last year, and inclement weather wiped out the two games before that.
“I haven’t played Notre Dame in three years,” Howard said, “So I’m excited to play them for my senior year.”