A handful of Gardner-area teams have seen turnover in coaching staffs entering into this fall season. One of these programs is Narragansett girls' soccer , which has a fresh, new perspective leading the team this year.
Haleigh Medlin, a Monty Tech alum from Baldwinville, is returning to Gardner-area soccer and is eager to help grow the Warriors' program.
Medlin graduated from Monty Tech in 2017, earning MVP and league all-star recognitions for her impressive soccer career. She continued that career on the pitch at Fitchburg State. Now, she is bringing that next-level experience back to high school, hoping it can help make a difference for the girls of Narragansett.
Medlin first got a taste for coaching last spring when she assisted for the track team. Now, she is head coach of girls soccer and will continue assistant coaching indoor and outdoor track.
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"I think I was able to come in with expectations that are maybe are a little higher than you would typically have for high school soccer, and we set the bar a little higher, so they have that extra goal to reach for and try to achieve," Medlin said.
She plans to take the core of what she learned and experienced at the collegiate level and bring that to 'Gansett, not only challenging her players but giving them a new perspective and routine than they may be used to.
"As far as rigor, I took my college experience and used that as my gauge as how to challenge them and it's been working really well so far," she said. Medlin has also structured practice more like how it was run in college to mimic the routine and work toward an intense and effective training style.
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One of Medlin's biggest focuses is the development of her players, not just athletically but academically. She also teaches in the school and has the chance to see how a positive atmosphere in sport can affect students in the classroom.
"I think when I started coaching track, I saw how much I could create relationships with the girls I was working with outside of school, and how much that was reflecting on their academics in school," Medlin said.
She also recognizes her ability to connect with the girls at multiple levels. At 25, she is not far removed from the environment of high school and college and can connect to her players on a social and emotional level on top of the athletic and academic aspects.
Between her love of the game, passion to improve the players to be multifaceted student-athletes while offering a unique, college-inspired style, Medlin seems to bring it all to the table for Warriors soccer.
This article originally appeared on Gardner News: New Narragansett girls soccer coach brings collegiate perspective to team this season
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