Looking to sustain a foundation of success with the girls soccer program while also taking it to the next level, first-year Malibu High School coach Jack Craig begins his new job with much anticipation and excitement.
Former coach John Johnstone stepped down over the offseason to pursue other opportunities, following a season in which Malibu missed the CIF playoffs for the first time in five years. In stepped Craig, a 15-year coaching veteran who served as an assistant girls soccer varsity coach at Agoura High and Oaks Christian in the late ’90s and early 2000s.
Craig is excited with what he’s seeing.
“This is exciting for me because we are trying to make a change for the program as far as bringing it back to where it was in 2009,” said Craig. “The girls have really embraced the idea of hard work, sportsmanship and mutual respect for their teammates, opponents and referees.”
Signs of progress were noticeable over the weekend, as the Sharks took second place at the Grace Brethren tournament. Three consecutive shutout victories against Grace Brethren (3-0), Nipomo (2-0) and Fillmore (9-0) sent MHS into the championship game.
A narrow 2-1 loss to Oak Park prevented Malibu from winning the tournament title. Nonetheless, the Sharks are making strides under Craig against a tough gauntlet of worthy opponents. Malibu (4-3) began the season with a 2-0 victory against Rio Mesa. Senior forward Karena Thompson scored both goals in the win. Competitive losses to Alemany, 4-3, and Valencia, 3-1, prepared MHS for the Grace Brethren tournament.
“We have a lot of young energy on the team,” Craig said. “We have a good blend of leadership, experience and new players. The support of everyone at Malibu has been great and we have great backing from the families here too.”
After winning league in 2009 and 2010, claiming a CIF championship in 2010, and reaching the CIF quarterfinals three of the past four years, Malibu came up one point short of making the playoffs in 2013.
Malibu ended the season 9-7-3 overall and 4-6-2 in the Tri-Valley League. The Sharks placed fifth in league—only one point behind La Reina, who made the playoffs.
Craig has high hopes that the team can quickly return to its title-challenging ways this season. He hired assistant coach Alie Contreras, a highly respected coach and former U.C. San Diego player, to help build the program and establish a positive culture.
A trio of captains—seniors Karena Thompson and Jane Sidley and junior Carmen Flood—are expected to provide strong leadership for a talented group.
Thompson, a four-year starter, expects positive results if the team plays to its potential.
“We are excited to see how far we are going to go. We hope to win league this year because last year we didn’t go as far as we expected,” Thompson said. “Our biggest goal is to win CIF so hopefully we can have a ring our senior year. With our new coach, we think we can go pretty far.”
Sidley, who was the football team’s placekicker this past fall, is a four-year starter as a defensive midfielder.
“I think we are going to be very good this year,” said Sidley, a second-team all-league honoree in 2013 who has committed to play soccer in the fall at the University of Vermont. “A bunch of my friends are on the team. We have a new coach and he’s into the program and starting fresh. Trying to win CIF has been my dream.”
Along with Flood, seniors Danica Downing, Erin Samuel and Casey Conrad will patrol the midfield distributing passes among the Sharks’ offense. Downing was named a first-team all-league selection as an offensive midfielder last season.
“This team is very close, more so than the past couple years,” Downing said. “I feel like if we give it our best effort and play the way our coach expects us to, then we will be successful.”
Junior goalkeeper Seaira Moore and sophomore defenders Sasha Savitsky and Britty Walley form the backbone of the Malibu defense. Freshmen Maya Silardi and Francesca Mujic are valuable newcomers on defense and offense, respectively.
