Lewis up to first season challenge

BY SHANE HENNIGAN
Times-Shamrock Writer

Mountain View’s girls soccer team began practice Aug. 11 without an official head coach.

A few days later, the Lady Eagles finally had their leader, as Erika Lewis, a 2009 Mountain View graduate and former All-Region player, was named the coach.

Lewis quickly had to acclimate herself to the team and build a trust with her players.

She achieved both quickly and by season’s end, the Lady Eagles were once again Lackawanna League champions and District 2 Class A champions.

For that, Lewis has been named The Times-Tribune All-Region Girls Soccer Coach of the Year.

“She was always positive, which definitely helped on and off the field,” Hannah Richner said. “She always smiled and kept the vibes extremely good.”

The Lady Eagles rolled to a 7-0 start that saw them outscore their opponents, 52-1, and post six shutouts. But they would slip in their regular season finale to Montrose, a 1-0 defeat that also snapped a 43-game regular season league winning streak.

But Lewis kept their focus on the task at hand and the Lady Eagles rebounded to defeat Lakeland to win the Division III crown before posting three straight shutouts to claim a fourth consecutive district title.

All the while, she was able to relate to her players and form a unique relationship.

“It was so nice because she pretty much just experienced what we’re going through,” Richner said. “With the small age gap and her being so young, it was easy to relate to her and I think that was an advantage in the end.”