Girls Soccer: Hermanson’s Been Here Since Day 1

Lincoln-Way West senior midfielder Kylie Hermanson can remember the unique beginning of her high school soccer career. She was a member of the Lincoln-Way West team, but was attending Lincoln-Way Central because West hadn’t opened yet.

Now, a few years later, she’s hoping to help the Warriors get back on the winning track, so they can finish the season strong and head into the post-season with some momentum.

The Warriors feature 11 players on their roster who are freshmen and sophomores, so Hermanson has become somewhat of a coach on the field, something she enjoys, especially on the vocal end. In addition to Hermanson, Emily Kowalski, Ashley Sichak and Kalin Winans are the team’s only seniors.

“I’ve been trying to get my team to be closer to one another, and I talk to them a lot, so I guess I’m pretty vocal,” Hermanson said. “With only four seniors, you basically have to be leader and connect them with everything to be aware of.”

As someone who has played plenty of soccer since she turned 5 years old, Hermanson considers herself to be more of a technical player. Such an atttribute continued to bode well for the team this spring.

“I feel like I’ve gotten to know the game over the years, so I can step in and help the younger players understand their roles,” she said. “And it’s something I like to do.”

Lincoln-Way West's Jeff Thiess has coached Hermanson for the past four years, beginning during her freshman year.

“She’s done a great job and been a captain,” Thiess said. "She’s really provided a nice backbone for the program.”

Hermanson, who will attend and play soccer at Joliet Junior College next season, has also proven to be a scoring threat on the field. During a 2-1 loss to Stagg on Wednesday, she knotted the score at 1-1 when she connected on a free kick from approximately 30 yards away.

“She can do a lot of damage, especially with free kicks and corner kicks,” Thiess said. “Against Stagg, she just buried it.”

The Warriors only have a 2-7-1 record, but a closer look at the quality of competition gives a better idea of what kind of team they really have this spring. They will compete as a Class 2A team once the state series playoffs begin, but they won’t play any 2A teams during the regular season.

The Warriors have a pair of 1A teams on the schedule in Wilmington and Peotone, but their game against Wilmington on Friday was postponed due to rain and likely won’t be rescheduled until May at the earliest, and that’s only if the teams can agree on a makeup date.

Other than those two matches, the Warriors have taken their lumps against a schedule chockfull of Class 3A teams. It’s resulted in some lopsided losses, including an 8-0 decision to Homewood-Flossmoor and 7-0 setback to Lockport, but it also has featured some big wins against Bloom and Joliet West and a draw against rival Lincoln-Way East.

“This really has been a great group that never gets down on themselves, never makes excuses and never points the finger,” Thiess said. “A lot of that comes from Kylie (Hermanson) and the others who have been a part of the team for awhile now and they have set their goals high and want to win a regional title.”

But first the Warriors want to win some regular-season games, beginning with a couple on Saturday morning against Peotone and Crete-Monee in the Warrior Invite and then next week in the Plainfield North tournament.