Girls soccer: All-County team

Coming into her senior year at Whiteland, Emma Gill wasn’t sure if she wanted to continue playing soccer in college.

The season she just had was apparently enough to move her off of the fence.

“The love for the sport was brought back and I knew I still wanted to do for four more years,” Gill said. “It’s a sport I’ve been playing my whole life; I just feel like I didn’t want to quit.”

Fueled by that rekindled love of the game, Gill led the Warriors to an 11-win season and a sectional victory over longtime thorn in the side Columbus North. For her efforts, she is the Daily Journal’s Player of the Year in girls soccer.

Gill had made an immediate impact as an underclassman, scoring 10 goals in her freshman season and nine as a sophomore, but she found another level in her final two seasons, going from a player who leaned primarily on her speed to score on breakaways to one that could make an offensive impact in any situation.

“She’s just one of those kids that got better every year she was in the program,” Whiteland coach Nick Magdalinos said. “You saw her blossom from speedster into attacking player.”

That transition, Gill says, was acclerated by the confidence she gained while playing higher-level club soccer at FC Pride. She became self-assured enough to take more shots and to challenge more defenders one on one.

The results were evident. Gill broke through with an 18-goal junior season and again led Whiteland with 17 more this fall while also tying Alexa LaPorte for the team lead with seven assists. She had three-goal games against Southport and Triton Central.

And as Gill went, so went the Warriors — they were 10-1 in games where Gill scored at least once, including the first-round sectional triumph over Columbus North that saw her put home the only goal of the match.

That 1-0 win was a major benchmark for a Whiteland program that won just one game the year before Gill’s arrival.

“The past three years, I think we would look at Columbus North as a game that we would lose, but we were pretty confident going into that first round of sectionals,” Gill said. “Just being able to beat them shows how much progress we’ve made.”

Gill hopes to continue progressing over the next four years. She’s set to play women’s soccer at Hanover College, which is coming off of a 14-win campaign that ended with an HCAC championship and a trip to the NCAA Division III tournament. The combination of playing for a winner and studying in a top physical therapy program was too much to pass up.

While she’s ready to move on, she’s proud of the imprint she’s left on the Warriors here.

“I feel like I have helped a lot of the girls on the team, with not only playing varsity for four years but also being on a travel team for three years,” Gill said. “I feel like I was a person that they could come to and ask questions about anything on the soccer field, and even outside of the field. I just created many bonds with a lot of girls on the team.”

Magdalinos agrees wholeheartedly.

“She’s about the best kid you could have,” he said.

ALL-COUNTY TEAM

The Daily Journal’s 2023 All-County team in girls soccer:

Brooklyn Brown, Center Grove junior: Strong two-way play helped hold the midfield together for an injury-riddled Trojans team … Scored a pair of goals on the season.

Izzy Cameron, Greenwood Christian senior: Had a team-high nine goals and six assists for the young Cougars … Finished as the school’s career leader in assists with 46 … Will play at Anderson University.

Addie Crowe, Center Grove junior: Helped anchor a Trojan defense that posted five shutouts against a daunting schedule … An All-District and second team All-State selection.

Addison Emberton, Whiteland junior: Earned an all-conference nod in her debut season, posting a school-record nine shutouts and making 129 saves with just 20 goals against.

Madison Fleury, Whiteland sophomore: Helped the Warriors to an 11-win season, scoring seven goals and collecting four assists … An All-Mid-State Conference selection.

Emma Gill, Whiteland senior: County Player of the Year made All-District second team after scoring an area-best 17 goals and contributing seven assists … Will continue her playing career at Hanover College.

Alexa LaPorte, Whiteland junior: Scored seven goals and tied Gill for team lead with seven assists … Earned All-Mid-State Conference recognition.

Mia Marlin, Center Grove freshman: Stepped right in and bolstered the attack for the Trojans, tying for the team lead with five goals and adding an assist.

Lizzy Metzger, Greenwood freshman: Made an immediate impact for Woodmen in her first season, sharing the team scoring lead with 14 goals while adding five assists.

Kylie Smith, Center Grove senior: Earned All-District honors and was honorable mention All-State … Tied for the team lead with five goals scored from the back line, adding a pair of assists.

Taylor Wert, Center Grove senior: Second team All-District pick led Trojans with eight assists … Also scored one goal … County Player of the Year as a junior … Will play at Mercer University.

Joelle Young, Greenwood junior: Earned all-conference and second team All-District honors after pacing Woodmen with 14 goals (tied with Metzger) and six assists.

Honorable mention

Taylor Baier, Center Grove; Bethany Floyd, Whiteland; Bre Gault, Indian Creek; Ava Griffin, Greenwood; Rhianna Hardy, Whiteland; Lily Harvey, Franklin; Norah Herndon, GCA; Seena Lahti, Indian Creek; Mallory Mahin, Greenwood; Mackenna Martin, Greenwood; Aliya Perkins, Whiteland; Audrey Scaramazzo, Greenwood; Izzy Traut, Franklin; Sydney Waldron, GCA; Gabby Wegesin, Greenwood