Your future, our focus
BY RANDAL HOROBIK
Tribune Sports Editor
Northwest College head soccer coach Rob Hill was named the Region IX Coach of the Year while sophomore Gavin LaFollette was named Region IX MVP. The awards were part of a haul of postseason accolades heaped upon the Trappers’ soccer programs this past week.
“I’m definitely most happy for the players,” said Hill, who directed the Trapper men to a 8-5-2 record and runner-up finish at the Region IX tournament. Hill also oversaw the 2-9- 1 women’s soccer team this year.
LaFollette, a Cody native, finished the regular season tied for the team lead with six goals. He also had four assists after transferring to the Trappers as a sophomore from Yavapai this season. In addition to being named the Region IX MVP, La- Follette was named a first-team midfielder within the region and had his name forwarded to the NJCAA league office for possible All-American award consideration.
Also earning first-team honors was freshman defender Erik Rodriguez, who came to Northwest from Haines City, Fla.
Four members of the Northwest College lineup were second-team Region IX selections. Defenders Brad Ramsey and Shane Scrivner, midfielder Alan DaCosta and forward Leonardo Medeiros were second-team honorees. Forward Jonathon Chavez and midfielder Adrian Elicerio were both honorable mention selections.
All except Chavez are freshmen.
On the women’s side, midfielder Liz Corrigan and defender Jen Berg were each named second- team Region IX members.
“When you figure there’s more than 120 players in Region IX, to have this many kids recognized is pretty awesome,” Hill said. “I’m very pleased and I hope some of them will go one or two steps further next year.”
The Trappers’ coach noted the teams are currently spending time in the weight room and playing indoor ball to keep their footwork sharp. The team hopes to schedule four or five scrimmages in the spring.
The Trappers’ coach is also hard at work recruiting for next season.
“I’m going through videos and resumés right now,” Hill said. “We’re hoping to recruit probably 10-12 women for next season and bring in somewhere between six and eight guys. The important thing is to balance the classes, because we don’t want to be in a position where we have a team full of sophomores one year and have to start from scratch again the next year.”