South Bend Saint Joseph Girls Soccer Navigates Early Adversity, Reaches New Heights

Photo byAustin Hough / South Bend Tribune

MISHAWAKA — The South Bend Saint Joseph girls soccer team faced a challenging start to their season, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Penn on August 26 that left their record at a disappointing 1-3. However, since that setback, the Huskies have transformed their performance, showcasing some of the best soccer in Indiana.

With a remarkable record of 11-1-1 in their last 13 matches, the Huskies demonstrated their prowess with a commanding 8-0 victory over Jimtown in the Class 2A sectional quarterfinals. This surge has propelled Saint Joseph to the No. 1 spot in the 2A coaches poll, a position they held for the final three weeks of the regular season and into the playoffs.

Head coach Phil DePauw highlighted the pivotal additions of juniors Kate Ksiezopolski and Kaitlyn Swartzendruber as crucial to the team's turnaround. Ksiezopolski's hand injury sidelined her for the early part of the season, while Swartzendruber awaited IHSAA approval for her transfer from Goshen before she could contribute on the field.

“Those elements helped us coalesce,” DePauw explained. “We were practicing with those players in the summer, and suddenly, they’re gone. We had to re-find our identity early, and once we got those players back, that certainly helped. … We took some knocks early, but adversity tends to pay off if you can find a way to push through that. This team has been really positive and done a great job with that.”

A key strategy for the Huskies has been to jump on their opponents quickly, as evidenced in their recent match against Jimtown, who came in with an impressive 13-2-1 record. Just seven minutes into the game, Saint Joseph established a 3-0 lead with goals from Swartzendruber, senior Lauren Frick, and freshman Maura Green. Frick ultimately led the team with two goals and an assist, emphasizing the importance of setting the tone early.

“It was extremely important, especially because the opponents we hope to play Saturday (in the sectional final) were watching,” Frick remarked. “Not only were we setting the tone for this game, but we’re setting the tone for the next games we hope to be playing in.”

Reflecting on their earlier defeat to Penn, Frick noted that the experience highlighted areas for improvement, particularly in offensive strategies and defensive execution against high-quality teams.

“It definitely showed us what we needed to work on,” she said. “We realized we needed to work on forward plays and just running straight doesn’t do anything when you’re playing against a good, fast team. We realized, defensively, that we needed to work on defending free kicks.”

Looking ahead, the Huskies are focused on their upcoming semifinal match in Sectional 18 against New Prairie (4-11). A successful outing would set up a potential showdown against Mishawaka Marian (11-3-2), ranked No. 3 in the final 2A poll, for the sectional title. Marian faces John Glenn (9-6-1) in the first semifinal on Thursday.

DePauw stressed the importance of staying grounded and not getting ahead of themselves. “You can’t live in the past or the future. One of the hardest things for kids – and anybody – is to not be thinking about things other than what’s right here in the moment. … It’s easy to start looking at a matchup with Marian, but we’ve both got things to accomplish on Thursday. Otherwise, that doesn’t happen.”