By Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – Emma Cooper and Regan Steigleder have garnered most of the attention on the West High soccer team the past several seasons.

The senior duo has demonstrated time and time again the past three years why that has been the case.

Sophomore Rachel Olson demonstrated in Friday’s meeting with cross-town rival City High why she shouldn’t be forgotten.

Olson scored the first goal of the match on a blast from outside the box to help 3A second-ranked West High to a 2-0 win over No. 11 City High.

To those that watch Olson daily like the team’s two senior superstars, the long-range shot came as no surprise.

“We always joke about how she boots the ball so far,” Steigleder said. “Coach always tells her that her range is from midfield and just to shoot it. She has great ability and I can’t wait to see how she progresses as a player.”

A pair of division I signees that rank among the state’s best players, Steigleder and Cooper have combined to score 13 of 15 goals for unbeaten West High this season.

The other two goals have come from Olson, the fourth and fifth of her career.  

None of those goals have been bigger than her lofting shot against City High that snapped a scoreless tie with six seconds left in the first half.

“I think that was kind of a back breaker mentally,” West High coach Dave Rosenthal said. “In a rivalry game like this the emotions are one of the things that you try to take advantage of.”

If opponents weren’t taking notice of Olson prior to Friday’s match with City High they likely will be.

The shot from distance caught the attention of City High coach Michael Prunty.

“It was a good shot, I think she definitely meant to score the goal, it wasn’t just a hit and hope,” City High coach Michael Prunty said. “She is a good player.”

In the mind of Olson her performance against City High was less about standing out on a team full of stars and more about getting a win.

The sophomore did both as West High won its seventh straight to open the season while posting its fourth shutout.

“It means a lot,” Olson said. “No matter what City is always going to be a hard game because it’s a rivalry and you are playing against some of your best friends. It feels so good to be able to win this game because it’s one of the most important games of the season.”

Record Setters: Two of the top goal scorers in the state for the past four years Josie Durr and Hannah Bormann took their spots on top of the all-time scoring lists at their schools this week.

Bormann set the Clear Creek Amana record for career goals with four in an 8-0 win over Benton Community on Tuesday.

Bormann has 16 goals on the season, giving her 112 for her career. The senior has 43 career assists, two away from the school record.

Durr became Solon’s all-time leading scorer with six goals in a 7-0 win over Anamosa on Friday.

In nine matches this season Durr has scored a state-leading 40 goals, giving her 148 for her career.

The 40 goals for Durr this season are six away from her state-best 46 goals last season and 21 more than any other player has scored this season.

Challenge Accepted: Nobody at Regina planned on opening the season 1-3.

The Regals also knew what they were getting into with a loaded schedule made up of ranked teams from larger classes.

Class 1A fourth-ranked Regina dropped to 1-3 on the season with a 2-1 loss to 3A No. 9 West Des Moines Dowling on Saturday, its second loss to a ranked 3A opponent.

The other loss for Regina came to 1A second-ranked Waterloo Columbus.

Regina hasn’t lost more than six matches in any of its previous four seasons but the Regals have accepted the challenge of the daunting schedule.  

“I like these games because it is going to make us better for later in the season,” Regina junior Lauren Gaarde said. “It’s early on and we don’t have the best record but getting our new players experience and showing them what it’s going to be like against the best teams I think is going to be good for us.”