ELLISVILLE – The Jones College Lady Bobcats have established themselves as one of the premier MACJC women’s soccer programs on a yearly basis.
Head coach Dolores Deasley’s Lady Bobcats have captured two consecutive MACJC/Region 23 Tournament championships, qualifying for NJCAA Division I postseason play both years.
Expectations are high once again heading into the Aug. 24 season opener vs. East Central.
“That’s the goal – to keep it going,” said Deasley, who is 126-31-5 and has led Jones to four state championships in her previous 10 years. “As I say to them every year, winning is kind of a by-product of the way you carry yourself on a daily basis. The players get with the game plan, jump on board and see things through.
“If you do everything right and keep plugging at it, you get the rewards in the end and winning, I suppose, is that reward. I’ve been pretty hard on the girls, but they do understand it’s not just about the two years here at Jones and winning championships. It’s about preparing them for the rest of their lives.”
Jones will be a youthful team in 2018 with only six sophomores on the roster.
But the Lady Bobcats do return Aimee Durn (London England) at midfield, Claudia Passeau (George County) at midfield, defenders Erica Gaddie (West Lauderdale and Mary Ann O’Kennedy (Sligo, Ireland), forward Mikayla Banks (Vicksburg) and midfielder/defender Zakiah Almatrood (Biloxi).
Durn earned NJCAA Division I Honorable Mention All-American and All-Region 23 honors last year. Gaddie and Banks were named All-MACJC.
Incoming freshmen are goalkeepers Alexis Wilson (Long Beach) and Skyler Steede (George County), defenders Lucy Critchell (London, England), Caitlyn Dungee (Clinton), Emily Riley (Gautier) and Heather Sullivan (Pearl), midfielder Madison LaFontaine (Pass Christian), forwards Rachel Barnaby (Derry, Ireland), Judith Mills (Pontotoc) and Esmeralda Figueroa (Northeast Jones), forward/midfielders Olivia Simpson (George County) and Anna Grace Gieger (West Jones) and midfielder/defenders Araceli Figueroa (Northeast Jones) and Allie James (West Jones).
“We are young, but we are also eager,” Deasley said. “But everyone is excited to be here. It kind of changes the dynamics a wee bit because we have a bunch of young kids who are excited and want to play.
“On top of that, the sophomores are doing a very good job of stepping up and being leaders. You never know how they are going to mature from one year to the next. Thankfully, they are all stepping up and encouraging the younger players.”
Jones has played three preseason scrimmages, starting with a 3-1 win over LSU-Alexandria.
“We got to get most of the people on the field that night and they got some solid minutes,” Deasley said. “I thought LSUA was decent, but it looked like we were the fitter team in the second half. It was extremely hot and you could tell both teams were drained. But the girls showed a lot of character and they wanted to win that first game at home. They really stepped up in the second half.”
The Lady Bobcats then traveled to West Alabama and posted a 1-1 tie vs. the NCAA Division II foe.
“After watching game film, there were some things we weren’t happy with against LSUA,” Deasley said. “Our goal going to West Alabama was not necessarily to worry about the score, but can we fix some things we wanted to fix?”
“I thought we did well and players at their individual positions all over the field had a lot more discipline than what we did against LSUA. We made mistakes, but I thought it was a positive game for us to get that result against a very strong team. That was a boost of encouragement for them.”
Jones ended scrimmage play with a decisive 6-0 win at Millsaps.
“We didn’t know much about Millsaps,” Deasley said. “But all of the things we had discussed and harped on in the previous two games was a lot better against Millsaps. We got to get everybody in the game again and that was a boost for their confidence going into the season.
“We are building match fitness and we are trying to give everybody an opportunity to show what they’ve got.”
Jones hosts East Central on Aug. 24 and Northwest on Aug. 27 in non-division games to begin regular season play. Both games start at 5 p.m. They open South Division play at Southwest on Sept. 1.
Dealsey said the competition across the state is strong.
“East Central will be tough,” she said. “They’ve got a new coach and I think he will do a very good job. They’ve been building that program for the past several years. That will be a good contest for us. Northwest is very similar. They have been building that program, too.
“But our league is getting stronger across the board. There are no weak teams any more. Every game will be a tough game for us and that’s how we will approach it. Every team is improving with opening up the state in recruiting and being able to accept international kids. That has really helped build our league.”
Assisting Deasley this season will be former Bobcat standout Bridget Coleman.
“We are excited about Bridget coming in,” she said. “She brings a lot of energy. Obviously going through the program, she knows what we are about and what’s expected. She went on to play at a good level at William Carey after she left us.
“She’s younger and I think she can relate to them a little better having come through the ranks of being a student-athlete. She does not have a whole lot of experience, but she is still growing and learning and doing a good job for us.”
Overall, Deasley is pleased with where the Lady Bobcats stand going into the regular season.
“I’m happy with where we are at so far,” she said. “The girls have come in and they are starting to jell really well. They are working hard and taking in everything we are trying to teach them, and applying it for the most part.
“It’s very early, but I’m pleased with our progress.”
The MACJC South Division women’s regular season winner will host the state tournament Oct. 20-21. The top three teams in each division qualify for the postseason.
