Wildcats earn seven spots on all-league soccer team

By Andy Brown
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Updated: June 10, 2024

***The Louisburg girls soccer team had seven players selected to the All-Frontier League team.***

It was a special season for the Louisburg girls soccer team, one that ended with 13 wins, a regional championship and an appearance in the state quarterfinals.

With all that success comes postseason awards and the Wildcats were well-represented on the All-Frontier League team.

Louisburg earned seven spots on the All-Frontier League list that was released last week, including three first team selections. Junior Rowan Yows (midfield), senior Hailey Sword (defense) and senior Lexi Hampton were named to the first team.

Juniors Baileigh Johnson (forward), Jaden Bentz (defense) and senior Macy Lemke (goalie) were second-team selections, while sophomore Mena Fercho (midfield) was an honorable mention selection.

Yows had a strong season to lead the Wildcats in the midfield as she was third on the team with 12 goals scored, but also led Louisburg with 17 assists.

“Rowan is the engine of our team,” Louisburg coach Ben York said. “Coming off an all-state scoring season from a year ago, she settled into a role for us this year that mainly revolved around distribution. She racked up 17 assists for us running the midfield, all while fighting back spasms for a large portion of the season.”

Sword was a big part of the Wildcat defense that set a school record for goals against with 14 and did so making a position change before the start of the season. She also tallied three goals and two assists.

“Hailey was a team captain this year and our best leader on the field,” York said. “A late injury to a teammate forced her to play center back for us. She excelled in the role, all while we were transitioning into playing with two centerbacks from a sweeper/stopper formation from last year.”

Hampton had a strong season herself as she was the team’s leading scorer with 17 goals on the season to go along with six assists from her forward spot.

“Lexi was a team captain this year.,” York said. “She continued her ability to find the net this season and has a knack for getting goals. This season we asked her to play a target forward and she did a great job, all while playing with a broken wrist for over half the season.”

Bentz was another key piece to the Wildcat record-setting defense as an outside back and limited dangerous chances all season.

“Jaden is the best on ball marker I have, and she has instincts that make her very difficult to beat,” York said. “She is a quiet leader that just goes about her business and does her job well.”

In goal, Lemke had another strong season as a second-year starter. The Wildcat senior had 44 saves to go along with just 14 goals allowed and also had seven shutouts.

“Macy was also a team captain this season,” York said. “She had 44 saves, which is definitely as a result of our defensive efficiency this season. She developed as the season went along into someone very reliable playing out of the back with her feet.”

Johnson was the team’s second leading scorer as she was third Wildcat to earn second team honors. The Louisburg junior added 15 goals and also had four assists on the season.

“This was a breakout season for Baileigh,” York said. “She played a number of positions for us depending on the need. She is beginning to understand the game at the next level and she was probably our most dangerous forward for most of the season.”

In the midfield, Fercho was a key piece to the Wildcat attack and found success throughout the season. She tallied seven goals and seven assists on the year.

“She was the go to player on the outside of the midfield for us,” York said. “She replaced a senior from last year who was very dangerous for us and she did a great job. Not only on the outside, but we also were able to utilize her as a center midfielder as well. Her and Rowan play extremely similar games and play well together.”