Donegal senior defender Hannah Weyland
MOUNT JOY – She’s tough as nails on the defensive end and she kick-starts Donegal’s high-powered offense from her center-back spot.
She is Indians’ senior Hannah Weyland, and she’s part of a solid returning nucleus for Donegal’s two-time reigning PIAA Double-A Spring Championship girls’ soccer team.
Weyland played a huge role in the Indians’ repeat last spring. She scored the game’s lone goal in Donegal’s 1-0 win over Trinity in the state title game, as the Indians got some major payback after the Shamrocks defeated Donegal in the District 3 championship game.
Donegal lost some major weapons from that team – Jenna Hunter, Jovita Richardson and goalie Kayleigh Hershey to name a few – but the Indians returned some major talent this spring, like Weyland, Emily Green, Jamie Hunter, Kirsten Gochnauer and Alyssa Gower, to name a few.
Gochnauer had three goals in Donegal’s win over Pequea Valley on Friday, as both teams had to cope with a steady wind and chilly conditions.
“This feels like a new team; a different team,” Donegal coach Heather Kemp said after Friday’s victory. “We lost half the team from last season (9 seniors departed), so this group wants to prove that they can do this. So yes, the hunger is still there.”
So far so good for Donegal, which has only been tripped up once in the early going – by rival Lancaster Mennonite.
“I think we’re doing the right things and I stand behind what we’re teaching the kids,” Kemp said. “Our kids have a lot of desire and they have the skills to execute.”
Kids like Weyland, who will continue her career at Messiah College, where Kemp played. But before she heads to Grantville, she’d like to help Donegal make run at a three-peat. Only one team has won more than two outright spring state titles in a row: Central Bucks West won four in a row from 1993-1996.
After Donegal’s victory on Friday, I chatted with Weyland about what the last two seasons have been like, what it took to win back-to-back state championships, how this season’s team is dealing with bull’s-eyes and expectations, about her future at Messiah, and about the state of the Indians’ program, which is on a gigantic up-swing at the moment.
Enjoy.
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