Russellville University's soccer team is looking to build on its winning start to the season. The RHS boys team has been one of the top teams in the state every season, and the girls team has steadily improved to become a dominant team in the area. Russellville boys and girls share Class 5A Area 8 with Ardmore, Brewer, East Limestone, Lawrence County and West Point.
boys
The Russellville boys have the potential to be strong again in 2024 under the leadership of head coach Trey Stanford. Golden's Tigers' roster includes his 12 senior players, with the experienced players joined by a group of talented young players. The team is aiming for more consistent play this season as well.
“It's had its ups and downs,” Stanford said recently of the season so far. “We have a lot of seniors, but we're a relatively young team in terms of cohesion. They haven't played together as long as our teams in the past. They're trying to learn to play together. But we've had some injuries. When we had a few guys out with injuries, we went for about five or six weeks.”
Stanford has been a leader in the program since its inception, with assistants Fred Ambrosio and Gabriel Ramirez joining him. Ambrosio is also a long-time member of the staff, and Ramirez joined the RHS team this year after previously coaching at Tharptown.
girl
The RHS girls team is led by second-year head coach Daraney Roberts. This year's Golden Tigers have three seniors: Nadia Mendez, Ermelina Ponce and Gloria Sopp.
“All three are very talented players,” Roberts said. “All three of them are starters and are important parts of our offensive offensive line. They'll have big tasks ahead of them next year. I'm sure they'll always push the girls to get better and push them to get better themselves. I feel like it sets the mood.”
The team has already completed most of its schedule and the future looks bright. “This has been a really successful year in many ways,” Roberts said. “We don't always look for success on the scoreboard. We look for success in other ways as well. We're a young team. We're making a big transition from a JV program to a varsity program. With the strain of playing at the varsity level and the greenness of not playing at the varsity level because there was a need. Depending on the opponent, varsity games can be faster games, faster games, And it's usually a more talented game. Despite our age, a lot of girls rose to the occasion.”
Upcoming activities include the RHS girls team at East Limestone on April 4th, host Brewer on April 9th, host Florence on April 11th, Tharptown on April 16th, Brewer on April 19th, and Moves to Ardmore on April 22nd.
