Four years have brought plenty of changes to the Hightstown girls soccer team.
Gracie Klim, though, has been a staple for the Rams.
A starter since her freshman year, the senior midfielder is now a captain for a Rams team with elevated expectations under its third new coach in three years.
“I have been very excited,” Klim said. “Having a new coach, this experience has been awesome. We are learning a new way to play the game, which I haven’t had in the last few years. So everything has been really positive. The team as a whole, we are learning new things every day. And I’m so happy that I get to be a part of this team for at least my final year and just enjoy every moment with my teammates.”
Klim is a vital piece for a Hightstown team with a mix of classes. She is one of nine seniors and hopes to duplicate or better the nine-win season she enjoyed as a freshman, when the Rams had another big senior class. Hightstown has since won a total of seven games over the previous two seasons, but had five losses decided by only one goal, plus a tie.
“I did have very high expectations this year,” Klim said. “I think the potential that we have as a whole is really being shown this year. We always had it. I just think now we have the right game plan that we’re able to utilize and it’s becoming very successful, and each time, each practice and every day, we just continue to grow together as a whole which makes me very excited for the rest of the season.”
Taking over Hightstown this year is soccer guru Rick Meana, who has nearly three decades of experience as New Jersey Youth Soccer director of coaching. Last February, he was honored for his contributions to developing coaches and players as a New Jersey Hall of Fame Everyday Hero selection. Now he’s bringing his coaching philosophy to the Rams.
“This season we’re having our growing pains on the varsity level,” Meana said. “The kids are being introduced to a new way of playing. Rather than playing just soccer, I’ve told them that there’s a mindset to football, which is really what it’s called, and how you approach the game, the style of play, the attitude that you play with and the three things that we always mention – maximum effort and energy and be a good teammate and compete no matter what the score is – and things work from there.”
He’s gotten quick buy-in, from his first meeting at Kreps Middle School with the rising freshmen to his work with the returning players. More than 50 players then tried out in the preseason, producing a solid core to work with on varsity and JV.
“I’m just so pleased with the commitment level, but also with the talent that they brought, the ability and hope for the future which for me is important,” Meana said. “And so I think the future looks bright from that standpoint.”
Klim is looking to make the most of her final season of scholastic soccer. She’s also an integral part of the Hightstown girls lacrosse team, which has had a pair of strong seasons and is primed for another good year. She’s hoping to attend college in the South, where she could continue playing at the club level.
“Being my last season, I’m just trying to embrace and savor every moment I have with my teammates because I’ll never play with them again,” she said. “Some of these girls I have played with for like the past 10 years. We’ve formed really close bonds. So I’m trying to work as hard as I possibly can because I want this to be one of the best seasons that I’ve had, but also make the most of it while I can.”
Klim helps connect the team as a leader and a player. She’s the Rams’ speaking captain this year, and fellow senior Karlie Smith is another team captain who was honored last year by the Colonial Valley Conference for her defensive prowess. Klim has played a lot of attacking center midfield, but moved back to defensive center midfield this season in a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to Hamilton that dropped Hightstown to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in the CVC Valley Division early in the season.
“Gracie is who everybody looks up to,” Meana said. “She is a midfielder. She can play as the 10; she can play as the 6. I had her and Reese (Thompson) playing as a double 6 and I thought that we shut down their top player. I think we did a good job of shutting her down. She didn’t beat us; everybody else other than her beat us, which I take that as a positive. Their top player did not beat us so we did a good job of, I think, neutralizing her.”
Hightstown has been playing with a little more of a chip on its shoulder. The Rams have been working to prove themselves at both ends. Offensively, there’s been a big boost in scoring. After scoring 18 goals all of last season, the Rams had 15 through the first five games this season.
“I’m pleased with the fact that we are scoring goals,” Meana said. “I’m pleased with the fact that we’ve been, for the most part, connected as a group and we’re just not what I saw last year in the film was a lot of just defensively not being compact, not staying compact, just being stretched out all over the field. And not only that, but we’re playing a lot more riskier. I’m asking them to be courageous and brave.”
Meana is preaching ball control and using and supporting each other. It starts with playing out of the back after stops from the defense and goalies Bella Oliva, a senior, and Alycea Terranova, a junior. The midfield has been important in connecting in transition, and the offense has to finish.
“This year we are definitely a lot more connected between defense, midfield, and attack,” Klim said. “We are helping each other out more. We’re figuring out how to be better at off-ball positioning for our teammates to be able to make those runs, give each other those through balls, and find those team passes up top to be able to get those scoring opportunities.”
Cara Dworacek got her sophomore year off to a strong start with a team-leading six goals in the first five games. Lilah Johnson, a senior, and freshman Noah Beck both had three goals apiece in the early going. Thompson, Taylor Sweeney and Klim also had goals. Emilie Gatzemeyer, Tessa Roberts, Elisa Sumba-Morocho and Maria Yunga Villacis all supplied assists for an improved offense.
“We’ve been able to have success building out from the back and really utilizing everybody on the field to be able to bring the ball up, keep it up there, which is giving us those scoring opportunities,” Klim said.
Klim has had a steady role in the midfield. This year, she’s tried to be even more of a role model as a captain. It’s her first time as captain of the soccer team, though last year as a junior she was a captain for the Hightstown lacrosse team. Soccer has always been her favorite sport, but she’s invested fully in whichever sport is in season and balances her commitments with working as a server at Tavern on the Lake and her studies. It’s a busy final high school year that’s beginning with soccer.
“I have always had a role in the midfield to keep everybody on the same page and to give us those scoring opportunities,” she said. “Being named captain, I have stepped further into that role and now I’ve always been very vocal on the field, but now I know that the girls, they chose me as their captain, so they see something in me and they look up to me. So I try my best to fill that role and always uplift them and push them to be better, and I hope that they do the same to me.”
Hightstown is banking on a total team effort to send its nine seniors out with a great year. Klim is enjoying a chance to play soccer one more season with classmates Smith, Johnson, Oliva, Angy Aquino, Solange Gallardo Dardon, Kylie Gulli, Kimberly Jarama and Peyton Kochberg.
“It’s made it so special because I’ve gotten to see all of them grow from when we were little to now,” Klim said. “Even the girls that I just met freshman year, some of them in my grade, we were able to all learn new things together and grow as one. It’ll just be really nice to see everyone go their separate ways and be successful, but always have the part of Hightstown soccer that brought us together.”
They’re hoping they can look back fondly on their senior season and know that they helped turn around the Rams’ fortunes. Hightstown will be leaning on their leadership this fall as the seniors set the tone for future success.
“The addition of having Coach Rick has been phenomenal, and leaving, I know that the younger girls will be in great hands with him and it just makes me so much more excited for them because I hope that they have a wonderful high school soccer experience,” Klim said. “I made the most of it and I hope they do too. But leaving, I know that they will be just fine and will continue to be successful, and I hope the program grows and that more people continue to join because the more people, the better.”
