By: Olivia Wallace 

     This fall your Eisenhower Girls are doing their best to win big. Eisenhower has four high school girls sports teams – girls soccer, girls cross country, volleyball, and cheerleading. 

     The girls soccer team is coming off a 6-8-1 season, with a playoff loss to Mercyhurst Prep. The Knights lost three starting seniors, but gained a few new players. The team has five seniors with lots of experience and is returning eight of eleven starters. The girls did face trouble, though, when their head coach had to resign a few weeks before the season started. The assistant coach and former Eisenhower player, Faith Johnson, stepped up. The Squire asked captain, Tracey Jakubczak, about the team’s goals, and she commented, “The goal for this season is to go to playoffs, but more importantly have fun and always have positive energy no matter the outcome of games and what happens at practice.” 

     The cross-country team works hard every season to run well as a team and as individuals. The team has experienced coaches of Mrs. Beach, former Eisenhower P.E. teacher, and coach Shrecongost. The team is working to be able to run 5 kilometers and qualify for districts. When interviewed senior, Emily Grosch, commented, “Having experienced coaches really benefits us because it helps us to know that we can trust what our coaches are telling us and know that they are doing what’s best for us as individual runners and as a team.” 

     The Knights’ Volleyball team made the first round of the playoffs last year, with a winning record. They won their first game of the season in three sets against rivals, Youngsville. The volleyball team may be difficult to catch with their schedule containing twelve away games and only eight home games. All home games take place in the Eisenhower gymnasium with junior varsity at 6:00 and varsity follows. The Squire interviewed Eisenhower Volleyball Captain, Caroline Smyth, about the team’s goals for the season. She said, “My goals for the volleyball team this year is to be competitive…It would also be nice to get to playoffs, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” 

     The cheerleading team is very important to Eisenhower sports. Even though they are not competing just yet, they play an important role on Fridays. If you attend a home football game, expect to hear the cheerleading team on the sidelines. For the most important game of the year, homecoming, they will be joined by mini cheerleaders, who are trained by the varsity cheerleaders. Aliza Olsen was asked what the team does to prepare. She commented, “We practice cheers, stunts, and band dances.” 

     Stay updated on all of your girls sports at Eisenhower Middle/High School (bigteams.com). All schedules are posted, and any cancellations can be found on BigTeams. You can also view recaps, reminders, and themes at “ehspigpen_1” on Instagram.